Lumena Foundation

Lumena Foundation operates as a trust-based, values-driven private foundation with a singular, non-negotiable focus: advancing the right of all women to self-determination. The foundation defines 'all women' expansively to include cis, trans, nonbinary, gender-nonconforming, and intersex individuals — applicants who use this inclusive framing signal immediate alignment with Lumena's values and will stand out during initial review.

The giving philosophy is grounded in trust-based philanthropy: general, unrestricted grants with multi-year commitments and no written reporting requirements. Instead, Lumena maintains relationships through periodic conversations with grantees. This model favors organizations with authentic missions over those with polished grant-writing operations, making it genuinely accessible to grassroots and emerging nonprofits.

Lumena structures its giving across three distinct fund tracks. The Moon Fund offers up to $50,000 annually with a minimum one-year commitment. The Star Fund operates on comparable public-application terms, with both funds open from February 15 through March 31 each year. The Sun Fund provides $25,000 or more annually with a minimum three-year commitment but is available exclusively by invitation. First-time applicants should target the Moon or Star fund only.

The inquiry-first model means there is no open application portal in the traditional sense. Prospective partners submit an initial inquiry through the foundation's website, and Lumena reaches out only to organizations it deems aligned. Silence after an inquiry is a non-match signal, not a decision to appeal.

The foundation's grantee record reveals a consistent preference for organizations working at the intersection of racial justice and gender equity. Among 31 documented grants totaling $625,000, top recipients include Women's Bean Project ($140,000 over 4 grants), the Loveland Foundation ($75,000 over 5 grants), Higher Heights Leadership Fund ($60,000), and Women for Afghan Women ($60,000). The pattern of multi-grant relationships — many organizations receiving 3-5 grants — confirms that Lumena invests in long-term grantee relationships, not one-time gifts.

For organizations working in reproductive health, economic empowerment for women, criminal justice reform affecting women, or STEM education for girls and young women, Lumena represents a funder that prioritizes mission alignment over organizational size, prestige, or geographic proximity.

Lumena Foundation's grantmaking has grown steadily but remains modest relative to its $30.4 million asset base as of fiscal year 2023. Annual grants paid rose from $55,000 in FY2019 to $100,000 in FY2020, plateaued at $160,000 in both FY2021 and FY2022, then climbed to $205,000 in FY2023. Total giving including program-related expenses reached $330,602 in FY2023. With net investment income of $1.72 million in FY2023 alone, the foundation is generating far more than it currently distributes — suggesting a meaningful ramp-up in grantmaking activity in 2024-2025 that is not yet captured in public IRS filings.

The foundation's formal grant size parameters are: Moon Fund up to $50,000 per year; Sun Fund $25,000 and above per year. IRS filing data across 31 documented grants yields an average of $20,161 per grant. The typical grant range is $10,000-$35,000 with a median of $15,000. Actual per-organization cumulative totals range from $15,000 (Girls Who Code, 1 grant) to $140,000 (Women's Bean Project, 4 grants over multiple years).

Thematically, the portfolio breaks down approximately as follows: reproductive rights and access (Neo Philanthropy/Abortion Access Front, Elevated Access, Women for Afghan Women, and multiple current grantees on the live website) represents roughly 30-35% of documented giving. Economic empowerment for women (Women's Bean Project, Ada Developers Academy) contributes approximately 25%. Racial justice and leadership for women of color (Loveland Foundation, Higher Heights Leadership Fund, Brown Girls Do, Black Girls Code) accounts for another 25-30%. Criminal justice reform affecting women (Bail Project, Highlander Research/National Bail Out) comprises approximately 10%.

Geographically, New York-based organizations receive 48% of grants by count (15 of 31), with Colorado at 13% (4 grants), California at 13% (4 grants), and Texas at 10% (3 grants). The foundation's formal geographic focus is listed as NY, CA, DC, and CO — but the current website grantee list includes organizations in Wisconsin, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Idaho, and Appalachia, signaling active geographic expansion beyond the historical core.

Lumena Foundation shares its approximately $30 million asset tier with several other private foundations classified under NTEE major category T (Philanthropy & Grantmaking). The table below compares Lumena to its four closest asset-size peers from the foundation database.

