The Sarah W. Rollins Charitable Trust focuses on Boston-area direct service organizations that support vulnerable youth through mentoring, workforce-readiness, out-of-school programming, and basic needs. Grants are typically unrestricted/general operating and frequently repeated to the same community-based nonprofits, indicating long-term partnerships with organizations doing frontline youth development. The foundation favors programs that move disconnected young people toward education, jobs, stability, and self-sufficiency rather than advocacy or research.
Concentrated, Boston-focused giving with multiple repeated grants to the same organizations; majority of grants are unrestricted/general operating support at mid-size amounts rather than one-off project funding. Funding is programmatic/direct-service oriented and clustered around a small set of core grantees.
Sarah W Rollins Charitable Trust Dated shows a clear pattern of backing direct-service organizations that work with vulnerable youth, especially in Boston-area communities. Its recent grants favor general operating and general support for nonprofits that provide mentoring, workforce readiness, out-of-school programming, and basic needs, with repeated awards to the same community-based organizations over multiple years. Roca received $75,000 in 2023 and another $35,000 in 2025, reflecting an ongoing relationship rather than one-off support. Other recurring recipients include Silverlining Mentoring, Young Man With a Plan, Year Up, Catie’s Closet, and Breakthrough Greater Boston. The trust’s giving also reaches beyond youth programs in a limited set of cases, including support for a food pantry and an education-focused college fund. The recent grant list shows a small pool of mostly mid-sized awards, typically structured as general operating or general grants, which suggests the trust prioritizes flexible support for frontline nonprofits serving young people moving toward education, work, stability, and self-sufficiency.
A major thread in the trust’s giving is mentoring for boys and young men. Youth Guidance Bam - Becoming a Man received $20,000 in 2023 and another $20,000 in 2024 for general operating support, while Silverlining Mentoring received $35,000 in 2023 and $20,000 in 2024 for general operating support. Workforce readiness is another consistent theme. Year Up received $20,000 in both 2023 and 2024 for general operating support, and Roca received $75,000 in 2023 and $35,000 in 2025 for general operating support. The trust also backs basic needs and school-support services: Catie’s Closet Inc received $20,000 in 2024 and $25,000 in 2025 for general support, and Milton Food Pantry received three $10,000 grants across 2023, 2024, and 2025.
Grant sizes cluster tightly around a mid-range core. The median grant is $20,000, with a p25 of $20,000 and a p75 of $23,750, while the recent list also includes larger awards of $35,000 and $75,000. The trust gives flexibly: many awards are labeled general operating or general support, and several recipients appear in multiple years, including Roca, Silverlining Mentoring, Year Up, Young Man With a Plan, Catie’s Closet, and Milton Food Pantry. That repeat pattern points to sustained support for familiar grantees rather than one-time project grants. The trust is not a funder of individuals and does not make program-related investments.
$500K
$2.6M
$402K
$203K
Most grants fall between $20K and $24K, with a median of $20K.
25th Percentile
$20K
Median
$20K
75th Percentile
$24K
About 73% of grants go to recipients in MA.
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Notable grantees: ROCA, Year Up, Breakthrough Greater Boston, Silverlining Mentoring, Youth Guidance (Becoming A Man)
Most grants stay in Massachusetts, which accounts for 73% of recipient locations and is also the top state by grant count. Recent Massachusetts recipients include Chelsea, Boston, Salem, Dracut, Hyde Park, East Boston, Cambridge, Jamaica Plain, and Milton. The trust also gives beyond Massachusetts, with recipients in Chicago, Denver, and Milton, Wisconsin. All recent grants listed are to U.S. organizations.
Its recent grants center on direct-service nonprofits serving vulnerable youth, especially organizations focused on mentoring, workforce readiness, out-of-school learning, and basic needs. The grant list also includes a food pantry and a college fund, but youth-serving community organizations make up the core pattern.
