Mardag Foundation
Mardag Foundation is a private family foundation established in 1969 that awards grants to Minnesota nonprofits serving low-income children, youth, families, older adults, and arts/culture organizations in the East Metro and Greater Minnesota.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1969
- HeadquartersSaint Paul, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Mardag Foundation does
Mardag Foundation is a private family foundation established in 1969 under the will of Agnes Dagmar Elmer Ober, the widow of early 3M investor Edgar Ober. The foundation invests in nonprofit organizations serving the East Metro and Greater Minnesota, with explicit geographic exclusion of the Minneapolis/West Metro area. Its board comprises third- and fourth-generation Ober family descendants alongside community members, with Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation providing administrative, investment, and grants-team staffing under an affiliate relationship.
The foundation operates three grant programs effective 2026 following a community-informed redesign completed across 2024-2025: a Community Emergency Grant Program ($2,500-$20,000 one-time grants for food access or housing organizations), a Food Access Grant Program ($100,000/year for five years targeting immigrant/refugee and Indigenous communities), and an Our Home State Grant Program (up to $100,000/year for five years for housing and homelessness work). Applications are processed through the shared GranteeView online portal, co-administered with Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation and F. R. Bigelow Foundation. All three foundations collaborate on joint grantmaking rounds, with nearly $14 million across 456 grants distributed in the first 2025 round.
Mardag does not generate commercial revenue; its financial model is endowment-backed, with cumulative grants exceeding $69 million across 1,104 organizations and 3,035 grants through 2018, and approximately $2.5 million distributed across 79 grants in 2025. The foundation's stated priorities are anti-racism, culturally responsive funding, and systems-change work alongside direct service support, with general operating and capital support provided to grantees.
Mardag Foundation firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Mardag Foundation
- Legal name
- Mardag Foundation
- Website
- https://mardag.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1969
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Mardag Foundation is a private family foundation established in 1969 that awards grants to Minnesota nonprofits serving low-income children, youth, families, older adults, and arts/culture organizations in the East Metro and Greater Minnesota.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Mardag Foundation industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Private Family Foundation Grantmaking
- NAICS
- Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Social Justice & Human Rights Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAN)
Keywords
Where Mardag Foundation is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Saint Paul
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Mardag Foundation business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Community Emergency Grant Program |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Food Access Grant Program |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Our Home State Grant Program |
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Mardag Foundation product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Mardag Foundation is a private family foundation established in 1969 by the will of Agnes Ober that awards grants to nonprofit organizations serving communities in Minnesota, with a focus on the East Metro and Greater Minnesota regions. The foundation operates three distinct grant programs — Community Emergency, Food Access, and Our Home State — through which nonprofits can apply for funding to support community-based initiatives. As an affiliate of the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation, Mardag accepts and processes grant applications through the GranteeView online portal.
Product overview
Mardag Foundation operates as a grantmaking foundation offering multiple grant programs focused on the East Metro and Greater Minnesota. The foundation provides three main grant programs: the Community Emergency Grant Program (one-time emergency support for food access or housing organizations), the Food Access Grant Program (multi-year funding for food systems work targeting low-income immigrant/refugee and Native American communities), and the Our Home State Grant Program (housing-focused multi-year grants). All applications are processed through the GranteeView online portal, a shared system with partner foundations.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Community Emergency Grants Grants awarded to nonprofit organizations in Minnesota to support community emergency response and relief efforts, targeted at organizations serving low-income and underserved communities in the East Metro and Greater Minnesota.
- Food Access Grants Grants awarded to Minnesota-based nonprofits working to reduce food insecurity and expand access to food for low-income communities, with regional emphasis on East Metro and Greater Minnesota.
- Our Home State Grants Statewide grant program supporting community-based initiatives across Minnesota, enabling nonprofit organizations to apply for funding that advances broader statewide community priorities aligned with the foundation's mission.
