Frank McHugh-O'Donovan Foundation
At a glance
This funder does not accept unsolicited applications. The foundation chooses the organisations it funds itself.
Key takeaways
- The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests and gives only to organisations it has preselected, so a cold application is unlikely to be considered, and the filing sets out no further steps for getting onto that list.
- If your work is in schools and education, environmental conservation, the arts, social services or animal welfare, those are the areas its grants have reached, though no geographic focus is stated and its recorded giving is concentrated in California and Virginia.
- Most of its grants are modest: about 8 in 10 fall between $10,000 and $400,000, half of its 84 grants were $50,000 or less, and the median was $50,000, so a request near that size fits its usual pattern even though its largest grant was $4,500,000.
- In its latest filing, 45% of its grant dollars to organisations went to groups it had also funded in earlier filings, so an existing connection may matter more than a new proposal, and a small charity without one should not expect an invitation.
Overview
Frank McHugh-O'Donovan Foundation is a US private foundation based in Wilmington, DE.
What they fund
Profile based on the foundation's IRS Form 990-PF filings (TY2024, TY2023, TY2022) only: no website or other web source for the foundation was found. Every statement is checked against the filings. Sources read on 7 October 2026.
Priority Areas
The filings show grants to schools and education initiatives, including school construction, campus facilities, child-focused learning, and free eye examinations and glasses. Other recorded support reaches environmental conservation and restoration, including habitat protection, river work, and school greening; arts and theatre activity; social services such as homelessness support and services for people with developmental disabilities; and animal welfare and humane education. Recipients include schools, educational and community organisations, conservation groups, cultural institutions, social-service providers, and animal-welfare organisations. Grants include both project-specific awards and general support. Recorded giving is concentrated in California, with some grants to organisations elsewhere.
Geographic Focus
No geographic focus is stated; the filings show grants mainly in California and Virginia.
How to apply
The foundation gives only to preselected charitable organisations and does not accept unsolicited requests; no further application steps are stated in the filing.
Application success factors
- Repeat giving: In its TY2024 filing, 45% of its grant dollars to organisations went to organisations it had also funded in its TY2022 or TY2023 filing.
- Grant size: Across its TY2022, TY2023 and TY2024 filings, half of its 84 grants to organisations were $50,000 or less.
Where grants go
From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2024.
Grant dollars by state
3 other states: <1%
- The largest single recipient received 38% of grant dollars to organisations.
- In tax year 2024, 45% of grant dollars went to organisations Frank McHugh-O'Donovan Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
- No grants were paid directly to organisations outside the US.
- <1% of grant dollars went to intermediaries that regrant to other organisations.
Grants
How much do they typically give?
Share of 32 grants in tax year 2024 by size
Median $19,750 (tax year 2024)
The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:
- Nature Conservancy · Protecting the San Andreas Corridor$400,0002024 tax year
- Focusing Philanthropy · General & Unrestricted$323,0002024 tax year
- Friends of the Los Angeles River · The FoLAR Resilience Lab at the Harvard-Westlake River Park Campus$200,0002024 tax year
- Stella Adler Theatre · ACTion/Outreach Scholarship fund and General Support$160,0002024 tax year
- Antelope Valley Conservancy · Joshua Tree Woodland Preservation Fund$140,0002024 tax year
- Colettes Children Home · Homeless Shelter Program (HSP)$100,0002024 tax year
- Los Angeles Arboretum Foundation · Arboretum Visitor Plaza Entrance Project$100,0002024 tax year
- Ventura County Farm to School · General Support and Program Activities for 2024-2025 school year$100,0002024 tax year
Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.
Officers and directors
- Theresa M McHugh — Director, Secretary, Vice President
- Patricia McHugh — Director, CEO
- Celina McHugh — Director
From the latest Form 990-PF filing
3 years of tax filings
| Year | Total expenses | Grants paid | Assets | Filing document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 tax year | $6,681,171 | $5,236,000 | $93,331,016 | Filing for 2022 tax year |
| 2023 tax year | $10,058,989 | $8,694,000 | $83,898,232 | Filing for 2023 tax year |
| 2024 tax year | $3,858,804 | $1,950,000 | $87,466,114 | Filing for 2024 tax year |
Figures from the foundation’s IRS Form 990-PF filings. Assets are at fair market value at year end. The document icon links to each year’s filing on ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.
Sources
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At a glance
Applying to Frank McHugh-O'Donovan Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- Wilmington, DE
Applying to Frank McHugh-O'Donovan Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- Wilmington, DE