Merit Foundation EIN 36-4156727

Merit Foundation

EIN  36-4156727 Private foundation / grantmaker Mount Prospect, IL
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Size
$100K–1M
What they do
A private foundation based in Mount Prospect, IL. It reported about $232K in revenue for 2025.
Leadership
Lauren B Cantoni · Director · $0K
Money in and out
$232K revenue, $116K expenses
Bottom line

A private foundation based in Mount Prospect, IL. It reported about $232K in revenue for 2025. For fiscal year 2025 it reported $232K in revenue, $116K in expenses, and $1.5M in net assets.Pt I

Grants paid & assets · FY2025
Total revenue
$232K
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$116K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$1.5M
Pt X · Ln 32
Revenue less expenses (Pt I · Ln 19): $116K
Total assets
1.5M
deployed as grants and operations
Grants paid
59K
in FY2025
Grants made
27grants
total in period
Payout rate
4%
of assets (5% rule)

Who They Fund

Part XV · grants paid · 27 grants · $59K · 2025–2025
Foundation for the Mount Prospect Public LibraryFY2025$5,200
Mental Health America INCFY2025$5,200
Lafayette CollegeFY2025$5,200
Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against DefamationFY2025$5,200
Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison INCFY2025$4,200
Wheaton North High SchoolFY2025$3,000
The Parenting PathFY2025$3,000
Holy Cross Lutheran ChurchFY2025$2,700
Trustees of Boston University - Bloom Family LeadershipFY2025$2,700
Summit School of AhwatukeeFY2025$2,700
St Jude Childrens Research Hospital INCFY2025$2,700
Trustees of Boston University - Friends of Men's Swimming & DivingFY2025$2,500
Grace Lutheran ChurchFY2025$2,000
Edith Kanaka'ole FoundationFY2025$1,700
Undies for EveryoneFY2025$1,500
Albion CollegeFY2025$1,500
Camp GrayFY2025$1,000
Pitt Hopkins FoundationFY2025$1,000
See all 27 grants →

Grantmaking Profile

Patterns in foundation giving
Average grantPart XV$2K
Median grantPart XV$2K
Largest grantPart XV$5K

Summary of the Filing

Part I · fiscal year 2025 · Form 990-PF
Revenue
$232K
FY2025▲ +1%
Expenses
$116K
FY2025▲ +9%
Total assets
$1.5M
FY2025▲ +5%
Total liabilities
$1K
FY2025▲ +47%
Total revenue
$232K
Pt VIII · Ln 12
Total expenses
$116K
Pt IX · Ln 25
Net assets
$1.5M
Pt X · Ln 32
Total assetsPt II$1.5M

Identity & Classification

Form 990 Header · IRS Business Master File
Legal nameHdr · item CMerit Foundation
EINHdr · item D36-4156727
Principal addressHdr · item CMount Prospect, IL
WebsiteHdr · item Jnone reported
State of legal domicileHdr · item MIL
Exempt statusHdr · item I501(c)(3) · active
NTEE classificationIRS BMFUnclassified (Z99Z)
Ruling yearIRS BMFFeb 1998

Governance & Policies

Part VI
Voting members of the governing bodyPt VI · Ln 1apending
Independent voting membersPt VI · Ln 1bpending
Conflict-of-interest policyPt VI · Ln 12a
Whistleblower policyPt VI · Ln 13
Document retention policyPt VI · Ln 14
CEO/top-official compensation independently reviewedPt VI · Ln 15a
Family or business relationships among officers/directorsPt VI · Ln 2

Officers, Directors & Key Employees

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
$300Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$300Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$300Pt VII · Sec A
$300Pt VII · Sec A
$300Pt VII · Sec A
$300Pt VII · Sec A
$300Pt VII · Sec A
Director
$300Pt VII · Sec A

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 8 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2025FY2024
Rebecca Johnson$300$300
Lauren B Cantoni$300$300
Stephen Frucht$300$300
Andrew Frucht$300$300
Annemarie Johnson$300$300
James Frucht$300$300
Katherine Frucht$300$300
Nathaniel Frucht$300$300

Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.

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Statement of Revenue

Part VIII
Investment income$135K · 58%
Contributions & grants$97K · 42%
Investment income58%$135K
Contributions & grants42%$97K
Total revenueLn 12$232K

Statement of Functional Expenses

Part IX · allocated across program, management, and fundraising
Allocation · columns B–D
Grants & contributions paid $0.51 Operating & administrative $0.49
Grants & contributions paid51%$59K
Operating & administrative49%$57K
Total functional expensesLn 25$116K

Balance Sheet

Part X · end of year
CashLn 1$87K
Total assetsLn 16$1.5M
Total liabilitiesLn 26$1K
Total net assetsLn 32$1.5M
Months of cash on handcomputed9.0

Financial Metrics

Form 990 · FY2025 · each ratio shown with the dollars behind it
Liquidity & Payout
Payout rate
Grants paid $0 · Total assets $1.5M
0%
Where the money comes from
Contribution dependence
Contributions & grants — · Total revenue $232K
Government reliance
not reported
Earned-income share
not reported
Investment reliance
Investment income $0 · Total revenue $232K
0%
Program self-sufficiency
not reported
Growth & trend
Revenue growth (YoY)
This year $232K · Prior year $231K
+1%
Revenue CAGR
FY2020 $190K · FY2025 $232K
+4%
Net-asset trend (YoY)
End of year $1.5M · Beginning of year —
Beginning net assets not meaningfully positive — showing dollar change
Balance sheet
Surplus Margin
Revenue $232K · Expenses $116K
+50%
Liabilities-to-Assets
Total liabilities — · Total assets $1.5M
Net-asset ratio
Net assets $1.5M · Total assets $1.5M
100%
People & payroll
Highest Reported Total Compensation
Individual Rebecca Johnson · Reported title DIRECTOR · Highest reported compensation $300 · Total expenses $116K
0%
Personnel share
not reported
Peer comparison

Same NTEE category, revenue band, and state where available. Descriptive — not a grade.

MetricThis orgPeer medianPercentile
Revenue growth 1%

Straight from the Form 990 — descriptive, not an evaluation. A ratio is hidden when its base is zero or too small to be meaningful; the dollars are always shown.

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Filings & Schedule Manifest

Part IV
III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
FY2025 (Latest)$232K revenue · viewing · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2024$231K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2023$119K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2022$183K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2021$481K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF
FY2020$190K revenue · ⤓ 990 PDF

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Sources

Every figure above is drawn from these filings
Form 990 e-file (XML) · FY2025IRS
Classification, formation year, addressIRS Business Master File
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