Treasure Foundation

Treasure Foundation is a private foundation incorporated in Irvine, California, with approximately $34 million in assets and a singular mission: amplifying organic farming in Uganda and beyond through training, demonstration, and ecological education. Despite its California registration, the foundation's operational heart is Masaka City, Uganda, where it runs demonstration farms and community programs focused on food sovereignty, indigenous seed preservation, and solar-powered water access.

The foundation was effectively born in 2020, when a single $34 million contribution transformed it from a $3 million boutique vehicle into a mid-tier endowed grantmaker. CEO Jehong Jeon, who has led the organization since its founding and draws zero compensation across all recorded fiscal years, represents a founder-led model where primary giving decisions rest with a single engaged stakeholder.

For grant seekers, the most important framing insight is this: Treasure Foundation is an operating foundation that also deploys capital externally. Its four active programs — Permaculture in Refugee Camps, Indigenous Food Initiatives (monthly cultural food events for youth), Community Water Access (solar-powered systems for underserved populations), and School Education Programs in regenerative agriculture — are activities the foundation conducts directly, not traditional grants windows for external organizations. The majority of IRS-documented external grantmaking has flowed through donor-advised funds, suggesting that structured philanthropic relationships carry more weight than unsolicited proposals.

First-time applicants should not approach this funder through a conventional grant portal — none exists. There is no published request-for-proposals cycle, no application deadline, and no grants page on the website. This is a relationship-first grantmaker. The most effective approach begins with a concise introductory email that articulates your organization's specific overlap with the foundation's mission language: 'organic,' 'permaculture,' 'ecological health,' 'regenerative agriculture,' 'food sovereignty,' 'indigenous seed systems.' Generic food security or agricultural development framing will not differentiate your proposal.

Organizations working in Uganda or with Ugandan communities, East African refugee populations, or programs combining sustainable agriculture with youth education and water access have the clearest alignment. The foundation's named Permaculture in Refugee Camps program signals openness to complex humanitarian-development contexts where organic agriculture serves resilience-building functions. Plan for a 6-12 month outreach-to-decision timeline; giving decisions appear to rest with the CEO on an informal, discretionary schedule.

Treasure Foundation's documented grantmaking history covers fiscal years 2019 through 2023, with approximately $4.6 million in total grants paid across five confirmed transactions and two unique grantees — a highly concentrated portfolio for a $34 million foundation.

Annual grants paid by fiscal year: - FY2019: $1,000 - FY2020: $52,400 - FY2021: $650,000 - FY2022: $2,427,911 (peak year) - FY2023: $1,470,000

The FY2022 peak of $2.43 million represents the highest annual disbursement on record. The subsequent 39% decline to $1.47 million in FY2023 may reflect deliberate moderation to sustain the endowment, which has remained essentially flat at approximately $34 million since 2022. FY2024 data on grants paid has not yet been reported to the IRS, though total assets for that year are $34,017,515 — consistent with prior years — and revenue was $1,722,105.

Of the five total recorded grants, four — totaling $3,127,911 — went to Boa Charitable Gift Fund, a Massachusetts-based donor-advised fund, with all transactions designated simply as "CHARITABLE DONATION." The average size of these four DAF transfers is approximately $781,978, though individual amounts are not disaggregated in the IRS 990-PF filing. The only other identifiable grantee is Operation Smile ($2,400) — a medical nonprofit providing cleft surgery in low-income countries — an outlier relative to the agricultural mission that likely reflects a personal philanthropic connection.

For organizations seeking direct project-level support, a realistic ask range based on the foundation's scale and annual giving patterns is $50,000 to $300,000 per grant cycle.

The foundation's investment income is the sole revenue driver since 2021, averaging approximately $826,400 per year (FY2021: $687,605; FY2022: $569,277; FY2023: $1,222,323). No new contributions have been received after the initial 2019-2020 endowment period ($2M in 2019, $34M in 2020). This makes grant payout levels directly dependent on portfolio performance — a material consideration for applicants in years of weak market returns. The foundation's 5% minimum payout obligation on approximately $34 million in assets implies a baseline floor of roughly $1.7 million per year in required distributions.

