Sarah M Hughes Foundation

The Sarah M. Hughes Foundation is a small, family-run Seattle private foundation (EIN 35-2428957, founded 2012) that explicitly checks the IRS Form 990-PF box stating it "only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations" and does not accept unsolicited applications. This is not a portal-driven institutional funder — it is managed entirely by two uncompensated family members, Heather O. Hughes and James W. Hughes, operating out of a Seattle office at 511 Boren Ave N. There is no program staff, no published RFP, and no formal LOI process; the only public channel is hello@sarahmhughesfoundation.org.

The foundation was established to honor Sarah Hughes, a child treated for a pediatric brain tumor at Seattle Children's Hospital, and its giving flows through three named pillars: Carry the Torch (memorial giving), Support the Supporters (scholarships and continuing-education funding for pediatric-oncology nurses and caregivers), and Advance Research (funding for pediatric brain tumor research, including Dr. Jim Olson's scorpion-venom "Tumor Paint" program at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center). Every one of its 14 recorded grants — totaling $2,345,000 at an average of $167,500 — went to a Washington State organization, and every listed purpose is "GENERAL OPERATIONS FUND," signaling a strong preference for unrestricted support over restricted project grants.

For first-time applicants, the realistic path in is relationship, not proposal. The foundation's grantee roster is small and repeat-heavy: Seattle University (2 grants, $1M cumulative), Seattle Children's Hospital ($725K), Seattle Children's Hospital Foundation (2 grants, $400K), plus smaller recurring gifts to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Research Fund, Providence Hospice of Seattle Foundation, The Goodtimes Project, and The First Night Project. Organizations already embedded in Seattle's pediatric-oncology and grief-support ecosystem (Seattle Children's, Fred Hutch, Providence, Camp Goodtimes-type programs) are best positioned for an introduction. Cold, unsolicited pitches from organizations outside Washington or outside pediatric health/human-services are a poor fit and unlikely to be considered.

Total recorded giving across 14 grants is $2,345,000, averaging $167,500 per recipient relationship (though the foundation's own typical-grant-size data shows individual checks ranging from $15,000 to $195,000, with a median of $62,500 and an average of $83,750 — the larger recipient totals reflect multiple grants to the same organization over time). Geographically, funding is 100% concentrated in Washington State (14 of 14 grants), with no out-of-state giving on record.

By recipient, Seattle University leads at $1,000,000 across 2 grants (42.6% of all tracked giving), followed by Seattle Children's Hospital at $725,000 (30.9%), Seattle Children's Hospital Foundation at $400,000 across 2 grants (17.1%), the Pediatric Brain Tumor Research Fund at $75,000 across 3 grants (3.2%), Providence Hospice of Seattle Foundation at $75,000 across 2 grants (3.2%), The Goodtimes Project at $50,000 across 2 grants (2.1%), and The First Night Project at $20,000 across 2 grants (0.9%). In practice, roughly 84% of tracked dollars have gone to just three institutions — Seattle University, Seattle Children's Hospital, and its affiliated foundation — underscoring a concentrated, relationship-based giving model rather than broad distribution.

Annual giving has grown substantially and unevenly over the foundation's 13-year history. Form 990 data shows $80,000 paid in the 2012 founding year, stabilizing around $330,800-$395,000 per year from 2013-2015, then $353,000 (2019) and $335,000 (2020). Giving then collapsed to just $75,000 in 2021 (total_giving $96,677) — likely a pandemic-related pause — before rebounding sharply to $735,000 in 2022 and $800,000 in 2023 (total_giving $829,298), the highest level on record. Total assets have held relatively steady in the $4.87M-$6.17M range since 2012 (most recently $4,872,383 per the FY2023 990, versus $7,764,525 per current IRS Business Master File data), funded primarily by net investment income ($689,119 in FY2023) rather than new contributions, which have been nominal ($25/year) in most recent years.

All five peer foundations cluster within $2,000 of Sarah M. Hughes Foundation's $7,764,525 asset figure, which suggests this peer set was matched purely on asset size rather than mission — the peers span Florida, Arizona, Texas, and Delaware with no stated pediatric-health or Seattle-area focus, versus Hughes' hyper-local, single-state (WA) concentration and explicit health/human-services mission. None of the peers except Kevin M Jones Foundation Trust have a discoverable public website, meaning Sarah M. Hughes Foundation's branded site (three named giving pillars, a public mission narrative, and a contact email) is unusually developed for a foundation of this size — even though it remains functionally closed to unsolicited applicants, same as its peers appear to be by default.

The most recent verifiable activity is the foundation's FY2023 Form 990-PF, filed August 25, 2025, which reported $829,298 in total giving and $800,000 in grants paid — both record highs for the foundation. No dedicated press releases, news coverage, or public announcements from 2025 or 2026 were found in web searches; this foundation does not appear to issue press releases or maintain a news/blog section, consistent with its lean, two-person family-management structure (Heather O. Hughes and James W. Hughes, both uncompensated).

The foundation's public website content (last substantively describing its programs as of this research) continues to frame its work around the same three giving pillars established at founding: Carry the Torch, Support the Supporters, and Advance Research. Named institutional partners remain consistent over time — Seattle Children's Hospital, Seattle University's nursing program, Camp Goodtimes, Providence's Safe Crossings pediatric grief program, and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center's pediatric brain tumor research (including Dr. Jim Olson's scorpion-venom "Tumor Paint" work). No leadership changes, new program launches, or new institutional partnerships were identified in current web research beyond this established partner roster.

The clearest recent trend, visible in the financial data rather than press coverage, is a near-doubling of annual grantmaking capacity: from $371,690 in 2019 to $829,298 in 2023, following a steep one-year dip to $96,677 in 2021. This points to a foundation that is currently in an expansionary phase of its giving relative to its own history, even though its total asset base ($4.87M-$7.76M depending on source) has not grown proportionally.

The single most important fact for any prospective applicant: this foundation's own IRS filing states it "only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations and doesn't accept unsolicited applications for funds." There is no online portal, no published LOI template, and no application deadline or review cycle — treat any conventional proposal-writing effort here as very unlikely to be read on a cold basis.

The realistic strategy is relationship-first, not proposal-first. Because every dollar tracked has gone to Washington-based organizations, and because the foundation's three giving pillars (Carry the Torch, Support the Supporters, Advance Research) map directly onto pediatric brain tumor treatment, caregiver education, and grief support, organizations outside that geography or mission area should not expect a response. Within that lane, the foundation has shown a clear pattern of funding organizations already connected to Sarah Hughes' own treatment journey — Seattle Children's Hospital, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Seattle University's nursing school, Camp Goodtimes, and Providence's Safe Crossings program. A warm introduction through a shared board member, medical provider, or one of these existing partner institutions is far more likely to succeed than a direct written appeal.

When an introduction is possible, lead with unrestricted, general-operating-support framing — every one of the foundation's 14 recorded grants was purposed as "GENERAL OPERATIONS FUND," not a restricted program or capital ask. Because James W. and Heather O. Hughes personally manage the foundation with no paid staff, expect a slower, more personal, and less bureaucratic process than a typical institutional funder: a short, warm email to hello@sarahmhughesfoundation.org introducing the organization and its connection to pediatric brain tumor care is a more appropriate first step than a formal grant application packet. Given typical individual grant sizes of $15,000-$195,000 (median $62,500), first asks should be modest and specific rather than seeking to become the organization's sole major funder. The most common mistake would be treating this like a standard foundation with a grants department — persistence via a generic proposal mailbox will not substitute for an actual connection to the Sarah Hughes story or her network of care providers.