Faith Sommerfield Family Foundation
At a glance
This funder does not accept unsolicited applications. The foundation chooses the organisations it funds itself.
Key takeaways
- The foundation contributes only to organisations it has preselected and does not accept unsolicited requests, and no application steps are stated, so a charity without an invitation should not send a cold application.
- If your work is end-of-life education, such as public education, conferences or lectures, it is close to what the foundation has supported, so an introduction through your network is the route to try.
- About 8 in 10 of its 19 grants to organisations fall between $850 and $150,000, but its largest was about $865,000, so that band is typical rather than a ceiling; half its grants were $10,000 or less, making a request near $10,000 the most realistic.
- The filing does not state a geographic focus, and its grants have mostly gone to New York and Canada, but that is a pattern, not a rule about who may apply.
- Only 7% of its grant dollars to organisations went to repeat recipients, so do not assume a past grant will recur.
Overview
Faith Sommerfield Family Foundation is a US private foundation based in New York, NY.
What they fund
Profile based on the foundation's IRS Form 990-PF filings (TY2024, TY2023, TY2022) only: no website or other web source for the foundation was found. Every statement is checked against the filings. Sources read on 7 October 2026.
Priority Areas
The foundation hosts online conferences and symposiums regarding end-of-life choices and provides public education to lay people, academics, legal professionals and healthcare professionals. Its grant record includes support for establishing a centre dedicated to learning about medical assistance in dying and other end-of-life care initiatives, alongside conference and lecture sponsorship and general operating support. Recipients include a university, a research centre, healthcare and medical-assistance-in-dying associations, a church, a refugee and immigrant support service and an educational theatre organisation. This reflects both direct educational activity and grants to organisations; the filings do not describe general eligibility criteria.
Themes
- End-of-life education
Geographic Focus
No geographic focus is stated; the filings show grants mainly in New York and Canada.
How to apply
It contributes only to preselected charitable organisations and does not accept unsolicited requests; no application steps for organisations are stated.
Application success factors
- Repeat giving: In its TY2024 filing, 7% of its grant dollars to organisations went to organisations it had also funded in its TY2022 or TY2023 filing.
- Grant size: Across its TY2022, TY2023 and TY2024 filings, half of its 19 grants to organisations were $10,000 or less.
Where grants go
From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2024.
Grant dollars by state
Outside the US or with no state on the filing: 6%
- The largest single recipient received 71% of grant dollars to organisations.
- In tax year 2024, 7% of grant dollars went to organisations Faith Sommerfield Family Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
- 6% of grant dollars went directly to organisations outside the US (Canada).
Grants
How much do they typically give?
Share of 7 grants in tax year 2024 by size
Median $10,000 (tax year 2024)
The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:
- 139 Worden · Support for the establishment of a center dedicated to learning about the use of medical assistance in dying ("maid") and other end-of-life care initiatives$863,9092024 tax year
- Maidhouse · General operating support$25,0002024 tax year
- Columbia University in the City of New York · Lecture sponsorship$24,9452024 tax year
- The Hastings Center · General operating support$10,0002024 tax year
- Canadian Association - Maid · Conference sponsorship$5,3652024 tax year
- American Health Law Association · Conference sponsorship$5,0002024 tax year
- End of Life Choices New York · Lecture sponsorship$8502024 tax year
Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.
Officers and directors
- Mark Elliott — Executive Director
- David Hoffman — Vice President & Secretary
- Shanna Nicole Nuttall — Vice President & Treasurer
- Jason Smith — President
From the latest Form 990-PF filing
3 years of tax filings
| Year | Total expenses | Grants paid | Assets | Filing document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 tax year | $583,828 | $5,000 | $3,189,774 | Filing for 2022 tax year |
| 2023 tax year | $2,007,025 | $285,250 | $19,289,511 | Filing for 2023 tax year |
| 2024 tax year | $3,006,928 | $935,069 | $27,172,392 | Filing for 2024 tax year |
Figures from the foundation’s IRS Form 990-PF filings. Assets are at fair market value at year end. The document icon links to each year’s filing on ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.
Sources
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At a glance
Applying to Faith Sommerfield Family Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- New York, NY
Applying to Faith Sommerfield Family Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- New York, NY