Prospect Creek Foundation

Private foundation · EIN 41-1736420 · since 1993·California, Minnesota·Updated 13 October 2026

At a glance

$4.9M

Annual giving, 2024 tax year

From the Form 990-PF filing

$1,000 to $75,000

Grant range

From grants in the 990-PF filings

$5,000

Typical grant (median)

20 grants in the latest filing

Open to applications

Rolling, no deadlines · unsolicited applications welcome

Key takeaways

The filing shows a varied record of giving to schools and education bodies, arts and cultural organisations, hospitals and health organisations, conservation groups and other community charities, mostly for operational purposes, so a small charity working in one of these areas has a reasonable basis to approach it.
About 8 in 10 of its 90 grants to organisations fall between $1,000 and $75,000, and the median was $4,000, so a modest request in the low thousands fits its usual pattern, though that band is typical rather than a ceiling given its largest grant of $3,000,000 to Schwab Charitable.
Apply in writing with supporting materials that set out your charitable purpose; the filing gives no deadlines and says it accepts applications, so timing is flexible.
Repeat giving is a notable part of its pattern, with 38% of its grant dollars to organisations going to groups it had also funded in earlier filings.
No geographic focus is stated and no exclusions appear in the filing, so the grants mainly in California and Minnesota describe past giving rather than a limit on who may apply.

Overview

Prospect Creek Foundation is a US private foundation based in Wayzata, MN.

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

Across the recorded grants, its giving went to schools and education organisations, alongside arts and cultural organisations, museums, orchestras, public media, hospitals and health organisations, land and conservation bodies, and other community charities. Most grants were recorded for operational purposes, rather than a more specific field. Recipients also included universities, a zoo, a historical society, a crisis nursery and a fire department. The record therefore shows support for a varied range of charitable organisations, rather than a single named cause. One grant was designated for a breast oncology programme; the filing does not establish this as a broader priority. No general funding fields or applicant groups are stated in the material reviewed.

Geographic Focus

No geographic focus is stated; the filings show grants mainly in California and Minnesota.

How to apply

Submit a request in writing with supporting materials indicating its charitable purpose.

Application success factors

Repeat giving: In its TY2024 filing, 38% 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 90 grants to organisations were $4,000 or less.

Where grants go

From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2024.

Grant dollars by state

California51%

Minnesota48%

New Jersey<1%

Pennsylvania<1%

Illinois<1%

District of Columbia<1%

2 other states: <1%

The largest single recipient received 31% of grant dollars to organisations.
In tax year 2024, 38% of grant dollars went to organisations Prospect Creek Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
No grants were paid directly to organisations outside the US.
30% of grant dollars went to intermediaries that regrant to other organisations.

Grants

20 grants in the latest filing analysed · median $5,000

How much do they typically give?

Share of 20 grants in tax year 2024 by size

$1k–$2.5k20%

$2.5k–$5k25%

$5k–$10k25%

$10k–$25k10%

$25k–$50k5%

$50k–$100k0%

$100k–$250k0%

$250k–$500k0%

$500k–$1M5%

$1M and over10%

Median $5,000 (tax year 2024)

The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:

Schwab Charitable · Operational
$3,000,0002024 tax year
Great MN Schools · Operational
$1,200,0002024 tax year
Summit Academy · Operational
$550,0002024 tax year
Princeton University · Operational
$25,0652024 tax year
Minneapolis Institute Of Arts · Operational
$20,0002024 tax year
Blake School · Operational
$15,0002024 tax year
ETC Foundation · Operational
$7,5002024 tax year
Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra · Operational
$5,0002024 tax year

Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.

Officers and directors

Elizabeth Atwater Connolly — Director
H B Atwater JR — Director
Martha Clark Atwater — Director

From the latest Form 990-PF filing

3 years of tax filings

Year	Total expenses	Grants paid	Assets	Filing document
2022 tax year	$1,582,601	$1,559,420	$31,638,811	Filing for 2022 tax year
2023 tax year	$3,527,250	$3,482,728	$29,041,039	Filing for 2023 tax year
2024 tax year	$4,888,852	$4,858,565	$25,103,006	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

Registers and filings

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