Since its inception two years ago, the MrBallen Foundation has given away over $1 million to support victims of violent crimes and their families.
For those who don’t know him, MrBallen (aka John Allen) is a former Navy SEAL who’s told hundreds of “strange, dark, and mysterious” stories on YouTube since 2020, most of them either known to be true–like the many murders and disappearances he’s covered–or based on eyewitness accounts from reputable sources.
In 2022, Allen founded the MrBallen Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that awards honor grants of up to $25,000 to organizations supporting victims of violent crimes and their families.
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The foundation just announced that to date, it has supported 25 organizations, giving them a collective $714,000. It more than tripled the amount of grants it awarded year over yearr, giving grants to seven organizations in 2022, and 18 in 2023.
Organizations that have received MrBallen Foundation grants include the LOVE>hate Project, the Children’s Bereavement Center of South Texas, DeafHope, Free to Thrive, Experience Camps, OneStar, Men Stopping Violence, Homicide Survivors Inc, Parents of Murdered Children, Survivors of Homicide, The RIDE Foundation, The Shaken Baby Alliance, Texas EquuSearch, the Rebecca Bender Initiative, The Victor S. Johnson III Nashville Children’s Alliance, A21, End Violence Against Women International, and Angels in the Outfield.
On top of those honor grants, the MrBallen Foundation donates money to emergency aid in the wake of mass tragedies. In 2023, it gave an additional $192,000 to those impacted by tragedies like the Allen, Texas mall shooting and The Covenant School shooting in Nashville.
With the honor grants and emergency relief grants together, the MrBallen Foundation has given a total of $1,042,000 to support victims and their families.
In a 2023 wrap-up video, Allen says members of the foundation’s leadership team are also “constantly traveling” to provide on-the-ground aid and training for organizations that have received honor grants.
“Thanks so much to all our donors and supporters, and of course the fans of the strange, dark, and mysterious,” he says. “Without all of you, the MrBallen Foundation would not exist. I can tell you right now, the MrBallen Foundation has become a critical part of the support network for these victims and their families.”
