Abundant Life Foundation

The Abundant Life Foundation is a Henderson, Nevada-based private family foundation established in June 2014 under the stewardship of the Knudson family. Joseph C. Knudson serves as President, Kenneth C. Knudson as Secretary/Treasurer, and Leann R. Knudson as Director — all without compensation. Additional volunteer directors (Carla Burton, Joyce Steed, Mary Hammon, and Gordon T. Zitting in some filing years) complete the governance structure.

Unlike most grantmaking foundations in the $40M+ asset range, the Abundant Life Foundation operates as a highly concentrated, single-purpose philanthropic vehicle. Every documented grant on record has gone to one organization: The Work of Jesus Christ (EIN 86-0669664), an Arizona-based Christian religious ministry. This is not a foundation with a competitive grant program — it functions as a dedicated funding mechanism for a single, ongoing ministry relationship.

The foundation's database record is explicitly flagged as 'preselected_only: true,' confirming that grantees are chosen through relationship rather than application. No grant portal, RFP, letter of inquiry process, or application deadline has ever been publicly disclosed. This is consistent with the Form 990-PF filings, which show zero employees and zero officer compensation — the Knudson family personally manages all aspects of the foundation.

The foundation has grown substantially since its 2013 founding, with assets expanding from approximately $1 million to $42.5 million by FY2024. This growth was driven primarily by major contributions in FY2020 ($15.35M) and FY2021 ($10.61M), most likely from a single donor or family wealth transfer event. The foundation now generates sufficient investment income — approximately $4.5M per year — to fund grantmaking without relying on ongoing external contributions.

The core giving philosophy is deeply personal and faith-driven. The sole beneficiary — The Work of Jesus Christ — signals that the Knudson family is channeling charitable resources specifically to advance Christian religious mission in Arizona. First-time applicants from outside this existing relationship should approach with clear-eyed expectations: this foundation is not designed to receive or evaluate unsolicited proposals, and gaining entry would require a direct personal connection to the Knudson family and strong alignment with Christian religious ministry work in Arizona.

The Abundant Life Foundation has followed a steep upward trajectory in grantmaking since its founding. In FY2014, the foundation paid out just $51,000 in grants. By FY2015, that reached $104,000. Available filings show $625,000 in FY2019, approximately $600,000–$634,000 in FY2020, then accelerating sharply: $1.25M in FY2021, $1.75M in FY2022, $2.05M in FY2023, and approximately $2.1M in FY2024 — the largest single year on record.

Total documented giving across all available years approximates $8.6 million, virtually all directed to The Work of Jesus Christ. The foundation's top-grantee data shows three discrete grants totaling $3.6 million to this single recipient, with an average grant of $1.2 million. Grant sizes have scaled with the foundation's asset base rather than with program-specific criteria, growing from five-figure awards in 2014–2015 to seven-figure awards by 2021.

The grant category is exclusively 'General Support' — there is no evidence the foundation has ever funded restricted projects, capital campaigns, or program-specific initiatives. This general support posture is consistent with a deeply relational, trust-based grantmaking model where funder and grantee share a pre-existing mission alignment and the funder does not require programmatic accountability reporting.

Geographically, all known grantees are in Arizona, despite the foundation's Nevada mailing address and Utah-area-code contact phone. This suggests the Knudson family's philanthropy is anchored to a specific faith community or ministry network in the Arizona region.

On the asset side, the foundation's balance sheet grew from $1.0M (2013) to $42.5M (2024), a 42-fold increase. Assets dipped marginally from $39.4M (FY2022) to $39.2M (FY2023) before rebounding $3.3M to $42.5M in FY2024, reflecting strong investment portfolio performance. Net investment income in FY2023 was $1.76M; investment income in FY2024 likely approached $4.5M based on reported revenue composition.

The payout rate — approximately 5% of assets in FY2023–2024 — aligns with IRS minimum distribution requirements for private foundations, suggesting the Knudson family calibrates giving to meet legal obligations rather than deploying excess capital aggressively. With the investment portfolio now generating more annual income ($4.5M) than the foundation disburses in grants ($2.1M), assets are likely to continue growing.

