The Zeiders Family Charitable Foundation concentrates its philanthropy on local cultural and community infrastructure in the Virginia Beach area, with a strong emphasis on sustaining a single flagship performing arts organization and supporting local faith-based facility needs. The majority of funds go to the Zeiders American Dream Theater through multiple, substantial grants, while a significant one-time grant supported a church repair project. This indicates a local, place-based giving approach focused on arts venue operations/capital and community institutions.
The Zeiders Family Charitable Foundation has built an unusually concentrated grantmaking pattern around one flagship institution: the Zeiders American Dream Theater in Virginia Beach. Across 2023 through 2025, the theater received three of the foundation’s largest awards, including $300,000 in 2023, $750,000 in 2024, and $500,000 in 2025. That sequence points to sustained operating or capacity support rather than a single campaign-style gift. Outside the theater, the foundation has also backed local faith and community institutions with large and smaller awards. In 2024, Church of the Holy Family in Virginia Beach received $200,000 for repairs to the church, and in later years the Catholic Diocese of Richmond received grants for family faith-building programming. The giving profile also includes support tied to service members and families, with awards to the United States Naval Academy Foundation and to Quality of Life Foundation for wounded veteran family care. Smaller grants extend into humanitarian response and pediatric cancer research. The result is a regional portfolio centered on Virginia Beach and nearby institutions, with a mix of cultural infrastructure, faith-based support, veteran-family services, and select health or relief causes.
A major theme in the foundation’s recent giving is performing arts infrastructure. The Zeiders American Dream Theater received $750,000 in 2024 for support for performing arts theater, following $300,000 in 2023 and $500,000 in 2025. Faith-based building and program support is another clear thread. Church of the Holy Family in Virginia Beach received $200,000 in 2024 for repairs to the church, and the Catholic Diocese of Richmond received $15,000 in 2025 for Building Our Family Faith after prior $3,000 grants in 2023 and 2024. The foundation also funds service-related family support. Quality of Life Foundation received $50,000 in 2025 for the wounded vetern family care program, while the United States Naval Academy Foundation received $50,000 in 2024, $50,000 in 2025, and $50,000 in 2023 for leadership support. Smaller awards also went to Catholic Relief Services for Ukraine crisis response and to St Jude Children's Research for children’s cancer research.
$628K
$11M
$1.1M
$631K
Most grants fall between $5K and $163K, with a median of $35K.
25th Percentile
$5K
Median
$35K
75th Percentile
$163K
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Highly concentrated giving: few, large grants with repeated multi-year support to a single core arts grantee and occasional sizable one-off grants to local community institutions.
Notable grantees: Zeiders American Dream Theater, Church of the Holy Family, Local parish and community facility repair projects (representative)
Grant sizes range from $4,750 at the 25th percentile to a median of $35,000 and $162,500 at the 75th percentile, showing a mix of small grants and a few much larger awards. The recent record suggests repeat support over multiple years rather than one-off gifts: the Zeiders American Dream Theater, the United States Naval Academy Foundation, the Catholic Diocese of Richmond, and Catholic Relief Services each appear in more than one year. The foundation is a private family foundation and does not fund individuals or make program-related investments. No application process is stated in the provided data.
Giving is overwhelmingly U.S.-based, with all 16 recent grants going to U.S. recipients. Virginia is the main state for grantmaking, accounting for 60% of grants and including Virginia Beach, Woodbridge, and Richmond. Virginia Beach appears repeatedly as a recipient city, especially through the Zeiders American Dream Theater and Church of the Holy Family. Outside Virginia, recent grants reached Annapolis, Baltimore, and Memphis, showing a regional pattern that extends a little beyond the home area but remains largely Mid-Atlantic.
The foundation supports performing arts theater work, church repairs and family faith programs, wounded veteran family care, Ukraine crisis response, and pediatric cancer research. The recent grants list also includes support for leadership programs tied to the United States Naval Academy Foundation.
