OVERVIEW: The Vadon Foundation supports Indigenous-led groups focusing on language revitalization, vulnerable community members, leadership development and basic needs.
IP TAKE: The focus of the Vadon Foundation’s giving is Indigenous-led groups that work to “sustain healthy thriving indigenous nations in perpetuity.” Vadon has supported organizations of every size, including collaborations and educational initiatives for Indigenous children and youth. Another area of interest concerns grassroots work for accountability regarding the many “missing and murdered” Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people. This funder welcomes contact, so reach out for a discussion about potential funding opportunities. Contact information is provided below.
PROFILE: The Seattle-based Vadon Foundation was founded 2013 by businessman Mark Vadon and Mattie Vadon. Mark Vadon graduated with an A.B. in social studies from Harvard College in 1992 and received his MBA from Stanford in 1997. He spent six years with Bain & Company before founding online jewelry retailer Blue Nile in 1999. He took the company public in 2004, and then launched a new online retailer, Zulily, offering daily merchandise deals geared toward mothers and their children. Vadon was also chairman of the pet supply e-tailer Chewy.
The Vadon Foundation “supports innovative community-based initiatives that sustain healthy thriving indigenous nations in perpetuity.” A recent restructuring saw the foundation give away about half of its assets and the resignation of Mattie Vadon from the board. Under the leadership of executive director Dave LaSarte-Meeks, the foundation continues to support Indigenous causes, focusing on “programs working to ensure that every successive generation of indigenous people and culture will face an increasingly brighter future of healthy self-determination, autonomy, evolution, and sustainability.”
Grants for Racial Justice and Indigenous Rights
While a great majority of the Vadon Foundation’s grants support Indigenous causes, the foundation names four focus areas for its giving.
Grants for Language Revitalization focus on programs and education that aim to “[r]estore[…] the vibrant, living ecosystems of Native languages creates cascading benefits that intersect every aspect of Native community and lives.”
Grantees include the Salish School of Spokane, the Inchelium Language and Culture Association and the Kalispel Language Program.
Grants Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two‑Spirit People (MMIWG2S) address the “[d]isproportionate violence against the most vulnerable members of Native communities” and support grassroots efforts for “institutional transparency and accountability.”
In Ash Grove, Missouri, the foundation has supported Treehouse, a support network for foster youth “with a commitment to racial equity and cultural competency.” Grants have also gone to the Cedar Rising Coalition and the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center.
Innovative Community Leadership grants support the development of “[d]ynamic leaders [to] identify their communities’ unique challenges, create solutions.”
Leadership grant recipients include the Cheyenne River Youth Project, United National Indian Tribal Youth and the Yellow Bird Life Ways Center in Montana.
Grants also work to address COVID-19 Food Insecurity and Essential Needs among Indigenous communities, including grants for health care and basic needs for especially vulnerable people.
Recipients of this subprogram include Navajo and Hopi Families COVID-19 Relief, the Pueblo Relief Fund and the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan.
Important Grant Details:
Vadon’s grants range from $5,000 to $285,000.
This funder supports Indigenous-led organizations in any state, but grants appear to be concentrated in the Western portion of the U.S.
The foundation invites grantseekers to “send us an introductory email or call our offices to discuss your program.” Through this initial communication, the foundation will “determine what materials or information would be useful for further discussion.”
For examples of past grants, see the foundation’s What We Do page or its past tax filings.
Introductory email may be sent to the foundation’s executive director, Dave LaSarte-Meeks, at dave@vadonfoundation.org. The foundation’s phone number is 206-472-7220.
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