Among foundations with comparable ~$30 million asset bases in the Philanthropy & Grantmaking category, Lumena stands out on three dimensions. First, it has a clearly articulated thematic focus — women's rights and self-determination — while the other peers disclose no programmatic priorities in IRS filings or public materials. Second, Lumena operates a transparent, accessible inquiry pathway with published grant fund descriptions; the comparable peers have no known public application processes. Third, Lumena's all-volunteer board (zero officer compensation across all recorded filings) and trust-based, no-strings grantmaking model reflect a founder-driven institution with a strong values identity rather than a professionally managed institutional foundation. For mission-aligned women's organizations, this peer context confirms that Lumena is meaningfully more approachable at this asset tier than comparable private foundations of similar scale.

The most consequential recent development for Lumena Foundation is the dramatic capitalization event in fiscal year 2022: the foundation received $25 million in contributions in a single year, growing assets from $3.0 million (FY2021) to $27.7 million (FY2022) and reaching $30.4 million by FY2023. This represents a tenfold increase in the foundation's resources and signals that the founding donors — led by President Andrea Devereux, VP Michelle B. Gleeson, Secretary/Treasurer Jonathan S. March, and Director Michaela C. Finley — have made a substantial long-term institutional commitment to the foundation's grantmaking mission.

Grantmaking has grown in response but has not yet caught up to investment returns: annual grants paid increased from $160,000 (FY2022) to $205,000 (FY2023), while net investment income reached $1.72 million in FY2023. The gap between investment earnings and grants distributed suggests Lumena is in a deliberate deployment phase, with likely meaningful increases in 2024-2025 grantmaking not yet visible in public IRS filings.

The current grantee list on lumenafoundation.org reflects a clear post-Dobbs strategic intensification around reproductive access. Among the 14 organizations currently listed, approximately half are directly focused on abortion access: Care For All (Wisconsin), The Autonomous Body Shop (Pittsburgh), New Jersey Abortion Access Fund, State Line Abortion Access Partners (Appalachian region), Endora (digital security for reproductive rights organizations), and Human Shield Documentary (a film documenting clinic escorts post-Roe). This represents a notable shift from the broader women's rights portfolio visible in earlier IRS data, where reproductive rights was one of several equally weighted themes.

No leadership transitions, renamed programs, or formal public announcements from 2025 or 2026 were found in open sources. The board remains stable and all-volunteer, with the (800) 839-1754 administrative number routing through Foundation Source, the foundation's third-party administrative sponsor.

Lumena Foundation uses an inquiry-first model that rewards mission clarity over grant-writing sophistication. The following tips are specific to Lumena's stated process and grantee history.

Timing is critical for public fund applicants. The Moon and Star funds open February 15 and close at midnight EDT on March 31 each year. Mark this window in early January and begin preparing your inquiry at least two weeks before the deadline. Decisions come within 60 days of the deadline, meaning notifications typically arrive by early June. Missing March 31 means waiting a full year for the next public cycle.

The inquiry form is the only door. Submit through lumenafoundation.org/inquire. Do not call the administrative phone number to pitch a grant — it routes to Foundation Source, not the grantmaking board. Do not attempt to contact board members directly through professional networks.

Mirror Lumena's language precisely. Use the phrase 'self-determination' in your inquiry. Name the specific well-being dimension your work advances from their stated framework: health, education, economic empowerment, personal safety, or legal rights. Vague language like 'empowering women' without specifying the dimension signals weak alignment.

Lead with racial equity if it applies. Every major multi-grant relationship in the grantee record involves organizations centering women of color: Women's Bean Project (economic empowerment), Loveland Foundation (mental health for Black women and nonbinary individuals), Higher Heights Leadership Fund (Black women in political office), Brown Girls Do, and Black Girls Code. If your work specifically centers women of color, make this the first sentence of your inquiry.

Emphasize your multi-year vision. Lumena makes minimum one-year and three-year commitments. Demonstrate organizational stability and a durable theory of change. One-time project requests are structurally misaligned with their model.

Avoid common misalignments: language framing work as serving 'women and families' broadly rather than women specifically; any religious or partisan political affiliation; for-profit business models; and international program work.

Trust-based means no overhead defense. Do not use your inquiry to justify overhead ratios or present evaluation frameworks. Lumena explicitly offers 'money, no strings attached' — focus entirely on mission impact and constituent need, not operational metrics.