Balay Ko Foundation

The Balay Ko Foundation is one of California's most consequential new private funders in housing and food insecurity — and one of the least accessible through conventional grant-seeking methods. Founded in 2022 by Scott and Amie Godfrey following Scott's record $699.8 million Powerball jackpot win in October 2021 (California's largest-ever lottery prize), the foundation holds $135.9 million in assets and channels approximately $6.7–$7.1 million annually to California nonprofits addressing homelessness and hunger. Its name — 'Balay Ko,' meaning 'My Home' in Tagalog — reflects a deeply personal, hands-on giving philosophy.

President Amie Godfrey and Secretary Scott Godfrey conduct their own due diligence, visit grantee sites, and initiate relationships themselves. The foundation's IRS 990 program description states plainly: 'We do our own research for grant recipients and do not return solicitations by mail, telephone, or electronic means.' This is not a disclaimer — it is the actual operating model. Every documented grantee relationship is multi-year: all top-tier recipients have received 3 grants each, and mid-tier recipients 2. The Godfreys ask 'What's next?' — ECHO was approached this way, leading to the orchard conversation that produced the Atascadero Family Resource Center commitment. This reveals the foundation's posture: they show up to existing relationships and ask what would be possible with more support.

First-time alignment strategy requires geographic and sector precision. Of 39 documented grants, 37 went to California organizations, overwhelmingly in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. The handful of Los Angeles grants (First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, The Center in Hollywood, My Friends Place, all at $100K) may reflect personal connections or careful pilot outreach beyond the Central Coast base.

Organizations best positioned for relationship development are those already embedded in the Santa Barbara or SLO County nonprofit ecosystem. Partnering with or being formally connected to existing Balay Ko grantees — Food Bank of Santa Barbara County, DignityMoves, ECHO, Good Samaritan Shelter, Santa Barbara Rescue Mission — increases the probability of organic introduction. Community visibility at local events where the Godfreys appear also matters. The path to this foundation runs through demonstrated excellence and ecosystem embeddedness, not through proposal writing.

The foundation's grantmaking reveals a highly concentrated, top-heavy structure in which three anchor relationships account for approximately 70% of the $21.6 million in total documented giving across 39 grants.

Top tier — multi-million anchor investments (3 grants each): Food Bank of Santa Barbara County leads at $6.9 million total, averaging roughly $2.3 million per grant. DignityMoves, which develops modular interim supportive housing communities, received $5.7 million across 3 grants (approximately $1.9 million per award). Good Samaritan Shelter received $2.6 million across 3 grants (approximately $857,000 each). These three organizations together account for $15.2 million of the $21.6 million total.

Mid tier — established multi-grant relationships ($500K–$1.4M): ECHO received $1.38 million (3 grants); SLO Food Bank $1.2 million (3 grants); Salt Light $930,000 (3 grants); First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood $787,000 (3 grants); Santa Barbara Rescue Mission $650,000 (3 grants).

Entry tier — smaller and newer relationships ($100K–$313K): Transition House Shelter ($313,537, 3 grants), East San Gabriel Valley Coalition ($275,000, 3 grants), Community Action Partnership of SLO ($200,000, 2 grants), PATH of Santa Barbara ($150,000, 1 grant), New Beginnings ($125,000, 1 grant), 5Cities Homeless Coalition ($100,000, 1 grant), Food Finders ($100,000, 2 grants), The Center in Hollywood ($100,000, 1 grant), My Friends Place ($100,000, 1 grant).

Average grant across all 39: $553,403. Given the top-heavy distribution, the median sits closer to $275,000–$313,000. The $100,000 floor appears consistent — no documented grant falls below that threshold.

Fiscal year consistency is notable: total giving held at $7.1 million in both FY2022 and FY2023, with grants paid (990 line item) of $6.7 million in 2022. Net investment income of $3.66 million covers approximately half of annual grantmaking, with the remainder drawn from the $139.4 million endowment. No charitable contributions are received — this is a purely private foundation deploying capital from the original Powerball lump sum of $496 million.

All grants in the record carry the designation 'GENERAL SUPPORT' — no restricted project grants, formal matching challenges, or capacity-building awards appear. This unrestricted, trust-based model signals the Godfreys prioritize organizational flexibility and strong leadership judgment over programmatic control.

