About Richard and Ethel Herzfeld Foundation
A $1,000,000 capital grant to Milwaukee Repertory Theater stands out in the Richard and Ethel Herzfeld Foundation Inc’s recent record and points to how the foundation works: it backs established Milwaukee institutions with large, mission-specific awards. In the years shown, that support extends across theater, dance, film, music, museums, and early childhood education, with repeated funding for organizations that anchor the city’s arts and cultural life. Recent awards also show a preference for operating support, with recurring grants to Milwaukee Film Inc, Milwaukee Ballet, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, and Florentine Opera Company.
The foundation’s giving reaches beyond stage production alone. Its grants also support arts education and cultural access, including the Milwaukee Art Museum’s photography collection and junior docent program, and education-oriented work such as general operating support for Teens Grow Greens and Wisconsin Conservatory of Music. Several awards are directed to long-standing partners through general operating grants, while others are tied to capital projects or defined program needs. The pattern is local, concentrated, and institution-centered, with Milwaukee organizations appearing throughout the recent grants list.
What Richard and Ethel Herzfeld Foundation Funds
The Richard and Ethel Herzfeld Foundation Inc supports a cluster of arts, culture, and education causes that are closely tied to Milwaukee institutions. In film, it gave $700,000 to Milwaukee Film Inc for general operations in 2025, following earlier general operating awards to the same organization in 2024 and 2023. In dance, Milwaukee Ballet received $301,667 for general operations in 2025 and $166,666 for a New Nutcracker Campaign in 2024.
The foundation also funds museum and youth-learning work. It gave $140,000 to Milwaukee Art Museum for photography collection and junior docent program support in 2023, then followed with general operating grants in 2024 and 2025. In education-related arts support, Wisconsin Conservatory of Music received $125,000 for education general operations in 2023 and $100,000 for general operations in 2025. These grants show a mix of institutional support, education, and public access to the arts.
How Richard and Ethel Herzfeld Foundation Gives
Typical grant size sits at $20,000 at the 25th percentile, $30,000 at the median, and $50,000 at the 75th percentile, but the recent grant list also includes much larger awards to established partners. The foundation is a Regular Funder and makes no program-related investments. Its pattern is recurring rather than one-off: Milwaukee Ballet, Milwaukee Film Inc, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Florentine Opera Company, Milwaukee Art Museum, and others appear in multiple years. Some support is invitation-only for designated bedrock organizations, while other grants are described as competitive and accept unsolicited applications. The mix suggests a local operating-and-project grantmaker with a stable set of long-term partners.
