Moccasin Lake Foundation

The Moccasin Lake Foundation is a tightly held family foundation established in 1991 by the Pigott family — one of Seattle's most prominent philanthropic dynasties, with roots in PACCAR Inc., the Bellevue-based global truck manufacturer. The foundation operates through three standing committees — Education, Environmental, and Social Services — each with its own geographic scope and program priorities. Its stated mission, "Enriching Northwest Communities," understates a grantee record that extends nationally and internationally, particularly in environmental work.

The governance structure is entirely family-based: the board includes multiple Pigotts (Paul, James C., Gaye T., Maureen Dina, Will), the Anderson family (Emily, Lisa, Michael), Mark Kranwinkle (currently serving as President), Grace Gould, and Anna Kranwinkle. No outside professional staff are compensated — a hallmark of a tightly held family foundation. Administrative support is provided by Foundation Source in Wilmington, Delaware, though the foundation's operational address is PO Box 70367, Seattle, WA 98127.

Despite its formal online application portal, this is fundamentally a relationship-driven foundation. The top 10 grantees have all received 3–8 separate grants over time, reflecting sustained annual engagement. Conservation International (8 grants, $3.2M cumulative), Seattle Aquarium Society (6 grants, $3.3M), and Room One (6 grants, $2M) all demonstrate that once an organization earns the board's trust, repeat funding follows — even without formal multi-year awards.

For first-time applicants, the most important strategic insight is to focus on a specific, well-defined program rather than general operations. The foundation explicitly prefers program support over administrative costs. There is no letter of inquiry stage; applications go directly to committee review via the online portal. However, concept papers are explicitly welcomed at any time, creating a low-stakes entry point for pre-application relationship-building.

The foundation imposes a 10% budget cap on grant requests and requires a minimum 3-year operating history (explicitly for Education; implied broadly). Applications are accepted on a rolling basis with no published deadlines, but each organization may only apply once per 12-month period.

Across 671 documented grants totaling $50,926,117, the Moccasin Lake Foundation exhibits a markedly barbell-shaped distribution: a median grant of $10,000 with an average of approximately $75,896. The smallest grant on record is $500; the largest individual grant relationships have generated cumulative totals of $1M–$5.1M. Most first-time grants appear to land in the $10,000–$50,000 range, with larger awards reserved for organizations with established multi-year relationships or specific capital campaign pledges.

Annual giving has been highly variable. The foundation paid $4.4M in grants in FY2011, grew to $9M by FY2014, then oscillated between $6.5M and $17.1M through FY2020. FY2022 saw an extraordinary spike to $24M — nearly double FY2021's $12.8M — driven by large pledge fulfillments and capital campaign contributions. FY2023 returned to $7M across 163 grants. The asset base has exploded in parallel: from $4.5M (2019) to $22.8M (2021), $43.6M (2022), $74.7M (2023), and a current $106.9M — the result of $29–41M in annual family contributions received in each of the last three measured years.

Geographically, Washington State dominates at 527 of 671 grants (78.5%). Florida accounts for 56 grants (8.3%), reflecting Pigott family ties to the Sanibel-Captiva area (Fish of Sanibel-Captiva, Barrier Island Group for the Arts, Everglades Foundation, Harry Chapin Food Bank). New York (14), Virginia (12), California (12), and DC (11) round out the national footprint.

By program area: Education and Social Services are restricted to specific Washington counties (King, Pierce, Snohomish, Okanogan for Education; King, Pierce, Snohomish, Yakima, Okanogan for Social Services). Environment operates nationally and internationally. The Methow Valley (Okanogan County) is the single most concentrated geography — six separate grantees there have collectively received over $7M cumulative. The 10%-of-budget cap is a practical ceiling: an organization with a $200,000 annual budget can request no more than $20,000.

(Peer foundation figures are estimates from publicly available IRS filings and foundation profiles; Moccasin Lake figures are from audited 990 data.)

