Improve the overall health & wellness of at-risk youth in the Greater Philadelphia Region.
Jaws Youth Fund Inc makes one-time project grants for at-risk youth, with awards centered on safe places to play, healthy food, summer meals, and youth wellness. Its active programs are built around the Greater Philadelphia region, and the public grant record shows repeated support for youth development, sports and recreation, health and nutrition, foster care support, and education-enrichment projects. The typical grant sits at $25,000, and the foundation’s recent activity includes larger awards when it backs a specific program or organization. One example is a $60,000 grant to Boys & Girls Club of Phila for children’s needs, and another is a $50,000 grant to Deborah Hospital Foundation for youth advancement. The grant descriptions show a consistent preference for direct, site-based work rather than general operating support, including playgrounds, ballfields, community gardens, and summer meal sites. Grants are also tied to community programs that support children and adolescents through recreation, access to healthy food, and education-linked services.
Youth wellness is the clearest theme in the foundation’s giving. In 2025, it gave $25,000 to Philadelphia Youth Basketball for youth advancement, and another $25,000 to the Miracle League of the Lehigh Valley for youth advancement. Sports and recreation are another recurring lane: the foundation awarded $25,000 to the Police Athletic League of Phila Inc for youth advancement, pointing to its interest in organized activities and safe play. Health and nutrition also appear in the grant program design itself, especially through summer meals and healthy food access. Community development shows up in project-based support for playgrounds, ballfields, and community gardens, all tied to at-risk youth in the Greater Philadelphia area.
Grant sizes cluster tightly around $25,000, with the middle half also at $25,000 and the lower quartile at $22,500. That pattern matches a project-grant model rather than open-ended support. The foundation’s active programs are one-time and project-based, and several explicitly accept unsolicited requests. Recent grants appear across more than one year, with 2023 and 2025 awards both present in the record, which suggests repeated annual activity rather than isolated giving. The organization is a public charity, and its program descriptions emphasize direct-service projects and restricted project costs rather than operating support.
$213K
$1.1M
$499K
$334K
Most grants fall between $23K and $25K, with a median of $25K.
25th Percentile
$23K
Median
$25K
75th Percentile
$25K
About 31% of grants go to recipients in PA.
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Grant recipients are entirely in the United States. The foundation gives most often in Ohio by recipient count, even though many of the named grants land in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Philadelphia appears repeatedly, including recipients in Philadelphia, PA and nearby Narberth, PA and Allentown, PA. New Jersey recipients include Browns Mills, Wildwood, Atlantic City, Medford, and another Medford grant in the recent list. The country distribution is fully domestic, with 16 grants in the US.
The foundation funds one-time, project-based work for at-risk youth. Its active programs mention safe places to play, healthy food access, summer meals, playgrounds and ballfields, community gardens, youth recreation, and enrichment activities in the Greater Philadelphia region.
The grant-size pattern is tightly grouped around $25,000. The p25 is $22,500, the median is $25,000, and the p75 is also $25,000, which points to a fairly consistent award level.
Yes for several active programs. The JYP Grant, Jaws Youth Playbook One-Time Grant, Community Champion Grant, and Jaws Youth Playbook Grant all say they accept unsolicited requests. Summer Meals Funding is listed as not accepting unsolicited requests.
It is regional. The active programs focus on the Greater Philadelphia area and Philadelphia metropolitan area, while the recent grant list shows recipients in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Missouri, and Ohio, with the grant record still concentrated in the region.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Current and upcoming funding from Jaws Youth Fund that your nonprofit may be able to apply for.
Who can apply: Underserved organizations in the Greater Philadelphia area with project-based needs. Overhead is not supported; funds must be strictly applied to the project. Organizations may apply once per lifetime.
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Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEBORAH HOSPITAL FOUNDATION | BROWNS MILLS, NJ | $50,000 | 2025 | YOUTH ADVANCEMENT |
| POLICE ATHLETIC LEAGUE OF PHILA INC | PITTSBURGH, PA | $25,000 | 2025 | YOUTH ADVANCEMENT |
| BE PHILLY FOUNDATION | PHILADELPHIA, PA | $25,000 | 2025 | YOUTH ADVANCEMENT |
| MAKE THE WORLD BETTER FOUNDATION | PHILADELPHIA, PA | $25,000 | 2025 | YOUTH ADVANCEMENT |
| PHILADELPHIA YOUTH BASKETBALL | PHILADELPHIA, PA | $25,000 | 2025 | YOUTH ADVANCEMENT |
| MIRACLE LEAGUE OF THE LEHIGH VALLEY | ALLENTOWN, PA | $25,000 | 2025 | YOUTH ADVANCEMENT |
| PUBLIC HEALTH MANAGEMENT CORPORATION | PHILADELPHIA, PA | $20,000 | 2025 | YOUTH ADVANCEMENT |
| BRIAN DAWKINS IMPACT FOUNDATION | SAINT LOUIS, MO | $10,000 | 2025 | YOUTH ADVANCEMENT |
| MEDFORD YOUTH ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION INC | MEDFORD, NJ | $7,500 | 2025 | YOUTH ADVANCEMENT |
| BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF PHILA | PHILADELPHIA, PA | $60,000 | 2023 | CHILDREN'S NEEDS |
| CITY OF WILDWOOD | WILDWOOD, NJ | $25,000 | 2023 | CHILDREN'S NEEDS |
| YSU FOUNDATION | YOUNGSTOWN, OH | $25,000 | 2023 | STUDENT EDUCATION |
| BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF ATLANTIC CITY | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ | $25,000 | 2023 | CHILDREN'S NEEDS |
| YMCA CAMP OCKANICKON | MEDFORD, NJ | $25,000 | 2023 | CHILDREN'S NEEDS |
| KELCE WATER INC DBA (BE) PHILLY FOUNDATION | NARBERTH, PA | $20,000 | 2023 | CHILDREN'S NEEDS |
| PHILADELPHIA YOUTH SPORTS COLLABORATIVE | PHILADELPHIA, PA | $10,000 | 2023 | CHILDREN'S NEEDS |
POLICE ATHLETIC LEAGUE OF PHILA INC
$25,000YOUTH ADVANCEMENT
BE PHILLY FOUNDATION
$25,000YOUTH ADVANCEMENT
MAKE THE WORLD BETTER FOUNDATION
$25,000YOUTH ADVANCEMENT
MIRACLE LEAGUE OF THE LEHIGH VALLEY
$25,000YOUTH ADVANCEMENT
BRIAN DAWKINS IMPACT FOUNDATION
$10,000YOUTH ADVANCEMENT
MEDFORD YOUTH ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION INC
$7,500YOUTH ADVANCEMENT
CITY OF WILDWOOD
$25,000CHILDREN'S NEEDS
BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF ATLANTIC CITY
$25,000CHILDREN'S NEEDS
KELCE WATER INC DBA (BE) PHILLY FOUNDATION
$20,000CHILDREN'S NEEDS
