Donum Dei Foundation Inc.

Donum Dei Foundation Inc. — Latin for "Gift of God" — is a tightly held family foundation established in Summit, NJ in November 2014 by James M. McCormick, who serves as President and Treasurer alongside Ann T. McCormick (Vice President, Secretary) and Brian T. McCormick (Trustee). All three officers serve without compensation and the foundation employs zero staff. Administrative coordination flows through JP Morgan Chase's private banking division, with James Largey listed as the administrative contact — a structure common to high-net-worth family foundations that outsource back-office functions.

The IRS classification as accepting grants only from preselected charitable organizations is the defining constraint for prospective grantees. There is no published application portal, no annual RFP, and no stated eligibility criteria. The foundation's website (donumdei.org) does not resolve to a foundation-specific page, confirming that public outreach is structurally absent from its operating model.

The 10-year grantee record reveals clear preferences. Donum Dei is a repeat-relationship funder: Trinity Missions has received 9 grants totaling $720,000; St. John's Soup Kitchen 6 grants totaling $745,000; and the Catholic Foundation for Eastern South Dakota 4 grants totaling $890,000. These figures show the McCormicks identify trusted partners and fund them year after year at meaningful levels rather than spreading smaller gifts broadly.

The giving universe is almost exclusively Roman Catholic in character. Catholic educational institutions (Saint Francis Xavier School, Mount Saint Mary Academy, Rice Memorial High School, Seton Hall Prep), religious orders (Dominican Nuns, Franciscan Friars, Maryknoll Fathers), and mission organizations (Trinity Missions, Little Workers of the Sacred Hearts) comprise the overwhelming majority of the portfolio. A small secular tier — Doctors Without Borders ($50,000), CARE ($50,000), American Red Cross ($40,000), Gary Sinise Foundation ($20,000) — suggests the McCormicks respond to major humanitarian crises and military-community needs, but view general social services through a faith-based lens.

For organizations seeking entry, the only viable path is a warm relationship through Catholic institutional networks in New Jersey, Maryland, or South Dakota. Cold outreach to the foundation has no documented track record of success, and the JPMorgan administrative layer further insulates the family from unsolicited contact.

Donum Dei Foundation Inc. has maintained consistent annual grantmaking of $1.99M–$2.46M since 2019, with a modest upward trend: $1.99M in both FY2019 and FY2020, rising to $2.18M (FY2021), $2.29M (FY2022), $2.11M (FY2023), and $2.34M in FY2025 (the most recent year with filed data). All giving is funded entirely by investment income — dividends ($1.18M in FY2025) and realized capital gains ($932K in FY2025) — with zero new contributions received since at least FY2019. The endowment originated from a ~$29.7M gift in FY2014 that grew assets from $12M to $38.5M in a single year.

Grant sizing spans a wide range. The median grant is $50,000, with an average of approximately $94,783–$113,483 across the full grantee history. The practical single-year range runs $10,000 (Mercy Chefs, Community of Franciscan Friars) to $1,000,000 (Friends of Newark Monastery Inc., a single transformative gift). Cumulative multi-year totals for core grantees are substantially higher: $890,000 to the Catholic Foundation for Eastern South Dakota across 4 grants, $780,000 to Saint Francis Xavier School across 4 grants, $745,000 to St. John's Soup Kitchen across 6 grants, and $720,000 to Trinity Missions across 9 grants. In FY2025, with 19 grants averaging ~$123,000 each, the foundation appears to be concentrating more capital into fewer, deeper relationships.

All grants are coded as general operating support — no program-restricted, capital campaign, or project-specific grants appear anywhere in the recorded history. This makes Donum Dei an unusually flexible funder and signals that organizational trust, not program design, drives award decisions.

By sector, Catholic religious and educational institutions account for approximately 85–90% of giving by dollar value. Human services (soup kitchens, food relief) and international Catholic missions account for most of the remainder, with secular humanitarian organizations comprising under 5% of historical giving.

Geographically, New Jersey leads with 31% of grants by count (18 of 58), followed by Maryland (22%, 13 grants), New York (9%, 5 grants), Vermont (9%, 5 grants), South Dakota (7%, 4 grants), Massachusetts (5%, 3 grants), and Washington DC (5%, 3 grants). Total assets have declined modestly from $38.5M (FY2014) to $34.3M (FY2024), reflecting cumulative payout marginally exceeding investment returns — a sustainable long-term trajectory at current giving levels.

