Nelsons Family Foundation
Nelsons Family Foundation is a private foundation based in Redding, Connecticut. Its 2025 grants supported organizations working in education, religious and Jewish life, the arts, health care, and human services.
Nelsons Family Foundation at a glance
In short: Nelsons Family Foundation gave $116K across 35 grants in 2025 (avg $3K), mostly in New York. 31% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $115,983
- +1.3% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 35
- +2.9% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $3,314
- -1.6% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $1,000
- Total assets
- $1,708,957
- +2.6% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 31% first-time grantees (11 of 35, 2025)
- Primary geography
- New York (75% 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 Nelsons Family Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations.
- Contact
Mailing address: 50 Chalburn Close, Redding, CT 06896
Phone: (914) 949-2990
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Nelsons Family Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Trinity School ($20K). Together the top 10 received $89K.
Grant Size Distribution
167 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 167 grants of 167 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, New York recipients received 75% of grant dollars and Massachusetts recipients received 15%. Florida received 3%, while Alabama and Connecticut each received 2%.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 35 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Nelsons Family Foundation open to new grantees?
31%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 11 of 35 grantees (31%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $2K; repeat grants $4K. How we count
Medians: $1K first-time, $1K repeat.
- 60% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (−2%). Method
- In 2025 it paid out 185% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2021–2025). 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 2021 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $88K (2021) to $143K (2023). In 2025 it made 35 grants totaling $116K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Trinity School New York, NY | General Support | $20,000 |
| Park Avenue Synogogue New York, NY | General Support | $18,600 |
| Harvard Hillel Cambridge, MA | General Support | $12,000 |
| Metropolitan Opera New York, NY | General Support | $9,508 |
| Central Synagogue New York, NY | General Support | $5,650 |
| Americans Friends of Magen David New York, NY | General Support | $5,000 |
| Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital New York, NY | General Support | $5,000 |
| Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY | General Support | $5,000 |
| Williams College Alumni Fund Williamstown, MA | General Support | $5,000 |
| Museum of Jewish Heritage New York, NY | General Support | $3,600 |
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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 | $1,708,957 | $165,793 | $125,054 | $115,983 | 35 | $122,985 | $15,737 | $66,494 |
| 2024 | $1,666,342 | $1,100,819 | $115,779 | $114,464 | 34 | $114,464 | $12,675 | $59,911 |
| 2023 | $681,310 | $161,249 | $144,229 | $142,573 | 35 | $142,573 | $17,427 | $31,549 |
| 2022 | $664,296 | $166,092 | $128,967 | $117,774 | 36 | $118,610 | $55,892 | $31,335 |
| 2021 | $638,455 | $135,280 | $98,518 | $88,378 | 27 | — | $11,297 | $31,482 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Nelsons Family Foundation reported a distributable amount of $66K 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 went to schools and colleges, religious organizations, arts and cultural institutions, health care organizations, and human-services organizations. For example, Trinity School describes its work as educating children from age three through sixth grade, while Vassar College says its mission is to provide an accessible liberal education. The Museum of Jewish Heritage describes itself as a living memorial to the Holocaust. Other 2025 recipients include St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, which says it advances cures and prevention for pediatric catastrophic diseases, and The Doe Fund, which describes services for people experiencing homelessness and related challenges.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation made 35 grants totaling $115,983. Grants ranged from $250 to $20,000, with a median of $1,000. Among the largest grants were $20,000 to Trinity School, $18,600 to Park Avenue Synagogue, $12,000 to Harvard Hillel, $9,508 to the Metropolitan Opera, and $5,650 to Central Synagogue. Other grants included $5,000 each to Americans Friends of Magen David, Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital, Vassar College, and Williams College Alumni Fund.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Steven Nelson, Michael Nelson, and Amanda Mandel as trustees.
Nelsons Family Foundation's 2025 filing lists 3 officers; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Amanda Mandel
Trustee
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Michael Nelson
Trustee
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Steven Nelson
Trustee
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (1)
- Former: Renee Nelson (2021–2023) — Trustee
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2021–2025. "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 Nelsons Family Foundation
How much does Nelsons Family Foundation give each year?
Nelsons Family Foundation gave $116K across 35 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $114K across 34 grants.
What is Nelsons Family Foundation's typical grant size?
Nelsons Family Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $1,000, and its average grant was $3,314, across 35 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Nelsons Family Foundation that year got $2K on average.
Where does Nelsons Family Foundation give grants?
Nelsons Family Foundation gives mostly in New York: 75% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Massachusetts (15%). The most frequent recipient cities were New York, NY (20 grants) and Warren, CT (2 grants).
Does Nelsons Family Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of Nelsons Family Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (35 of 35) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Nelsons Family Foundation's largest grantees?
Nelsons Family Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Trinity School ($20,000), Park Avenue Synogogue ($18,600) and Harvard Hillel ($12,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 44% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Nelsons Family Foundation?
Nelsons Family Foundation reported $1.7M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $123K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $66K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Nelsons Family Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants went to schools and colleges, religious organizations, arts and cultural institutions, health care organizations, and human-services organizations. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Nelsons Family Foundation?
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and states that it 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 Nelsons Family Foundation's EIN?
Nelsons Family Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 26-1726820. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2021–2025.
Does Nelsons Family 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
(6)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS November 15, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS February 10, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 14, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 15, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 11, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2021–2024
Live grants for the work Nelsons Family Foundation funds
Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
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Browse active grant opportunities in Nelsons Family Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Nelsons Family Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/nelsons-family-foundation-morg_8dec9316f4924db78de74f6e3b66afa3
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_261726820_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Nelsons Family Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/nelsons-family-foundation-morg_8dec9316f4924db78de74f6e3b66afa3},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-17. 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 Nelsons Family 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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