What kinds of organizations does Carl & Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation support?

The foundation supports major Greater Boston institutions across health care, arts and culture, early childhood education, disability inclusion, and human services. Recent grants include large general-purpose awards to hospitals, museums, theaters, schools, and community organizations.

How large are its typical grants?

Typical grants are $10,000 at the 25th percentile, $20,000 at the median, and $25,000 at the 75th percentile. The recent record also includes much larger institutional grants, including several awards in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Does the foundation give mostly in one place?

Yes. Massachusetts is the top state by grant count, and 68% of grants go to recipients in the HQ state. Boston is the most common recipient city in the recent grants list, with additional Massachusetts recipients in Chestnut Hill, North Adams, and Springfield.

Does it make recurring grants?

Yes. Several organizations appear across multiple years in the recent grants list, including Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital, Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc, Huntington Theater, Combined Jewish Philanthropies, Brimmer and May School, Museum of Contemporary Art, and Roca Inc.

How does the foundation describe its grantmaking approach?

Its active grantmaking includes capital support, multi-year project support, and strategic initiatives. Those initiatives include Youth in the Arts, Early Childhood, Empowerment, Disability Inclusion, and Early Childhood & Empowerment, all focused on Greater Boston.

Carl & Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation

Name: Carl & Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation — grants, 990 financials & funding data
Creator: Kindora

ActivePhilanthropy & Voluntarism

WELLESLEY, MAWebsite7812356107

About Carl & Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation

The Carl & Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation concentrates its giving on large, general operating gifts to prominent Greater Boston institutions, primarily in health care and the arts. The foundation’s support is dominated by substantial unrestricted grants to a major teaching hospital, with a smaller but significant commitment to Boston’s principal art museum. Overall, it appears focused on sustaining flagship civic institutions in the Boston area rather than funding many smaller projects or a broad national portfolio.

Focus Areas

General operating support for major Boston hospitals (e.g., teaching/medical centers)Core funding for large cultural institutions in Boston (e.g., Museum of Fine Arts)Local Greater Boston civic and institutional sustainability

Who They Fund

unspecified / not stated

Giving Approach

Highly concentrated: very few, large grants; repeat multi-year support to a primary grantee (Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital) with one sizable arts gift—indicating preference for sustaining flagship local institutions over many small or new grantees.

Funding Style

general operating / broad-purpose support

About Carl & Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation

Carl & Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation’s recent giving is marked by large unrestricted support for major Boston institutions, especially health care and culture. The biggest gifts in the record go to Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital, which received $870,000 in both 2025 and 2024, along with a $410,000 grant in 2023. In the arts, the foundation backed the Museum of Fine Arts Boston with $265,000 in 2025, after earlier support at $55,000 in 2024. That pattern points to a funder that sustains flagship organizations with general-purpose dollars rather than many small restricted awards. Across the list, the foundation also appears to support other established civic institutions in Boston and nearby communities, including museums, theaters, schools, and Jewish communal organizations. Grants to Huntington Theater, Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc, Combined Jewish Philanthropies, and Brimmer and May School show a recurring emphasis on institutions with broad public or community roles. The foundation’s recent portfolio is concentrated in Greater Boston, and its grants are written in a way that suggests institutional stability is a central concern.

What Carl & Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation Funds

Health care and hospitals are a core part of the foundation’s giving. Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital received $870,000 in 2025 and another $870,000 in 2024, both for general purposes of the organization, showing sustained support for a major teaching hospital. The arts are another visible focus. The Museum of Fine Arts Boston received $265,000 in 2025 for general purposes, while Huntington Theater was awarded $70,000 in 2025 and $70,000 in 2024, also for general purposes. Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc appears with $55,000 grants in 2023, 2024, and 2025. The foundation also supports Jewish communal and educational institutions. Combined Jewish Philanthropies received $110,000 in 2024 and $100,000 in both 2023 and 2025. Brimmer and May School received $100,000 in 2024 and 2025.

How Carl & Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation Gives

Typical grants cluster in the $10,000 to $25,000 range, with a median of $20,000 and a p75 of $25,000. At the same time, the recent list includes a small number of much larger general-purpose awards, which indicates a mixed pattern of routine support and major institutional grants. The foundation is a Regular Funder and does not fund individuals or make program-related investments. Its grantmaking also looks recurring rather than one-off in several cases, with multiple recipients appearing in more than one year across the recent record.

