Quick Stats
- Annual Giving: $7,247,601 in grants paid (tax year ending June 2023, from 990-PF)
- Geographic Focus: Boston area, Massachusetts
- Application Method: Invitation-only (in spend-down phase)
Contact Details
Phone: 617-248-4760 (via Choate Hall & Stewart LLP)
The foundation does not maintain a website and operates through its legal counsel.
Funding Priorities
- Performing arts organisations (theatres, opera, museums)
- Writing and literacy programmes
- Artists' colonies (typically one recipient annually at around $250,000)
- Higher education with focus on arts or writing
Notable recent grants include over $2 million each to WriteBoston, 826 Boston, and Grub Street in 2024, $10 million to Huntington Theatre Company, and $5 million to Boston Lyric Opera Company.
Recent Grant Pattern
- Geographic distribution: Based on most recent 990-PF grant records, almost all grants are made in the Boston area, with occasional support in Chestnut Hill, Wesley Hills (Massachusetts), and parts of New Hampshire
- Typical grantees: Performing arts organisations (theatres, opera companies, museums), writing and literacy programmes, artists' colonies, and universities
- Representative grants: WriteBoston ($2+ million), 826 Boston ($2+ million), Grub Street ($2+ million), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum ($2.35 million), Museum of Fine Arts Boston ($1 million), Harvard University ($2.5 million)
What They Don't Fund
Information not publicly available.
Application Process & Timeline
The foundation operates by invitation only and does not accept unsolicited grant requests. Grants are made at trustee discretion to pre-selected organisations. The foundation is currently in a planned spend-down phase and is unlikely to accept new grantees outside its existing portfolio.
References
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