The following table compares the Abundant Life Foundation against five asset-comparable private family foundations identified in the same size tier:

Among the peer set, Abundant Life Foundation is the only one with well-documented, publicly traceable annual grantmaking — primarily because its consistent 990-PF filings capture a clear single-grantee pattern. At $2.1M in annual giving from a $42.5M asset base (approximately 5% payout), it meets the IRS minimum distribution threshold without exceeding it.

What most distinguishes Abundant Life Foundation from comparably sized family foundations is the absolute concentration of its giving: one grantee, one category (General Support), one geography (Arizona). Most foundations in the $36M–$48M range, even when family-governed, diversify across multiple program areas and grantees. Abundant Life's model more closely resembles a donor-advised fund directing assets to a single cause than a traditional multi-grantee foundation program.

Public records reveal limited but consistent recent activity for the Abundant Life Foundation. The FY2024 Form 990-PF, filed September 10, 2025, reports total assets of $42.5 million — a $3.3 million increase from FY2023's $39.2 million — and charitable disbursements of approximately $2.1 million. This is the foundation's largest single year of grantmaking to date. Revenue for FY2024 reached $5.53 million, with investment income accounting for approximately $4.5 million (81.4% of total revenue), reflecting continued strong portfolio performance.

No leadership changes appear in recent 990 filings. Joseph C. Knudson has held the President role continuously since the foundation's founding in 2014, and Kenneth C. Knudson remains Secretary/Treasurer. The volunteer board composition has remained stable at six to seven directors across recent filing years, with the Knudson family holding three of the seats.

No press releases, media coverage, or public announcements from or about the Henderson, NV Abundant Life Foundation were found for 2025–2026. The foundation does not appear to maintain a public-facing social media presence, a grantmaking website, or an active communications program — which is entirely typical of family foundations operating as private philanthropic vehicles.

The only external confirmation of recent grantmaking comes from CauseIQ's analysis of the FY2024 990-PF, confirming a $2.1 million general support grant to The Work of Jesus Christ — continuing an annual grantmaking relationship that has now persisted without interruption for over a decade.

For the vast majority of grant seekers, the single most important tip about the Abundant Life Foundation is this: it is not a foundation that accepts or evaluates unsolicited applications. The foundation is explicitly flagged as 'preselected_only' in grant databases, no application instructions have ever been publicly disclosed, and every grant on record across more than a decade of filings has gone to a single grantee. Submitting an unsolicited proposal wastes resources and is unlikely to receive a response.

For the narrow category of organizations that believe they may have a genuine pathway — specifically, Arizona-based Christian religious ministries with a connection to the Knudson family — the following guidance applies:

Mission alignment is the threshold requirement. The Abundant Life Foundation's entire documented history is religious in nature, funding Christian ministry exclusively. Organizations that are secular, policy-oriented, or merely faith-adjacent should not approach this funder. Only explicitly Christian religious ministries belong in the consideration set.

Geographic fit matters. Despite its Nevada address, all known grantmaking targets Arizona-based organizations. Operating in the Arizona region — particularly metropolitan Phoenix — meaningfully improves fit.

Build the relationship through the Knudson family network. With no staff and no formal process, any pathway to funding runs through President Joseph C. Knudson or Secretary/Treasurer Kenneth C. Knudson. The most viable route is a personal introduction via mutual faith community, church network, or Arizona ministry contacts — not cold outreach.

Use phone, not email. No contact email is on public record. The phone number on file — (801) 531-9100 — is likely a personal or family office line. A brief, respectful introductory call is the appropriate first contact.

Avoid the listed website. The URL abundantlifefoundation.org belongs to an unrelated international development organization in Roatán, Honduras. Using it will not connect you to the Nevada foundation.

Expect an informal, relationship-driven process. Even if the Knudson family expresses interest, do not expect a formal proposal structure. Have your IRS determination letter, most recent audited financials, Form 990, and a brief organizational narrative ready to share on request.