Alchemy Foundation makes a small number of very large, targeted grants that fund prominent cultural institutions and high-impact service organizations. Their giving mixes local Boston-area cultural and informal education partners with strategic investments in nonprofit capacity and global emergency medical relief, suggesting a preference for visible, mission-driven organizations that deliver measurable results.
Highly concentrated giving: very few grants but large award sizes; one-off, strategic gifts to prominent local cultural institutions and select high-impact national/international organizations rather than many small awards or broad geographic diversification.
Alchemy Foundation’s recent giving is defined by a handful of large general-support grants to cultural institutions, medical relief groups, and local service organizations. The single largest grant on file is $1,004,633 to The Children's Museum (aka The Boston Children's Museum) in 2025, alongside a $529,368 grant the same year to Medecins Sans Frontieres USA Inc (dba Doctors Without Borders USA Inc). Those awards show a pattern of funding organizations with broad public reach rather than narrow, project-only efforts. The foundation also backs major Boston institutions, including Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc, Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, and Museum of Fine Arts, each receiving general support in the recent-grants list. At the same time, it funds practical service providers such as Boston Medical Center Corporation, Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts Inc, RefugePoint Inc, and International Institute Of New England. Across the recent record, the grants are mostly unrestricted operating support, suggesting a preference for flexible funding to established nonprofits.
In children’s informal learning, Alchemy Foundation gave $1,004,633 to The Children's Museum (aka The Boston Children's Museum) in 2025 and $25,000 in 2024 to the same institution for general support. In the arts, it supported Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc with $292,660 in 2025, followed by $20,000 in 2024, both listed as general support. The foundation also funds conservation and public garden work through $255,624 to Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University in 2025, plus prior general-support grants of $27,500 in 2023 and $25,000 in 2024. In immigrant and refugee services, it gave $150,365 to RefugePoint Inc in 2025 and also made earlier grants of $40,000 in 2024 and $40,000 in 2023. Humanitarian relief appears in awards to Medecins Sans Frontieres USA Inc and Save the Children Federation.
Alchemy Foundation’s typical grant size is small relative to its headline awards: p25 is $250, median is $500, and p75 is $2,500. The recent-grants record also includes several much larger general-support gifts, including seven-figure and six-figure awards, indicating a highly concentrated approach rather than a broad small-grant program. The record shows repeat recipients across multiple years, including The Children's Museum, Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc, RefugePoint Inc, Medecins Sans Frontieres USA Inc, and United States Fund for UNICEF. The foundation is classified as a regular funder, not a DAF and not an individual donor. The grants shown are general support or unrestricted operating support, and no application process is listed in the data.
$20K
$8.1M
$11.8M
$56K
Most grants fall between $250 and $3K, with a median of $500.
25th Percentile
$250
Median
$500
75th Percentile
$3K
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Notable grantees: The Boston Children’s Museum, Metrics for Management, Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders USA, Boston Symphony Orchestra
Alchemy Foundation gives primarily in Massachusetts: 62% of its grants go to recipients in the HQ state, and Massachusetts is also its top state by grant count. Boston appears repeatedly in the recent record, along with Cambridge and Jamaica Plain. Outside Massachusetts, the recipient list includes New York, NY; Berkeley, CA; Fairfield, CT; and Washington, DC. The grant data shown is entirely U.S.-based, with 505 grants and 100.0% in the United States.
The recent record shows support for cultural institutions, informal education, nonprofit capacity-building, and humanitarian and health-related service organizations. Examples include The Children's Museum (aka The Boston Children's Museum), Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc, Metrics for Management, and Medecins Sans Frontieres USA Inc, all funded as general support.
Yes. Several organizations appear in more than one year, including The Children's Museum, Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc, RefugePoint Inc, Medecins Sans Frontieres USA Inc, and United States Fund for UNICEF. The pattern suggests repeated support rather than one-time awards only.
The distribution is small at the center: p25 is $250, median is $500, and p75 is $2,500. At the same time, the recent-grants list includes much larger general-support awards, including $1,004,633 and $529,368.
Massachusetts is the top state by grant count, and 62% of grants go to recipients in that state. Recent recipients in Massachusetts include Boston organizations, Cambridge Community Foundation, and groups in Jamaica Plain.
The recent-grants list identifies the awards as general support, and the foundation summary describes general support, unrestricted operating support, and core operating support as its giving style. That points to flexible funding rather than narrowly designated project grants.