The typical grant size is $35,000 at the median, with a lower quartile of $4,750 and an upper quartile of $162,500. The recent record includes both smaller gifts of $3,000 to $15,000 and much larger awards in the hundreds of thousands.
Yes. The Zeiders American Dream Theater appears in 2023, 2024, and 2025; the United States Naval Academy Foundation appears in 2023, 2024, and 2025; the Catholic Diocese of Richmond appears in 2023, 2024, and 2025; and Catholic Relief Services appears in 2024 and 2025.
Virginia is the top state by grant count, and 60% of grants go to recipients in Virginia. Virginia Beach is a repeated recipient city, with additional recent grants in Woodbridge, Richmond, Annapolis, Baltimore, and Memphis.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ZEIDERS AMERICAN DREAM THEATER | VIRGINIA BEACH, VA | $500,000 | 2025 | SUPPORT FOR PERFORMING ARTS THEATER |
| QUALITY OF LIFE FOUNDATION | WOODBRIDGE, VA | $50,000 | 2025 | WOUNDED VETERN FAMILY CARE PROGRAM |
| UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY FOUNDAT | ANNAPOLIS, MD | $50,000 | 2025 | LEADERSHIP SUPPORT |
| CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF RICHMOND | RICHMOND, VA | $15,000 | 2025 | BUILDING OUR FAMILY FAITH |
| CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES | BALTIMORE, MD | $10,000 | 2025 | UKRAINE CRISIS RESPONSE FUND |
| ST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH | MEMPHIS, TN | $3,000 | 2025 | CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL |
| ZEIDERS AMERICAN DREAM THEATER | VIRGINIA BEACH, VA | $750,000 | 2024 | SUPPORT FOR PERFORMING ARTS THEATER |
| CHURCH OF THE HOLY FAMILY | VIRGINIA BEACH, VA | $200,000 | 2024 | REPAIRS TO THE CHURCH |
| UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY FOUNDAT | ANNAPOLIS, MD | $50,000 | 2024 | LEADERSHIP SUPPORT |
| CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES | BALTIMORE, MD | $10,000 | 2024 | UKRAINE CRISIS RESPONSE FUND |
| CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF RICHMOND | RICHMOND, VA | $3,000 | 2024 | BUILDING OUR FAMILY FAITH |
| ZEIDERS AMERICAN DREAM THEATER | VIRGINIA BEACH, VA | $300,000 | 2023 | SUPPORT FOR PERFORMING ARTS THEATER |
| UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY FOUNDAT | ANNAPOLIS, MD | $50,000 | 2023 | LEADERSHIP SUPPORT |
| CHURCH OF THE HOLY FAMILY | VIRGINIA BEACH, VA | $20,000 | 2023 | REPAIRS TO THE CHURCH |
| ST JUDE CHILDREN RESEARCH HOSPITAL | MEMPHIS, TN | $3,000 | 2023 | SUPPORT FOR CHILDREN CANCER RESEARCH |
| CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF RICHMOND | RICHMOND, VA | $3,000 | 2023 | BUILDING OUR FAMILY FAITH |
QUALITY OF LIFE FOUNDATION
$50,000WOUNDED VETERN FAMILY CARE PROGRAM
UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY FOUNDAT
$50,000LEADERSHIP SUPPORT
CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF RICHMOND
$15,000BUILDING OUR FAMILY FAITH
CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES
$10,000UKRAINE CRISIS RESPONSE FUND
ST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH
$3,000CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL
CHURCH OF THE HOLY FAMILY
$200,000REPAIRS TO THE CHURCH
UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY FOUNDAT
$50,000LEADERSHIP SUPPORT
CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES
$10,000UKRAINE CRISIS RESPONSE FUND
CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF RICHMOND
$3,000BUILDING OUR FAMILY FAITH
UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY FOUNDAT
$50,000LEADERSHIP SUPPORT
CHURCH OF THE HOLY FAMILY
$20,000REPAIRS TO THE CHURCH
CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF RICHMOND
$3,000BUILDING OUR FAMILY FAITH