The five foundations closest to Donum Dei Foundation Inc. by total assets (~$34M range) are all classified under Philanthropy & Grantmaking (NTEE T20), but differ substantially in geography, mission focus, and public accessibility. Note that these peers were identified by asset size only — none shares Donum Dei's Catholic focus.

Among these comparators, Donum Dei stands out for its consistent, documented annual distribution — the only peer with fully public multi-year grantee data and annual giving history available through IRS filings. Its 6.5–7% annual payout rate (giving-to-assets) meaningfully exceeds the IRS minimum 5% private foundation distribution requirement, demonstrating strong discipline in deploying capital. The Ralph and Ricky Lauren Family Foundation is publicly known for broader cultural and community giving more amenable to relationship outreach; the Cares Foundation (CA) has a public-facing website suggesting a more accessible application pathway. Donum Dei's Catholic identity, preselected-only policy, and JPMorgan-mediated contact structure make it among the most restrictive of this asset-size peer group — appropriate only for faith-aligned Catholic organizations with genuine relationship access.

No press releases, public announcements, or media coverage of Donum Dei Foundation Inc. has been found for 2025 or 2026. The foundation maintains no active public website of its own and issues no public communications, consistent with its private family foundation structure throughout its 11-year history.

The most recent fiscal activity derives from its FY2025 Form 990-PF (filed November 12, 2025): $2.34 million distributed across 19 grants — the highest recorded total in the foundation's recent history and up from $2.11M in FY2024. The per-grant average rose to approximately $123,000, above prior-year averages of $94,000–$113,000, suggesting some consolidation toward a smaller number of larger awards.

Recently identified new or expanded grantees include Seton Hall Preparatory School ($250,000), a prominent Jesuit secondary school in West Orange, NJ, confirming continued investment in New Jersey Catholic secondary education. Also newly documented are Dominican Nuns of the Perpetual Rosary ($200,000) and Friends of the Diocese of Tshumbe, D.R. Congo ($200,000) — the latter representing a meaningful international commitment to Central African Catholic mission work that expands beyond the foundation's prior international giving to Maryknoll Fathers & Brothers and Little Workers of the Sacred Hearts.

Leadership has been stable throughout the foundation's entire history. James M. McCormick, Ann T. McCormick, and Brian T. McCormick have served continuously without compensation since the ruling date of November 2014, with no board additions, departures, or governance changes recorded in any filing.

The foundational reality for Donum Dei Foundation Inc. is that there is no open application process — not a temporarily closed one, but a structural feature of the foundation's identity. The IRS filing explicitly states the foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations, and no application mechanism exists in any public database. Treating this as a barrier to overcome rather than a firm operating principle will waste resources.

That said, organizations with authentic Catholic institutional connections can take concrete steps to enter the McCormick family's philanthropic orbit:

Leverage existing grantee relationships. The foundation's anchor grantees — Trinity Missions, St. John's Soup Kitchen (Newark, NJ), Catholic Foundation for Eastern South Dakota, Saint Francis Xavier School, Dominican Foundation — represent active, multi-year relationships. If your organization shares board members, clergy, leadership, or programmatic partnerships with any of these groups, those individuals are your warmest potential introduction path to the McCormicks.

Focus on the Archdiocese of Newark network. Summit, NJ (the foundation's address) sits within the Archdiocese of Newark's territory. The prominence of Newark-area grantees (Friends of Newark Monastery, St. John's Soup Kitchen) and recent gifts to Seton Hall Preparatory School confirm the McCormicks are embedded in this diocesan community. Events, committees, or initiatives associated with the Archdiocese of Newark or Diocese of Metuchen are the most natural relationship-building venues.

Emphasize operating stability over program novelty. Every recorded grant is unrestricted general operating support. The McCormicks fund organizations, not programs. Approach conversations should lead with organizational mission, longevity, Catholic identity, and track record — not a specific initiative seeking restricted funding.

Match the language of faith-directed giving. The foundation's name ("Gift of God"), its concentration in contemplative orders, Catholic missions, and religious education, and its complete absence of secular grantmaking language suggest the McCormicks view philanthropy as a Catholic faith practice. Communications should reflect shared Catholic values authentically.

Contact through JP Morgan appropriately. James Largey at JP Morgan Chase (212-464-1937) is the administrative gateway. A brief introductory letter — one page maximum, referencing any shared connections — is more appropriate than a full proposal or follow-up phone campaign. Best timing is January–March, before typical fiscal-year distribution activity.