Among Pacific Northwest family foundations operating at this asset level, Moccasin Lake stands out for its open portal application process — unusual for a foundation now exceeding $100M in assets, where peer foundations like Bullitt and Norcliffe require invitation or referral. This accessibility creates genuine opportunity for eligible nonprofits that meet the geographic and programmatic criteria.

Moccasin Lake's explicit climate change framing within its Environmental committee (clean energy, carbon sequestration, peatland and forest preservation) positions it alongside Bullitt and Russell in environmental ambition, while its Social Services and Education committees make it more comparable to Norcliffe's multi-sector approach. The foundation's rapidly growing asset base — up 140% since FY2022 — suggests its annual grantmaking capacity may expand significantly in the next 2–5 years, potentially closing the gap with larger regional peers.

The defining recent development at Moccasin Lake Foundation is its dramatic asset growth, which has transformed it from a modest family foundation into a significant regional funder. Assets grew from $22.8M (FY2021) to $43.6M (FY2022) to $74.7M (FY2023) and a current $106.9M — a more than fourfold increase in four years — driven by annual Pigott family contributions of $28.97M (2021), $41.16M (2022), and $38.72M (2023). This level of capitalization suggests intentional foundation-building, potentially in advance of a more ambitious grantmaking program.

The most recent Form 990 was filed September 18, 2025 (FY2023), confirming 163 grants totaling $7,039,500. The FY2022 giving spike to $24M was anomalously high — likely reflecting large pledge fulfillments, including a $1M Moccasin Lake Foundation Endowed Scholarship at Lakeside School, $1M Pigott Family Scholarship at Hamilton College, and a $1M Methow Housing Trust investment all documented within the top-50 grantee record.

Leadership has remained stable within the family structure. Mark Kranwinkle has ascended from VP to President in the most recent filings, with Paul Pigott previously serving as President and Treasurer. No external professional staff are compensated. The foundation operates entirely through volunteer family governance with administrative support from Foundation Source.

No public press releases or news announcements were identified for 2025–2026. The foundation maintains a deliberately low profile — no social media presence, no press contacts, no named staff — consistent with its character as a private family foundation that communicates through grantee relationships rather than public communications.

Target the right committee first. Moccasin Lake operates three distinct committees with non-overlapping geographic scopes. Education grants require your organization to be based in King, Pierce, Snohomish, or Okanogan counties. Social Services adds Yakima County. Environmental grants carry no geographic restriction and have funded organizations from Conservation International to Earthjustice to the Union of Concerned Scientists. Misidentifying your committee category is a fast track to rejection.

Lead with program specificity, not organizational narrative. The foundation explicitly prefers "specific program support over administrative or general operating costs." Your application should open with a tightly scoped program request — not a general operating ask, not a capacity-building request. Define what the money will do, how success will be measured, and what metrics will be reported one year post-grant.

Quantify your impact and acknowledge failures. The Social Services application explicitly requires examples of program failures and lessons learned. This is unusual among funders and signals a sophisticated review process. Frame failures as evidence of organizational learning, not weakness.

Respect the 10% rule precisely. If your annual budget is $500,000, your maximum request is $50,000. If you are requesting for a capital project, calculate 10% of the total project cost. Requests that exceed this threshold are rejected without review. Do not round up; err on the side of slightly under the cap.

Submit a concept paper before a formal application. The FAQ explicitly states that concept papers are welcome at any time. A one-to-two-page concept paper sent via the website Contact form before submitting a full application signals seriousness and allows you to gauge committee interest without consuming your one annual application slot.

Do not apply if you received a grant in the prior calendar year. This restriction is absolute. Organizations that have received any Moccasin Lake grant within the last 12 months are ineligible — even from a different committee. Plan your application cadence accordingly.

Reference the Methow Valley if applicable. The foundation's deepest place-based commitment is clearly Okanogan County and the Methow Valley corridor. Organizations working in Twisp, Winthrop, or adjacent communities should call this out explicitly — it is where the family appears to have the most personal connection.