Upmobility Foundation Inc.

UpMobility Foundation Inc. is a founder-driven private foundation launched in 2015 by Martin Babinec, a Silicon Valley tech entrepreneur who built his career at TriNet Group. The foundation's ethos is explicitly entrepreneurial: it prizes innovation, scalability, and the kind of cross-sector network-weaving that Babinec practiced in the venture world. This shapes everything about how it gives — and how you should approach it.

The foundation strongly favors organizations embedded in the Mohawk Valley (Oneida and Herkimer Counties, New York), where the bulk of its 210 recorded grants have flowed. Bassett Hospital ($1.5M cumulative), Little Falls City School District ($1.14M), Arc Herkimer ($650K), the Little Falls Family YMCA ($503K), and the Community Foundation of Herkimer & Oneida Counties ($766K) represent the inner circle of deeply trusted long-term partners. First-time applicants from outside this geography face a structural disadvantage and must proactively contact staff before applying — the foundation's own policies state that outside-region applicants who skip that step are "rarely funded."

The typical relationship arc begins with a staff conversation, then a formal portal application, then board review at a quarterly meeting, and — for larger asks — potentially a site visit or interview. There is no formal LOI stage for most rounds, but informal pre-application outreach functions as a soft screening step. Repeat grantees (Upstate Venture Connect, Empire Center, Civics Unplugged, Government Justice Center) each received 3–5 grants over multiple years, confirming that this is a relationship-oriented funder that values continuity.

For first-time applicants, the most important strategic move is alignment demonstration. The foundation's eight focus areas — Advancing Education, Community Building, Entrepreneurship, DEIB, Strengthening Democracy, Healthcare, Building Strong Families, and International Development — are not merely descriptive labels; they map directly to the board's evaluation rubric. Name the specific focus area your project addresses, and explain concretely how it advances the foundation's stated mission to "activate networks, cultivate partnerships, spark innovation, and scale solutions."

Organizations with a demonstrated track record of collaboration, measurable outcomes, and sustainability beyond grant funding will find the strongest reception. The Capacity Building track (new in 2025) is the best entry point for organizations that need operational strengthening before they can mount a competitive programmatic case.

UpMobility Foundation has grown from a modest $140K giving operation in 2015 to a $4.4M annual grantmaker by fiscal year 2023 — a 31-fold increase over eight years. Total assets stood at $24.2M at end of FY2023, up from $1.3M in 2019, reflecting continued capitalization by founder Martin Babinec and substantial investment returns (net investment income of $428K in 2023 alone, on top of $6.2M in FY2022 when markets recovered).

Across 210 recorded grants totaling $14.5M in the database, the average grant is $68,987. Grant sizes span a wide range: the smallest confirmed grants are $5,000–$10,000 (Remsen Grant, small community organizations), while the largest single-year award is $1.2M (See Attached List, FY2020). The median grant among the top 50 grantees falls around $50,000–$75,000, with multi-year relationships often producing cumulative totals that dwarf individual award sizes (Bassett Hospital: $1.5M across 3 grants; Little Falls School District: $1.14M across 4 grants).

By geography, New York state dominates overwhelmingly: 138 of the 210 tracked grants (66%) went to NY-based recipients, with the balance spread across CA (9), TX (8), CO (8), FL (7), and smaller allocations to IN, MD, PA, SC, and VA. The Mohawk Valley cluster — Little Falls, Herkimer, Utica, and surrounding communities — accounts for the single largest share of total dollars.

Thematically, community building and education together represent approximately 59% of cumulative grants per the foundation's own reported metric. Entrepreneurship and economic development (Upstate Venture Connect $500K, Keenan Center $340K, Endeavor WNY $200K) form a second major cluster. Civic/democracy initiatives (Unite America $450K, Government Justice Center $225K, RepresentUs $200K, Empire Center $425K) have received substantial multi-year commitments. International humanitarian work (Water Mission $431K, Food for the Poor $225K) represents a smaller but consistent stream.