Quantifiable outcome
- 50 years of grantmaking supporting Minnesota nonprofits
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Mardag Foundation
Customer profileNamed customers16 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Mardag Foundation technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Mardag Foundation partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Saint Paul & Minnesota FoundationcoreMardag Foundation is an affiliate of the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation. The Foundation administers Mardag's grant program and provides staff support for grantmaking recommendations, investments, and communications. Together they offer collaborative grant opportunities.
- F. R. Bigelow FoundationcorePartner foundation that collaborates with Mardag Foundation and Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation on joint grantmaking initiatives. Together they award millions in community grants each round.
- National Committee for Responsive PhilanthropyminorOrganization providing the Power Moves tool that Mardag Foundation uses to assess and guide how they build, wield and share power as part of their anti-racism work.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Mardag Foundation competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation: Administrative affiliate of Mardag that jointly deploys grants across Minnesota; comparable in function as a regional community foundation with similar focus on East Metro and statewide grantmaking.
- Blandin Foundation: Rural Minnesota-focused foundation with a similar family-foundation legacy model; comparable in serving Greater Minnesota communities through capacity-building and place-based grantmaking.
- The Minneapolis Foundation: Twin Cities–area community foundation serving a different geography within Minnesota; directly comparable as a regional grantmaking institution supporting nonprofits with similar donor-advised and competitive grant programs.
- F. R. Bigelow Foundation: Direct co-funder with Mardag on collaborative grant rounds; another Saint Paul-based family foundation with overlapping geographic and programmatic focus on Minnesota communities.
Regional players
- Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation: Minnesota-based health-focused funder; comparable as a regional grantmaking entity targeting community health and equity, though with a narrower thematic scope.
- Greater Milwaukee Foundation: Wisconsin-based community foundation operating the same asset stewardship and competitive grantmaking model; useful peer for benchmarking Mardag's structure and grantmaking practices.
Broad incumbents
- Bush Foundation: Minnesota- and Native nation–focused regional foundation with comparable community-development and equity-oriented programming; larger scale and broader geography than Mardag.
- The McKnight Foundation: One of Minnesota's largest family foundations; operates across the same state and serves overlapping community segments, but with a vastly larger endowment and broader programmatic portfolio.
- Northwest Area Foundation: Minnesota-headquartered foundation focused on poverty reduction across a multi-state region; comparable as a long-tenured regional grantmaker targeting similar community outcomes.
- Otto Bremer Trust: Much larger Minnesota- and Wisconsin-based family trust that deploys hundreds of millions annually; comparable as a regional family foundation with similar community/economic-development focus but substantially broader scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Mardag Foundation social profiles
Digital presenceMardag Foundation financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Mardag Foundation leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Mardag Foundation funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Mardag Foundation M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Mardag Foundation
What does Mardag Foundation do?
Mardag Foundation is a private family foundation established in 1969 by the will of Agnes Ober that awards grants to nonprofit organizations serving communities in Minnesota, with a focus on the East Metro and Greater Minnesota regions. The foundation operates three distinct grant programs — Community Emergency, Food Access, and Our Home State — through which nonprofits can apply for funding to support community-based initiatives. As an affiliate of the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation, Mardag accepts and processes grant applications through the GranteeView online portal.
Is Mardag Foundation a public or private company?
Mardag Foundation is a private company. It is classified as family owned and is currently operating.
When was Mardag Foundation founded?
Mardag Foundation was founded in 1969. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Mardag Foundation based?
Mardag Foundation is headquartered in Saint Paul, United States, in the North America region.
Who are Mardag Foundation's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation, Blandin Foundation, The Minneapolis Foundation and F. R. Bigelow Foundation. Regional players are Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation and Greater Milwaukee Foundation. Broad incumbents are Bush Foundation, The McKnight Foundation, Northwest Area Foundation and Otto Bremer Trust.
Does Mardag Foundation have an API?
No public API is recorded for Mardag Foundation.
What industry is Mardag Foundation in?
Mardag Foundation's product category is Private Family Foundation Grantmaking. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAKAB, Community Foundations, with a secondary code of BPAGAKAN, Social Justice & Human Rights Grantmaking Foundations. Its NAICS code is 813211 and its SIC code is 8600.