Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc
Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc is a Milwaukee-based public charity that supports Wisconsin charities and the Tavern League’s SafeRide program. The Foundation is the charitable arm of the Tavern League of Wisconsin, a trade association for licensed beverage retailers.
Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc at a glance
In short: Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc gave $334K across 22 grants in 2025 (avg $15K), mostly in Wisconsin. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $333,952
- +4.2% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 22
- -12.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $15,180
- +18.4% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $12,655
- Total assets
- $1,005,728
- +19.4% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- Wisconsin (100% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated September 2026.
How to apply to Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc
- Contact
Mailing address: 11801 W Silver Spring Drive 200, Milwaukee, WI 53225
Phone: (608) 270-8591
Website: https://tlw.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Columbia County Tavern League Inc ($38K). Together the top 10 received $238K.
Grant Size Distribution
111 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 110 grants of 111 (99%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
All grant dollars itemized for filing year 2025 went to recipients in Wisconsin. The Foundation’s website describes its charitable support as serving organizations and people in need in Wisconsin communities.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 22 itemized grants.
Cities
How Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc gives
- 82% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (−2%). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990 filings (2025). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $319K (2021) to $662K (2019). In 2025 it made 22 grants totaling $334K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Columbia County Tavern League Inc Rio, WI | Saferide Program Assistance | $38,342 |
| Lacrosse County Tavern League Foundation Inc Chaseburg, WI | Saferide Program Assistance | $32,091 |
| Oshkosh City Tavern League Foundation Inc Oshkosh, WI | Saferide Program Assistance | $29,167 |
| Brown County Tavern League Inc Green Bay, WI | Saferide Program Assistance | $27,027 |
| Manitowoc County Tavern League Foundation Inc Milwaukee, WI | Saferide Program Assistance | $26,993 |
| Sauk County Tavern League Foundation Inc Milwaukee, WI | Saferide Program Assistance | $19,595 |
| Wood County Tavern League Foundation Inc Milwaukee, WI | Saferide Program Assistance | $19,007 |
| Kenosha County Tavern League Foundation Inc Milwaukee, WI | Saferide Program Assistance | $15,504 |
| Oneida County Tavern League Foundation Inc Milwaukee, WI | Saferide Program Assistance | $15,318 |
| Chippewa County Tavern League Foundation Inc Milwaukee, WI | Saferide Program Assistance | $14,984 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
The Foundation’s reported financials were:
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $1,005,728 | $1,338,686 | $1,204,262 | $333,952 | 22 | $11,039 |
| 2024 | $842,200 | $1,210,647 | $1,094,864 | $320,562 | 25 | $2,370 |
| 2023 | $744,984 | $1,099,206 | $870,364 | $334,403 | 23 | — |
| 2022 | $540,244 | $654,484 | $795,453 | $339,087 | 21 | — |
| 2021 | $667,257 | $724,325 | $922,441 | $319,347 | 20 | — |
| 2020 | $810,526 | $977,548 | $866,401 | $495,133 | 1 | — |
| 2019 | $668,445 | $819,110 | $742,558 | $662,412 | 1 | — |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
The Foundation’s filing describes two areas of work: supporting a statewide SafeRide program that provides free rides home to patrons of member taverns, and providing financial support to taverns and safety education through various media. The filing also says the Foundation receives two grants from the Department of Transportation: one reimburses county tavern leagues for SafeRides, and the other supports SafeRide media. Those are funds received by the Foundation, not grants it gives.
The Foundation’s website describes a Matching Funds Program through which it matches a local tavern league’s donation to a local charity, up to $1,500. It also says the Foundation provides financial support for thousands of Wisconsin charities.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the Foundation reported 22 grants totaling $333,952. Grant amounts ranged from $5,800 to $38,342, with a median of $12,655. The largest listed grants were:
The Foundation’s website describes matching support as being directed through local tavern leagues.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists these officers and directors:
- Keith Kern — President
- Cathy Vales — Senior Vice President
- Donn Amundson — Northern Zone Vice President
- Bob Carpenter — Central District Vice President
- Jennifer Collison — Southern Zone Vice President
- Vinny Egle — Eastern Zone Vice President
- Keith Koehler — Southern District Vice President
- Nancy Lorbetske — Northern District Vice President
- Don Mjelde — Eastern District Vice President
- Paul Salzwedel — Central Zone Vice President
Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc is led by Keith Kern, President since 2022 (on filings since 2019); none of the 39 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Keith Kern
President
Director → District Director, 2020
District Director → President, 2022
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Mark Jefferson
Executive Director
On filings since 2024
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Eric Christenson
District Director
Director → District Director, 2020
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Judy Vandenhouten
District Director
Director → District Director, 2023
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Lorie Helm
District Director
Director → District Director, 2020
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Mark Rehwinkel
District Director
Director → District Director, 2020
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Daniel Swiecichowski
District Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Mark Puetz
District Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Sharon Ward
District Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Tim Groth
District Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Doug Claussen
District Director
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Mike Celt
District Director
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Chuck Anderson
District Director
On filings since 2022
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Kathy Proffitt
District Director
On filings since 2022
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Sharon Kingston
District Director
On filings since 2022
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Art Dabaere
District Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Ben Brunette
District Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Doug Korth
District Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Judi Malone
District Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Russ Fisher
District Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Cait Finley
District Director