Annual giving trajectory: $140K (2015) → $727K (2019) → $1.2M (2020) → $2.3M (2021) → $2.2M (2022) → $4.4M (2023). The 2023 spike reflects both larger individual grants and a broader recipient roster, suggesting the foundation is actively deploying its larger asset base.

The following table compares UpMobility Foundation to its five closest asset-size peers in the Philanthropy & Grantmaking NTEE category, all private foundations in the $21M asset range:

UpMobility stands out sharply from its asset peers in one critical dimension: it operates a fully open, structured application portal with four published grant rounds per year and publicly posted guidelines. Its peers are family foundations that almost certainly give by invitation only with no public application pathway. This makes UpMobility unusually accessible for its size. Its FY2023 payout ratio of approximately 18% of assets ($4.4M on $24.2M) is above the IRS-mandated 5% minimum but consistent with a growing foundation actively scaling its grantmaking. The combination of open applications, geographic clarity (Mohawk Valley priority), and a structured annual calendar makes UpMobility one of the more grantseeker-friendly private foundations in the $20–25M asset tier in New York state.

The most significant recent development is the leadership transition underway at UpMobility Foundation. Peggy O'Shea — who had served as Director and Corporate Secretary — was named Interim Executive Director in early 2025, with a compensation of $86,000 per the most recent 990. Prior Executive Director Kevin Langley ($78,125 compensation) appears to have departed. This leadership change coincides with the foundation's most ambitious programmatic expansion to date.

In April 2025, UpMobility launched its first-ever Capacity Building grant round, a formal acknowledgment that the foundation wants to invest in nonprofit organizational infrastructure — not just projects. This is a meaningful strategic signal: it opens the door to applicants who need core operating strength before programmatic scale.

The fall 2025 Mohawk Valley Gives campaign, co-run with the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties, mobilized over $6.5 million for 300+ nonprofits, demonstrating UpMobility's growing role as a regional convener and matching-grant catalyst beyond its own direct grantmaking.

For 2026, the foundation published a four-round grant calendar with clear open/close/notification dates — a level of transparency and structure not present in earlier years. The Coalition Building round (open June 1–30, 2026; notifications by September) is currently accepting applications. A second Capacity Building round opens October 1, 2026. Founder Martin Babinec remains President and Treasurer (uncompensated), maintaining the founder-led culture that shapes the foundation's entrepreneurial identity.

Contact staff before applying if you are outside the Mohawk Valley. This is not a suggestion — foundation policy explicitly states that outside-region organizations who skip this step are "rarely funded." Send a brief email to the foundation (contact form at upmobility.org/contact) describing your project and asking whether it merits a full application. This conversation also helps you choose the right grant round.

Choose the correct grant track. Capacity Building is for organizational infrastructure — staffing, systems, technology, board development. Coalition Building is for multi-organizational collaborative projects. Ongoing/entrepreneurship tracks are for innovation and startup-phase ventures. Mismatching your request to the wrong track signals poor alignment with the rubric.

Lead with the collaboration story. The foundation evaluates proposals heavily on how well they demonstrate collective action. Name each partner organization, describe its specific role, and quantify what the collaboration makes possible that your organization could not achieve alone. Generic "we will partner with community stakeholders" language will not score well.

Embed scalability language. The founder's background is in venture-backed growth companies. Language like "replicable model," "proof of concept for broader rollout," and "designed to be scaled" resonates with this funder's identity. Reference how your approach could be adopted in other communities if successful.

Write a credible sustainability section. Applications that show grant funds as a bridge (not a permanent subsidy) fare better. Name specific future funding sources: earned revenue, other foundations already in conversation, government grants, or fee-for-service models. Be specific — vague sustainability claims are a red flag.

Timing for 2026: The Coalition Building round closes June 30, 2026 (notifications: September). The next Capacity Building round opens October 1 and closes October 31, 2026 (notifications: mid-December). Build your calendar to submit 2 weeks before the published deadline to allow for portal technical issues.

Budget specificity matters. The application requires a "comprehensive breakdown of funding request including detailed expenses and other potential funding sources." Line-item budgets with realistic unit costs and a clear distinction between what UpMobility funds and what other sources cover demonstrate financial management competency.