What El Pomar Foundation does

El Pomar Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation established in 1937 by Spencer and Julie Penrose in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with an initial endowment of approximately $12 million (later augmented by Julie's approximately $9 million bequest in 1956) that has grown to over $700 million in assets. The Foundation's mission is to enhance, encourage, and promote the current and future well-being of the people of Colorado, and it operates exclusively through investment returns on its endowment, declining outside donations except in limited endowed/restricted cases. It is one of Colorado's largest private foundations, distributing more than $25 million annually and over $600 million cumulatively since inception across more than 25,000 grants to Colorado-based 501(c)(3) nonprofits and government entities.

The Foundation's programmatic portfolio is organized around three pillars. The grantmaking arm includes a competitive online grant process (Trustee-reviewed 4-6 times per year, with rolling applications and at least 10 weeks lead time) plus the Regional Partnerships place-based program that divides Colorado into 11 regions with local councils recommending grants across all 64 counties. The leadership development pillar comprises the two-year paid Fellowship, a summer Internship, the Elevating Leadership Development (ELD) program for leaders of color in Southern Colorado (created 2001), and the PeOPLE executive leadership program delivered in partnership with the Center for Creative Leadership at $900 per participant. The community engagement pillar includes the biennial Awards for Excellence ceremony, the annual Rocky Mountain Tax Seminar, and the Pikes Peak Heritage Series panel discussions. The Foundation also stewards three historic properties — Penrose House Conference Center (free to qualifying nonprofits, listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1995), Will Rogers Shrine of the Sun (a 114-foot granite tower on Cheyenne Mountain housing the Penroses' remains), and Penrose Heritage Museum (free admission, featuring vintage carriages and the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb Experience).

The Foundation employs approximately 65 staff, leadership, and Fellows, with 13 leadership team members and 28 staff supported by 300+ Fellowship alumni working across Colorado's nonprofit, public, and private sectors. Revenue mechanics derive entirely from endowment investment performance rather than fee-for-service or fundraising; the competitive grants, free conference center, free museum admissions, and paid Fellowship/ELD positions together form the Foundation's distribution and engagement channels. There is no proprietary technology product, public API, or AI capability disclosed; operations rely on a standard online grant application portal and conventional digital marketing channels (website, blog, quarterly newsletter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and career fair participation at Colorado universities).

Name

El Pomar Foundation

Legal name

El Pomar Foundation

Website

https://elpomar.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1937

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

El Pomar Foundation is a Colorado Springs-based private philanthropic foundation established in 1937 that distributes more than $25 million annually in grants and programs to Colorado-based 501(c)(3) nonprofits and government entities from a $700 million endowment, while operating leadership development programs and three historic properties.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Foundation / Philanthropic Grantmaking

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

Keywords

• Philanthropic grantmaking
• Private foundation services
• Leadership development programs
• Community engagement programs
• Historic property management

Headquarters

HQ city

Colorado Springs

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Others, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Endowment Investment Returns: El Pomar Foundation generates revenue exclusively from investment returns on its endowment established by Spencer and Julie Penrose in 1937. The Foundation does not accept donations (with limited exceptions for endowed/restricted funds). Annual charitable distributions come from investment growth, not operational revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

El Pomar Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation that distributes over $25 million annually in competitive grants to Colorado-based 501(c)(3) nonprofits and government entities across arts & culture, civic/community, education, health, and human services. It complements grantmaking with leadership development programs (Fellowship, Internship, ELD, PeOPLE), community engagement initiatives (Awards for Excellence, Regional Partnerships, Rocky Mountain Tax Seminar), and stewardship of three historic properties (Penrose House Conference Center, Will Rogers Shrine of the Sun, Penrose Heritage Museum).

Product overview

El Pomar Foundation operates as a unified portfolio of philanthropic services organized around three pillars: Grant Making, Leadership Development and Community Engagement Programs, and Historic Properties. The grant-making arm includes a competitive grant process distributing over $25 million annually to Colorado nonprofits, complemented by the Regional Partnerships place-based program spanning 11 geographic regions. Leadership programs include the Fellowship (two-year paid program), Internship (summer program), Elevating Leadership Development (ELD for leaders of color in Southern Colorado), and PeOPLE (executive leadership). Community engagement encompasses Awards for Excellence, Rocky Mountain Tax Seminar, and Pikes Peak Heritage Series. The Foundation also stewards three historic properties: Penrose House Conference Center (free nonprofit venue), Will Rogers Shrine of the Sun (mountain monument), and Penrose Heritage Museum (free museum with carriage and racing collections).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Grant Making

Quantifiable outcome

• More than 25,000 grants totaling over $600 million since 1937
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Colorado Health Foundation: Colorado-focused private foundation with a similar large-endowment grantmaking model. Operates comparable statewide grant programs and leadership initiatives for Colorado nonprofits.
• Denver Foundation: Colorado's largest community foundation, pooling donor funds to make grants across the state. Comparable in mission (community grantmaking, leadership development) and serves an overlapping Colorado nonprofit audience.
• Rose Community Foundation: Denver-based community foundation making grants across Colorado in health, education, and Jewish community. Comparable grantmaking scale and geographic focus.
• Gates Family Foundation: Colorado-based private foundation with similar statewide focus and competitive grantmaking model. Targets education, community development, and historic preservation in Colorado.
• Boettcher Foundation: Colorado private foundation with comparable statewide grantmaking and a leadership program (Boettcher Scholars) analogous to El Pomar's Fellowship. Similar capital scale and historical family-foundation origin.
• Anschutz Foundation: Colorado-based private foundation with large endowment supporting community, education, and health grants in Colorado. Comparable in scale and regional concentration.
• Adolph Coors Foundation: Colorado-based family foundation funding education, health, and community programs. Similar family-foundation origin and statewide Colorado grantmaking focus.

Broad incumbents

• Ford Foundation: Large national private foundation with substantially broader scope and global programs. Comparable core grantmaking business model but operates at far greater scale and geographic breadth.
• Kresge Foundation: National private foundation with similar endowment-driven grantmaking and complementary programs (e.g., leadership development). Comparable model but operates across the U.S.
• Mott Foundation: National private foundation using endowment investment returns to fund community-focused grantmaking and leadership programs. Similar business model, broader geographic reach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/147335408612319
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/el-pomar-foundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/el_pomar
• Xx.com/elpomarfdtn

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about El Pomar Foundation