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Dave Hills
District Director
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Wendy Coey
District Director
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Greg Hunter
District Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jeff Dallman
District Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jenny Mallcore
Class A Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Michelle Peroutka
District Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Mike Hauser
District Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Donn Amundson
Northern Zone Vice President
Director → District Director, 2020
District Director → Northern Zone Vice President, 2021
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
$150 (2022) → $0 (2025)
Keith Koehler
Southern District Vice President
Director → District Director, 2020
District Director → Southern District Vice President, 2021
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
$150 (2022) → $0 (2025)
Nancy Lorbetske
Northern District Vice President
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
$150 (2022) → $0 (2025)
Bob Carpenter
Central District Vice President
Director → District Director, 2020
District Director → Central District Vice President, 2022
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Cathy Vales
Senior Vice President
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jennifer Collison
Southern Zone Vice President
Director → District Director, 2020
District Director → Southern Zone Vice President, 2022
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Kris Zappa
Secretary
District Director → Secretary From, 2023
Secretary From → Secretary, 2024
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Paul Salzwedel
Central Zone Vice President
Director → Central Zone Vice President, 2020
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Todd Giraud
Treasurer
Director → Treasurer, 2020
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Don Mjelde
Eastern District Vice President
District Director → Eastern District Vice President, 2022
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Vinny Egle
Eastern Zone Vice President
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (34)
- Former: Diane Schwartz (2019–2025) — District Director · Filing note: Thru apr 2025
- Former: Tim Tomchek (2019–2025) — Eastern Zone Vice President · Filing note: Thru apr 2025
- Former: Jim Billings (2023–2025) — District Director · Filing note: Thru apr 2025
- Former: Chris Marsicano (2019–2024) — Past President
- Former: Renee Peterson (2019–2024) — District Director
- Former: Jerry Hinderman (2021–2024) — District Director
- Former: Ray Garreau (2022–2024) — District Director
- Former: Lori Frommgen (2019–2023) — District Director
- Former: Terri Buman (2019–2023) — District Director
- Former: Erin Farrar (2021–2023) — Secretary
- Former: Richard Karrasch (2023) — District Director
- Former: Tina Conley (2023) — Managing Director
- Former: Douglas Korth (2019–2022) — District Director
- Former: Pete Madland (2019–2022) — District Director
- Former: Rich Karrasch (2019–2022) — District Director
- Former: Russell Fisher (2019–2022) — District Director
- Former: James Billings (2020–2022) — District Director
- Former: Judith Vandenhouten (2020–2022) — District Director
- Former: Vinson Egle (2020–2022) — District Director
- Former: Karie Krantz (2021–2022) — Managing Director
- Former: Scott Stenger (2022) — District Director
- Former: Dan Taivalkoski (2019–2021) — Southern Zone Vice President
- Former: Raymond Bruch (2019–2021) — District Director
- Former: Erin Pulaski (2019–2020) — Secretary
- Former: Jennifer Gunning (2019–2020) — Northern Zone Vice President
- Former: Jim Pickett (2019–2020) — Southern District Vice President
- Former: Terry Harvath (2019–2020) — Past President
- Former: Thomas Dahlan (2019–2020) — Treasurer
- Former: Bradley Schinke (2019) — Director
- Former: Debra Seibel (2019) — Director
- Former: Gene Loose (2019) — Eastern Zone Vice President
- Former: James Seliger (2019) — Director
- Former: Jerry Day (2019) — Director
- Former: Thomas Wenzel (2019) — Director
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Compensation Overview
From 2022 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2022 filing was $150, to Donn Amundson (Northern Zone Vice President). 3 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc
How much does Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc give each year?
Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc gave $334K across 22 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $321K across 25 grants.
What is Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc's typical grant size?
Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc's median grant in 2025 was $12,655, and its average grant was $15,180, across 22 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990.
Where does Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc give grants?
Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc gives mostly in Wisconsin: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990 went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Milwaukee, WI (12 grants).
Does Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 22 grants with a stated purpose on Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc's 2025 IRS Form 990 were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Saferide Program Assistance" (22 grants).
Who are Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc's largest grantees?
Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc's largest 2025 grantees include Columbia County Tavern League Inc ($38,342), Lacrosse County Tavern League Foundation Inc ($32,091) and Oshkosh City Tavern League Foundation Inc ($29,167), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. Together they received 30% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc?
Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc reported $1.0M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $1.3M.
What does Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc fund?
The Foundation’s filing describes two areas of work: supporting a statewide SafeRide program that provides free rides home to patrons of member taverns, and providing financial support to taverns and safety education through various media. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc?
Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Check tlw.org for current guidelines, or contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.
What is Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc's EIN?
Wisconsin Tavern League Foundation Inc's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 39-1450149. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(8)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS March 4, 2020)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS April 22, 2021)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 16, 2022)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS April 24, 2023)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS April 3, 2024)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS April 29, 2025)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS April 13, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2019–2025
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