All five peer foundations hold assets in a narrow $33.9M–$34.1M range and share the NTEE T20 classification (Philanthropy & Grantmaking), placing them in the same tier of mid-size private foundations. Among this cohort, Treasure Foundation is the only one with an explicitly international geographic focus (Uganda and East Africa) and an operating mission centered on sustainable agriculture — a significant differentiator from its U.S.-focused counterparts.

Treasure Foundation's disclosed annual giving of $1.47M in FY2023 represents approximately 4.3% of assets, within the typical 5% private foundation minimum distribution range. Unlike most foundations of comparable size that maintain professional program staff and formal application cycles, Treasure Foundation operates with a zero-compensation CEO and no apparent grants infrastructure — a structural characteristic typical of closely-held family foundations in this asset tier. For grant seekers, this means competition is less about proposal quality relative to peers and more about relational access and mission alignment with a single decision-maker.

No press releases, media coverage, or formal announcements were identified for Treasure Foundation in 2025 or 2026. The organization maintains a minimal public profile — its website homepage is functional but all subpages (about, grants, programs, contact, apply) return HTTP 404 errors — and does not appear on major philanthropy news aggregators, active RFP databases, or social media platforms.

Based on IRS filings, the most recent confirmed grantmaking activity covers FY2023, when $1,470,000 in grants were paid and total giving reached $1,624,252. This followed the FY2022 peak of $2,427,911 in grants paid. The FY2024 filing reports assets of $34,017,515 and revenue of $1,722,105, but grants paid for that year have not yet been reported.

The last publicly documented major grantee was Boa Charitable Gift Fund (Massachusetts), which received $3,127,911 across four grants through FY2023. Operation Smile received a single gift of $2,400, the most recent transaction with a publicly identifiable charitable organization.

CEO Jehong Jeon — the sole named officer across all IRS filings, appearing four times in the people records — has maintained a zero-compensation arrangement since the foundation's earliest filing years, suggesting stable leadership with no recent turnover. The foundation's listed phone number (+256751637744) carries a Uganda country code (+256), consistent with active on-the-ground operations in Masaka City.

The absence of public news should not be interpreted as inactivity. For a closely-held operating foundation of this type, the most significant activities — permaculture training, farm demonstrations, water access installations — are typically conducted without press coverage. The stable $34 million asset base and ongoing investment income suggest the foundation remains fully operational.

Applicants approaching Treasure Foundation must accept a core structural reality: this funder does not operate a formal grants program in the conventional sense. There is no application portal, no annual deadline, no published RFP, and no grants staff. The IRS application instructions field — typically the most reliable proxy for a foundation's process — reads "__none__."

Start with a targeted email. The foundation's contact address is info@treasure-fundation.org. Note the deliberate spelling of 'fundation' (not 'foundation') in the domain — this matches IRS records and is the confirmed correct address. Keep the initial email to three concise paragraphs: who your organization is, where you work (lead with Uganda or East Africa), and one specific connection to the foundation's named programs.

Use the foundation's vocabulary precisely. The website speaks of 'permaculture,' 'ecological health,' 'indigenous seed systems,' 'regenerative agriculture,' 'climate-resilient agricultural practices,' and 'mindset change training.' Proposals using this language — rather than generic international development metrics — will align more naturally with the CEO's orientation. Avoid leading with beneficiary-count or cost-per-person framing without connecting it to ecological systems change.

Geographic fit is non-negotiable. Work in Uganda, particularly in or near Masaka City, carries the strongest alignment. Refugee camp contexts are explicitly relevant given the named Permaculture in Refugee Camps program. East African work beyond Uganda may qualify but requires stronger justification.

Lead with training methodology, not infrastructure. The foundation's core approach is 'hands-on learning' and 'demonstration' — not commodity provision or capital infrastructure grants. Show who gets trained, how, and with what replicable methodology.

Seek a warm introduction if possible. This is a CEO-driven, closely-held foundation. A professional introduction through East African organic agriculture networks, agroecology coalitions, or refugee-serving NGOs active in Uganda will significantly accelerate relationship development compared to cold outreach alone.

Avoid these common mistakes: Do not send a full proposal PDF without prior contact. Do not expect a response timeline under 6 months. Do not propose work outside Uganda or East Africa without a compelling justification rooted in the foundation's own programmatic language. Do not overlook the email domain typo — 'fundation' — or your message may not reach the foundation.