Financial Snapshot

Annual Giving

$3.1M

Total Assets

$26.5M

Total Revenue

$1.4M

Total Expenses

$3.4M

Typical Grant Size

Most grants fall between $10K and $25K, with a median of $20K.

25th Percentile

$10K

Median

$20K

75th Percentile

$25K

Geographic Reach

Regional9 states funded

Funding intensity

Low

High

Headquarters

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Recipient	Location	Amount	Year	Purpose
BETH ISRAEL DEACONESS HOSPITAL	BOSTON, MA	$870,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
MUSUEM OF FINE ARTS BOSTON	BOSTON, MA	$382,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BRIMMER AND MAY SCHOOL	CHESTNUT HILL, MA	$101,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
COMBINED JEWISH PHILANTHROPIES	BOSTON, MA	$100,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
HUNTINGTON THEATER	BOSTON, MA	$70,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BOSTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INC	BOSTON, MA	$55,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
THEATER OFFENSIVE INC	BOSTON, MA	$50,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
FULL SPECTRUM FEATURES	CHICAGO, IL	$39,250	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
TEAM IMPACT	QUINCY, MA	$35,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
ROCA INC	SPRINGFIELD, MA	$35,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
JEWISH FEDERATION OF PALM BEACH COUNTY	WEST PALM BEACH, FL	$34,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BOSTON COMMUNITY PEDIATRICS INC	BOSTON, MA	$32,500	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
MIT MEDIA LAB	CAMBRIDGE, MA	$30,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
CAMBRIDGE MULTICULTURAL ARTS CENTER	CAMBRIDGE, MA	$30,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
ONE FAMILY INC	BOSTON, MA	$30,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
PERKINS SCHOOL FOR THE BLIND	WATERTOWN, MA	$30,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BOSTON DEBATE LEAGUE	BOSTON, MA	$30,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
THE MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART	LOS ANGELES, CA	$30,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BOSTON MEDICAL CENTER	BOSTON, MA	$30,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
MY LIFE MY CHOICE	BOSTON, MA	$30,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
FOUND IN TRANSLATION INC	DORCHESTER, MA	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
ENGLISH FOR NEW BOSTONIANS INC	BOSTON, MA	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BREAST CANCER RESEARCH FOUNDATION	NEW YORK, NY	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
NEIGHBORHOOD VILLAGES	BOSTON, MA	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
FAMILYAID BOSTON	BOSTON, MA	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BUILD BOSTON	BOSTON, MA	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BIKES NOT BOMBS	JAMAICA PLAIN, MA	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
TOWN OF PALM BEACH UNITED WAY	PALM BEACH, FL	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
PARTNERS FOR YOUTH WITH DISABILITIES INC	SOMERVILLE, MA	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
MASSART FOUNDATION	BOSTON, MA	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
JEWISH VOCATIONAL SERVICE INC	NEWTON, MA	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
HOPEWELL INC	DEDHAM, MA	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
ABILITIES DANCE	BROOKLINE, MA	$25,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
NEW COMMONWEALTH RACIAL EQUITY & SOCIAL JUSTICE FUND	BOSTON, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
THE UPWARD PROJECT	DORCHESTER CENTER, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
EXCEPTIONAL LIVES	BROOKLINE, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
WAYPOINT ADVENTURES	LEXINGTON, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
ORIGINATION INC	JAMAICA PLAIN, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
FAMILIES FIRST PARENTING PROGRAMS INC	WATERTOWN, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
HORIZONS FOR HOMELESS CHILDREN	ROXBURY, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BOSTON MUSIC PROJECT	BOSTON, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
JULIE'S FAMILY LEARNING PROGRAM INC	BOSTON, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BEST BUDDIES INTERNATIONAL INC	MIAMI, FL	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BOSTON IMPACT INITIATIVE FUND	JAMAICA PLAIN, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
CITY BALLET OF BOSTON INC	JAMAICA PLAIN, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
MAB COMMUNITY SERVICES	BROOKLINE, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
LOS ANGELES COUNTY MUSUEM OF ART (LACMA)	LOS ANGELES, CA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
MOTHERS FOR JUSTICE AND EQUALITY	BOSTON, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
ACCESSPORTAMERICA	ACTON, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION
BOSTON CHILDREN'S CHORUS	BOSTON, MA	$20,000	2026	GENERAL PURPOSES OF THE ORGANIZATION

Recipient

Location

Amount

Year

Purpose

BETH ISRAEL DEACONESS HOSPITAL

BOSTON, MA

$870,000

2026