Ellen S Jaffe Foundation
The Ellen S Jaffe Foundation is a private foundation based in Wellesley, Massachusetts. It reported 12 grants totaling $87,300 in 2025, including support for organizations in Florida, Massachusetts, and New York.
Ellen S Jaffe Foundation at a glance
In short: Ellen S Jaffe Foundation gave $87K across 12 grants in 2025 (avg $7K), mostly in Florida. 17% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $87,300
- -11.4% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 12
- +71.4% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $7,275
- -48.3% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $5,000
- Total assets
- $1,425,432
- +37.5% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 17% first-time grantees (2 of 12, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Florida (70% 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 Ellen S Jaffe Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: 1 Washington Street 201, Wellesley, MA 02481-1706
Phone: (781) 235-6107
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Ellen S Jaffe Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Morselife Foundation Inc ($35K). Together the top 10 received $86K.
Grant Size Distribution
64 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 60 grants of 64 (94%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 70% of grant dollars went to recipients in Florida, 14% to Massachusetts, and 10% to New York. The state for the remaining 6% was not identified.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 12 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Ellen S Jaffe Foundation open to new grantees?
17%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 2 of 12 grantees (17%) were first-time recipients. With only 12 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 8 points. First grants averaged $2K; repeat grants $8K. How we count
Medians: $2K first-time, $6K repeat.
- 33% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving fell 43% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 67% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Foundations have until the end of the next year to meet it. 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 $87K (2025) to $196K (2021). In 2025 it made 12 grants totaling $87K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Morselife Foundation Inc West Palm Beach, FL | General Purpose of the Organization | $35,000 |
| Museum of Fine Arts Boston Boston, MA | General Purpose of the Organization | $12,000 |
| Palm Beach Country Club Foundation Palm Beach, FL | General Purpose of the Organization | $10,000 |
| Baptist Health Foundation Coral Gables, FL | General Purpose of the Organization | $7,500 |
| Jewish Federation of Palm Beach West Palm Beach, FL | General Purpose of the Organization | $6,000 |
| Breast Cancer Research Foundation New York, NY | General Purpose of the Organization | $5,000 |
| Israel Tennis and Education Center | General Purpose of the Organization | $5,000 |
| Glazer Hall Palm Beach, FL | General Purpose of the Organization | $2,500 |
| Friends of the Israel Defense Forces New York, NY | General Purpose of the Organization | $1,800 |
| UJA Federation of New York New York, NY | General Purpose of the Organization | $1,000 |
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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 | $1,425,432 | $490,007 | $90,984 | $87,300 | 12 | $87,300 | $486,323 | $131,161 |
| 2024 | $1,036,381 | $385,132 | $100,453 | $98,500 | 7 | $98,500 | $383,179 | $114,961 |
| 2023 | $751,702 | $72,761 | $117,560 | $116,300 | 13 | $116,300 | $46,501 | $91,463 |
| 2022 | $798,383 | $132,825 | $153,586 | $152,371 | 15 | $152,371 | $106,610 | $92,278 |
| 2021 | $821,014 | $846,473 | $197,050 | $195,871 | 17 | $195,871 | $80,318 | $102,935 |
| 2020 | $655,370 | $-9,376 | $194,122 | $192,871 | 13 | — | $7,114 | $59,613 |
| 2019 | $858,868 | $14,486 | $140,079 | $138,571 | 14 | — | $17,058 | $55,175 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Ellen S Jaffe Foundation reported a distributable amount of $131K 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 included support for a range of organizations. Morselife Foundation says it supports tax-exempt organizations to enhance senior living in the spirit of Jewish tradition. Friends of the Israel Defense Forces says it supports the health, well-being, and education of Israel’s protectors. Northwell Health Foundation says its work includes helping underserved and uninsured people, advancing medical technology and research, and supporting facilities and programs.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation gave 12 grants totaling $87,300. Grants ranged from $500 to $35,000, with a median grant of $5,000. The largest grants included $35,000 to Morselife Foundation, $12,000 to the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, $10,000 to Palm Beach Country Club Foundation, and $7,500 to Baptist Health Foundation. Other grants included $6,000 to Jewish Federation of Palm Beach and $5,000 each to Breast Cancer Research Foundation and Israel Tennis and Education Center.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Ellen Shapiro-Jaffe was listed as trustee on the 2025 filing.
Ellen S Jaffe Foundation is led by Ellen Shapiro-Jaffe, Trustee on every filing since 2019 — the only officer listed, and uncompensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Ellen Shapiro-Jaffe
Trustee
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
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 Ellen S Jaffe Foundation
How much does Ellen S Jaffe Foundation give each year?
Ellen S Jaffe Foundation gave $87K across 12 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $99K across 7 grants.
What is Ellen S Jaffe Foundation's typical grant size?
Ellen S Jaffe Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $5,000, and its average grant was $7,275, across 12 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Ellen S Jaffe Foundation that year got $2K on average.
Where does Ellen S Jaffe Foundation give grants?
Ellen S Jaffe Foundation gives mostly in Florida: 70% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were Massachusetts (14%) and New York (10%). The most frequent recipient cities were New York, NY (3 grants), West Palm Beach, FL (2 grants), Boston, MA (2 grants) and Palm Beach, FL (2 grants).
Does Ellen S Jaffe Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of Ellen S Jaffe Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (12 of 12) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Ellen S Jaffe Foundation's largest grantees?
Ellen S Jaffe Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Morselife Foundation Inc ($35,000), Museum of Fine Arts Boston ($12,000) and Palm Beach Country Club Foundation ($10,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 65% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Ellen S Jaffe Foundation?
Ellen S Jaffe Foundation reported $1.4M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $87K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $131K (roughly 5% of its investment assets). Falling short in one year is not a violation: foundations have until the end of the next year to meet the minimum.
What does Ellen S Jaffe Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants included support for a range of organizations. Morselife Foundation says it supports tax-exempt organizations to enhance senior living in the spirit of Jewish tradition. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Ellen S Jaffe Foundation?
The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Ellen S Jaffe Foundation's EIN?
Ellen S Jaffe Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 38-7121292. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Does Ellen S Jaffe Foundation 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
(8)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS May 27, 2020)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 12, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 16, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 15, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 3, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 6, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 13, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2019–2024
Live grants for the work Ellen S Jaffe Foundation funds
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Ellen S Jaffe Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 21, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/ellen-s-jaffe-foundation-morg_a428aba35d31482b81c3485831663656
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_387121292_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Ellen S Jaffe Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/ellen-s-jaffe-foundation-morg_a428aba35d31482b81c3485831663656},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-21. 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 Ellen S Jaffe Foundation'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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