Private foundations are legal entities set up by an individual, a family or a group of individuals, for philanthropic or charitable purposes, that are typically near and dear to the hearts of the founders.  A private foundation is a tax-exempt charitable organization but it does not solicit donations from the public.  There are three main types of private foundations: private endowed foundations, pass-through foundations and private operating foundations.  During its existence, a private foundation has numerous interactions with the IRS - from filing an application for recognition of tax-exempt status, to filing required annual information returns, to making changes in its mission and purpose.  As establishing and running a private foundation involves many complicated tax and legal issues, you will need reliable and experienced legal counsel, such as you will receive at Goehring, Rutter & Boehm.