The database surfaces five asset-comparable foundations in the $135–137 million range by endowment size. These are financial peers but operate in different states and sectors, limiting direct thematic comparison:

Among California-based homelessness and housing funders compared by mission rather than asset size, Balay Ko's $7.1 million annual giving sits meaningfully above typical community foundation grant cycles for individual grantees — but well below mega-funders like the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation or Blue Shield of California Foundation, which each deploy $30 million or more annually in homelessness-related work. Balay Ko's distinctive competitive edge is its willingness to commit naming-rights-level capital to physical infrastructure — the Atascadero Family Resource Center represents the full building cost of the ECHO expansion — a depth of partnership most foundations at this asset level do not demonstrate. For Central Coast nonprofits in housing and food security, Balay Ko is arguably the single most impactful available private funder, with a grantmaking rate (annual giving as percentage of assets) of approximately 5.1%, squarely at the private foundation mandatory distribution threshold.

The most significant recent development is the Balay Ko Family Resource Center, a full building funding commitment to El Camino Homeless Organization (ECHO) in Atascadero. The Godfreys broke ground on October 6, 2025, alongside more than 150 attendees at a ceremony where ECHO announced the Building Hope & Home Capital Campaign — a $6 million, three-year initiative with over half already raised at launch. The two-story, 7,200-square-foot modular facility will add 30 private family rooms adjacent to ECHO's existing Atascadero shelter, including a workforce training classroom, children's activity room, counseling offices, and shared living areas. The project represents a 20% expansion of ECHO's shelter capacity and is expected to serve over 300 individuals and families currently on the waitlist. On March 18–19, 2026, seventeen modular units from Bevyhouse were delivered and installed on-site, with facility completion projected for October 2026.

In July 2025, the foundation publicly gifted Veggie Rescue a brand-new refrigerated van, announced at the Solvang Fourth of July parade alongside Grimmway Farms. This smaller infrastructure gift signals the foundation's flexibility to fund tangible operational equipment, not only large capital construction.

No leadership changes have been announced. Amie Godfrey continues as President; Scott Godfrey as Secretary; Karen Obert serves as Treasurer at $12,000 annual compensation — a lean structure with virtually all assets deployed to mission. The foundation received its IRS ruling in August 2024 and is now entering its third year of active grantmaking. No new RFPs, program cycles, or public application windows have been announced as of April 2026, fully consistent with the invitation-only model.

The single most important piece of advice for any organization hoping to engage the Balay Ko Foundation: do not send a proposal. The foundation's policy is stated explicitly in both its IRS 990 filings and its website — unsolicited contact will not receive a response. This is not modesty. Sending a cold email to thebalaykofoundation@gmail.com or calling (805) 464-7148 to request funding will not yield a grant and may foreclose future relationship-building.

Build for discoverability, not solicitation. The Godfreys conduct their own research. Publish outcomes data prominently on your website (beds added, meals served, families housed, pounds of food rescued). The Santa Barbara Independent, Atascadero News, and A-Town Daily News all cover Balay Ko-funded projects — local press coverage of your work is the channel the foundation monitors.

Use alignment language drawn directly from their mission. Frame all public communications around 'housing and food insecurity for people experiencing homelessness and/or hunger' — the exact phrasing in the foundation's mission statement. Emphasize California geographic footprint and Central Coast presence specifically. Statewide or national scope framing is a misalignment signal.

Demonstrate 'What's next?' ambition. The ECHO relationship grew because the organization articulated a transformational next-stage vision when asked. Prepare a clear, compelling answer to: 'If resources were not a constraint, what would you build or do next?' This should be a specific capital or operational expansion with measurable capacity impact — not a program theory or strategic plan document.

Timing and cycles. There are no formal grant deadlines or review windows. Relationships deepen continuously. The foundation is now in its third active year and demonstrably expanding its footprint into SLO County and, cautiously, into Los Angeles — indicating openness to new organizational relationships.

Common mistakes to avoid. Sending any unsolicited outreach (fatal to future prospects). Framing around programmatic theory rather than direct physical and human outcomes. Emphasizing regional or national scope over local embeddedness. Organizations primarily outside Santa Barbara and SLO counties should make any Central Coast connection explicit and prominent.