Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust
The Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust is a private foundation based in Washington, DC. Its 2025 filing reports grants to charitable organizations, predominantly in DC, with additional giving to organizations in Virginia.
Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust at a glance
In short: Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust gave $265K across 14 grants in 2025 (avg $19K), mostly in District of Columbia. 7% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $265,000
- +6.0% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 14
- -26.3% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $18,929
- +43.9% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $10,000
- Total assets
- $2,947,518
- +10.4% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 7% first-time grantees (1 of 14, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- District of Columbia (89% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation states that it does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations.
- Contact
Mailing address: 4340 Cathedral Avenue Nw, Washington, DC 20016
Phone: (202) 466-5200
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was The Arc ($70K). Together the top 10 received $230K.
Grant Size Distribution
73 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 72 grants of 73 (99%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 89% of grant dollars went to recipients in DC and 11% to recipients in Virginia.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 14 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust open to new grantees?
7%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 1 of 14 grantees (7%) were first-time recipients. With only 14 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 7 points. First grants averaged $10K; repeat grants $20K. How we count
Medians: $10K first-time, $10K repeat.
- 86% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 31% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 133% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2019–2025). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $140K (2019) to $265K (2025). In 2025 it made 14 grants totaling $265K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| The Arc Washington, DC | General Operating Support | $70,000 |
| Martha's Table Inc Washington, DC | General Operating Support | $30,000 |
| Life Pieces to Masterpieces Washington, DC | General Operating Support | $30,000 |
| DC Central Kitchen Inc Washington, DC | General Operating Support | $25,000 |
| Weta Arlington, VA | General Operating Support | $20,000 |
| Cornerstone Washington, DC | General Operating Support | $15,000 |
| Bright Beginnings Inc Washington, DC | General Operating Support | $10,000 |
| Capital Area Food Bank Washington, DC | General Operating Support | $10,000 |
| Northern Virginia Family Service Oakton, VA | General Operating Support | $10,000 |
| Bread for the City Washington, DC | General Operating Support | $10,000 |
Ready to take the next step with Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust?
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income | Distributable Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $2,947,518 | $560,505 | $309,015 | $265,000 | 14 | $270,050 | $521,540 | $203,143 |
| 2024 | $2,671,029 | $236,570 | $285,448 | $250,000 | 19 | $257,019 | $208,141 | $174,006 |
| 2023 | $2,719,907 | $120,299 | $188,903 | $170,000 | 11 | $177,188 | $108,584 | $102,774 |
| 2022 | $2,788,511 | $178,526 | $230,430 | $202,000 | 13 | $210,400 | $178,526 | $146,068 |
| 2021 | $2,840,415 | $798,297 | $240,132 | $231,000 | 16 | $237,125 | $798,297 | $183,323 |
| 2020 | $2,282,251 | $126,066 | $200,764 | $195,000 | 14 | — | $157,379 | $150,617 |
| 2019 | $2,356,946 | $180,974 | $154,073 | $140,000 | 11 | — | $180,974 | $137,214 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust reported a distributable amount of $203K for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for organizations working in areas including food access, education, family support, housing stability, community services, and youth development. For example, Martha’s Table describes its mission as supporting stronger children, families, and communities through access to quality education, healthy food, and family supports. Life Pieces to Masterpieces says it serves the creative, academic, social-emotional, physical, and citizenship development of Black boys and young men in underserved Washington, DC wards.
Other 2025 grantees describe work that includes providing food and services to DC residents with low incomes (Bread for the City), expanding equitable access to food and opportunity (Capital Area Food Bank), and helping families and children experiencing housing instability prepare for school (Bright Beginnings).
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 14 grants totaling $265,000. Grants ranged from $5,000 to $70,000, with a median grant of $10,000. The largest reported grants included $70,000 to The Arc, $30,000 each to Martha’s Table and Life Pieces to Masterpieces, and $25,000 to DC Central Kitchen. Other reported awards included $20,000 to WETA and $15,000 to Cornerstone. These grants were reported as general operating support.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Melissa Cafritz as president, Lezel Barrington as secretary, and Thomas Wilner as director.
Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust is led by Melissa Cafritz, President on every filing since 2019; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Melissa Cafritz
President
On filings since 2019
No compensation reported
Thomas Wilner
Director
On filings since 2019
No compensation reported
Lezel Barrington
Secretary
On filings since 2019
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Frequently asked questions about Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust
How much does Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust give each year?
Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust gave $265K across 14 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $250K across 19 grants.
What is Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust's typical grant size?
Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust's median grant in 2025 was $10,000, and its average grant was $18,929, across 14 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust that year got $10K on average.
Where does Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust give grants?
Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust gives mostly in District of Columbia: 89% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Virginia (11%). The most frequent recipient cities were Washington, DC (11 grants).
Does Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (14 of 14) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust's largest grantees?
Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust's largest 2025 grantees include The Arc ($70,000), Martha's Table Inc ($30,000) and Life Pieces to Masterpieces ($30,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 49% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust?
Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust reported $2.9M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $270K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $203K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for organizations working in areas including food access, education, family support, housing stability, community services, and youth development. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust?
The foundation states that it does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust's EIN?
Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 13-7049874. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Does Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust accept unsolicited proposals?
No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(7)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 9, 2025)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 13, 2026)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS July 9, 2020)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS March 29, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS March 28, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS March 30, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 9, 2024)
Live grants for the work Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust funds
Religion Related Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
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Browse active grant opportunities in Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 22, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/carter-and-melissa-cafritz-charitable-trust-morg_753973b798f74e7583404012d243d006
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_137049874_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/carter-and-melissa-cafritz-charitable-trust-morg_753973b798f74e7583404012d243d006},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-22. Data licensed CC BY 4.0}
}The figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0: reuse them with credit to Grantable and a link. Download the data.
Figures come from Carter and Melissa Cafritz Charitable Trust's IRS filings (methodology). AI-written summaries, news items and logos are not covered by the open licence. Spot an error? Email hello@grantable.co.
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