Yes. Many recent awards are labeled general operating or general support, including repeated grants to Roca, Silverlining Mentoring, Year Up, and Youth Guidance Bam - Becoming a Man. That pattern indicates flexible support rather than narrowly restricted project-only funding.
Yes. Several organizations appear in more than one year, including Roca, Silverlining Mentoring, Year Up, Young Man With a Plan, Catie’s Closet, and Milton Food Pantry. The repeated awards suggest ongoing relationships with a stable set of grantees.
The median recent grant is $20,000. The interquartile range is narrow as well, with a p25 of $20,000 and a p75 of $23,750, showing that most awards cluster around the $20,000 level.
Massachusetts is the main recipient state, with 73% of grants going to organizations located there. Recent Massachusetts cities and towns include Chelsea, Boston, Salem, Dracut, Hyde Park, East Boston, Cambridge, Jamaica Plain, and Milton.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plummer Youth Promise | Salem, MA | $35,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| ROCA | CHELSEA, MA | $35,000 | 2025 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| Catie's Closet Inc | Dracut, MA | $25,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| YOUNG MAN WITH A PLAN | Hyde Park, MA | $25,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| Breakthrough Greater Boston | Cambridge, MA | $20,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| MILTON FOOD PANTRY | MILTON, WI | $10,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| SILVERLINING MENTORING | BOSTON, MA | $20,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| YEAR UP | BOSTON, MA | $20,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| Catie's Closet Inc | Dracut, MA | $20,000 | 2024 | GENERAL |
| YOUNG MAN WITH A PLAN | Hyde Park, MA | $20,000 | 2024 | GENERAL |
| YOUTH GUIDANCE BAM - BECOMING A MAN | CHICAGO, IL | $20,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| Breakthrough Greater Boston | Cambridge, MA | $20,000 | 2024 | GENERAL |
| ZUMIX | EAST BOSTON, MA | $20,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| MILTON FOOD PANTRY | MILTON, WI | $10,000 | 2024 | GENERAL |
| American Indian College Fund | Denver, CO | $10,000 | 2024 | GENERAL |
| Alexander Twilight Academy | Jamica Plain, MA | $10,000 | 2024 | GENERAL |
| ROCA | CHELSEA, MA | $75,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| SILVERLINING MENTORING | BOSTON, MA | $35,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| YOUNG MAN WITH A PLAN | Hyde Park, MA | $20,000 | 2023 | GENERAL |
| YOUTH GUIDANCE BAM - BECOMING A MAN | CHICAGO, IL | $20,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| YEAR UP | BOSTON, MA | $20,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| MILTON FOOD PANTRY | MILTON, WI | $10,000 | 2023 | GENERAL |
Plummer Youth Promise
$35,000GENERAL
ROCA
$35,000GENERAL OPERATING
Catie's Closet Inc
$25,000GENERAL
YOUNG MAN WITH A PLAN
$25,000GENERAL
Breakthrough Greater Boston
$20,000GENERAL
MILTON FOOD PANTRY
$10,000GENERAL
SILVERLINING MENTORING
GENERAL OPERATING
YEAR UP
$20,000GENERAL OPERATING
Catie's Closet Inc
$20,000GENERAL
YOUNG MAN WITH A PLAN
$20,000GENERAL
YOUTH GUIDANCE BAM - BECOMING A MAN
$20,000GENERAL OPERATING
Breakthrough Greater Boston
$20,000GENERAL
ZUMIX
$20,000GENERAL OPERATING
MILTON FOOD PANTRY
$10,000GENERAL
American Indian College Fund
$10,000GENERAL
Alexander Twilight Academy
$10,000GENERAL
ROCA
$75,000GENERAL OPERATING
SILVERLINING MENTORING
$35,000GENERAL OPERATING
YOUNG MAN WITH A PLAN
$20,000GENERAL
YOUTH GUIDANCE BAM - BECOMING A MAN
$20,000GENERAL OPERATING
YEAR UP
$20,000GENERAL OPERATING
MILTON FOOD PANTRY
$10,000GENERAL