2026
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2026.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wild Foundation | Boulder, CO | $10,000 | 2026 | General Support |
| Foundation for the Free Flight | Truckee, CA | $10,000 | 2026 | General Support |
| The Children's Museum (aka The Boston Children's Museum) | Boston, MA | $1,004,633 | 2025 | General Support |
| Medecins Sans Frontieres USA Inc (dba Doctors Without Borders USA Inc) | New York, NY | $529,368 | 2025 | General Support |
| Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc | Boston, MA | $292,660 | 2025 | General Support |
| Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University | Jamaica Plain, MA | $255,624 | 2025 | General Support |
| Museum of Fine Arts | Boston, MA | $153,511 | 2025 | General Support |
| RefugePoint Inc | Boston, MA | $150,365 | 2025 | General Support |
| Boston Medical Center Corporation | Boston, MA | $125,831 | 2025 | General Support |
| Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts Inc | Boston, MA | $125,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Save the Children Federation | Fairfield, CT | $76,535 | 2025 | General Support |
| International Institute Of New England | Boston, MA | $26,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| International Rescue Committee Inc | New York, NY | $25,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Friends of Mount Auburn Cemetery | Cambridge, MA | $25,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| United States Fund for UNICEF (dba UNICEF USA) | New York, NY | $20,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Cambridge Community Foundation | Cambridge, MA | $17,500 | 2025 | General Support |
| Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum | Boston, MA | $15,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| The Greater Boston Food Bank Inc | Boston, MA | $15,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Perkins School for the Blind | Watertown, MA | $15,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| United States Association for UNHCR | Washington, DC | $15,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Mercy Corps | Portland, OR | $15,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| WBUR (a program of Boston University) | Boston, MA | $12,500 | 2025 | General Support |
| International Refugee Assistance Project Inc (dba IRAP) | New York, NY | $10,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| WGBH Educational Foundation | Boston, MA | $10,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Cambridge Center For Adult Education | Cambridge, MA | $10,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| MIRA Coalition | Boston, MA | $10,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| American Friends Service Committee | Philadelphia, PA | $8,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| The Field Center Inc | Chester, VT | $6,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| American Red Cross | Washington, DC | $6,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| President and Fellows of Harvard College | Cambridge, MA | $5,350 | 2025 | General Support |
| American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Massachusetts | Boston, MA | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| American Repertory Theater of Western New York Inc | Buffalo, NY | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Partners in Health A Nonprofit Corporation | Boston, MA | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| CARE (aka Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere) | Atlanta, GA | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| The Trustees of Reservations | Boston, MA | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Physicians For Human Rights Inc | New York, NY | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Institute of Contemporary Art (dba ICA Boston) | Boston, MA | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Pine Street Inn | Boston, MA | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| World Food Program Inc | Washington, DC | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| American Immigration Council | Washington, DC | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Human Rights Watch | New York, NY | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Boston Arts Academy Foundation Inc | Boston, MA | $5,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Friends Of Boston Homeless | Boston, MA | $3,500 | 2025 | General Support |
| Center for Reproductive Rights | New York, NY | $3,500 | 2025 | General Support |
| Proprietors of the Boston Athenaeum | Boston, MA | $3,500 | 2025 | General Support |
| Madoo Conservancy Inc | Sagaponack, NY | $3,500 | 2025 | General Support |
| Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless | Lynn, MA | $3,000 | 2025 | General Support |
| Neighborhood House Charter School | Dorchester, MA | $2,500 | 2025 | General Support |
| Natural Resources Defense Council Inc (aka NRDC) | New York, NY | $2,500 | 2025 | General Support |
| Conservatory Lab Charter School Foundation Inc | Dorchester, MA | $2,500 | 2025 | General Support |
Wild Foundation
$10,000General Support
Foundation for the Free Flight
$10,000General Support
General Support
Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc
$292,660General Support
Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University
$255,624General Support
Perkins School for the Blind
$15,000General Support
WBUR (a program of Boston University)
$12,500General Support
Cambridge Center For Adult Education
$10,000General Support
MIRA Coalition
$10,000General Support
American Friends Service Committee
$8,000General Support
The Field Center Inc
$6,000General Support
American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Massachusetts
$5,000General Support
American Repertory Theater of Western New York Inc
$5,000General Support
Human Rights Watch
$5,000General Support
Friends Of Boston Homeless
$3,500General Support
Proprietors of the Boston Athenaeum
$3,500General Support
Madoo Conservancy Inc
$3,500General Support
Neighborhood House Charter School
$2,500General Support
Conservatory Lab Charter School Foundation Inc
$2,500General Support