Norcliffe Foundation

The Norcliffe Foundation is a Seattle-based private family foundation established in 1952 by Paul Pigott and later led by Theiline Pigott McCone, with Pigott family trustees continuing the legacy today. Its stated mission is "to improve the quality of life for all people in our community," with grantmaking strictly focused on the Puget Sound Region of Washington State. The foundation funds five program areas: Arts & Culture; Environment & Community; Education; Healthcare & Research; and Social Services & Basic Needs. Trustees favor requests that meet critical needs, employ innovative and effective approaches, fill a unique niche in their community, and have a diverse funding base. Norcliffe explicitly positions itself as a collaborative partner rather than a lead donor — it "is most interested in joining a community of funders and is rarely the largest donor to a project," which makes co-funding strategy and demonstrated leverage central to a strong proposal.

Norcliffe awards capacity building, capital and infrastructure, general operating, and program support grants, with no priority weight given to any single type — organizations are asked to specify their greatest area of need. Per the foundation's published guidelines, nearly 60% of grants are 15,000 dollars or less, placing it firmly in the small-to-mid five-figure band for typical awards. For capital campaigns, the foundation will consider requests up to 10 percent of the private philanthropy goal. Multi-year commitments are made occasionally but are atypical, set at trustee discretion, and cannot be requested by applicants (the foundation reserves funds for emerging needs). IRS Form 990-PF data (fiscal year ending Nov 2024) shows 43.6M dollars revenue, 41.4M dollars expenses, and 40.7M dollars in charitable disbursements — a substantial annual giving volume signaling that while individual grants run small, the aggregate payout is large and spread across many grantees. The foundation does not fund deficit financing or debt reduction.

Norcliffe occupies the small-grant, broad-issue, Puget Sound family foundation niche — less targeted than Raikes or Medina, far smaller per-check than Seattle Foundation or Gates, but notable for open-issue flexibility and rolling deadlines.

As of the most recent IRS filing (Form 990-PF filed October 11, 2025 for fiscal year ending November 2024), the foundation reported 22.52M dollars in net assets, 43.59M dollars in revenue, and made 40.73M dollars in charitable disbursements — a sharp year-over-year expansion from the prior cycle's 24.08M dollars in expenses. Jennifer Beatty serves as Secretary (compensation 165K) and Lisa Anderson as President, with Pigott family members (Ann P. Wyckoff, James C. Pigott, Charles M. Pigott, Mary Pigott, John Pigott, Lauren Wyckoff) continuing as trustees alongside David Wright (Treasurer) and Susan W. Pohl (Vice President). Operationally, a notable 2025 policy update extended the "sit-out timeline" following a declined application (now one year from decision date) and introduced a two-year wait after a Standard Application grant payment made after May 31, 2025, plus a four-year wait following Special Application grant payments — tightening re-application cadence versus prior years.

1) Confirm eligibility via the online quiz before drafting — the foundation only considers 501(c)(3) organizations (or fiscally sponsored projects) operating in eleven Puget Sound counties (Island, Jefferson, King, Kitsap, Mason, Pierce, San Juan, Skagit, Snohomish, Thurston, Whatcom). 2) Apply exclusively through the E-Grant System — paper submissions are not accepted and the previous Standard Application form has been retired. 3) Size your ask realistically: roughly 60 percent of grants are 15,000 dollars or under, and capital requests should not exceed 10 percent of the campaign's private philanthropy goal. 4) Requests over 50,000 dollars require a different Special Application, password-protected — contact the foundation first to discuss. 5) Upload a fundraising plan for your project (sample format provided on the site) and name other committed/pending funders explicitly — Norcliffe wants to join a donor community, not be the largest check. 6) No deadlines — applications are reviewed rolling, with decisions typically within four months and up to six months for full review. 7) Observe the sit-out rules: 12 months after any declined decision, 24 months after final payment on a prior grant, and four years after a Special Application award. 8) If you need to talk through fit before applying, call (206) 682-4820 — there is no formal letter-of-inquiry process, but staff will discuss eligibility.