M J Murdock Charitable Trust
M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust is a private foundation based in Vancouver, Washington that provides grants, programming, and resources to nonprofits across the Pacific Northwest. The official site includes grant opportunities, eligibility and application guidelines, an online grants portal, news and annual reports, contact details, and staff information.
Source: Website · Mar 2026
Ideal Applicant
A nonprofit, higher-education, or research organization with a clear Pacific Northwest connection (or demonstrable regional impact) seeking support for capacity building, capital projects, staff positions, or research start-up packages and willing to apply through the foundation's online process.
Good Fit
- • Project requests for facility construction, renovation, or capital campaigns.
- • Requests to fund new hires or expansion of development/program/staff roles.
- • Capacity-building and operational support proposals.
- • Higher-education or scientific research start-up packages and scholarship/fellowship programs.
- • Clear regional impact in WA/OR/MT/ID/AK or demonstrable Pacific Northwest relevance.
- • Requests sized in the foundation's common bands ($50K–$500K are frequent; multi-hundred-thousand and $1M+ capital awards also appear).
Geography
Observed grants reach 26 states with significant activity beyond the home state; however, the largest share remains concentrated in the Pacific Northwest (about one-third of dollars in Washington).
Recipient Variety
The latest year shows 707 distinct recipients and a wide mix of sectors and purposes (education, health, arts, research, community services), so the observed portfolio is broad and not limited to a tiny circle.
New Applicants
Direct evidence of openness includes public application information, a Submittable portal, named program contacts, and 483 new recipients in the latest year, which together indicate unfamiliar applicants can and do enter the portfolio.
Source: Zeffy Agent · Mar 2026
