Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation
The Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation is a private foundation based in New York, NY. Its 2025 filing lists grants to charitable organizations, including universities, humanitarian organizations, conservation groups, and arts organizations.
Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation at a glance
In short: Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation gave $288K across 120 grants in 2025 (avg $2K), top state California. 24% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $288,048
- +22.3% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 120
- +185.7% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $2,400
- -57.2% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $2,250
- Total assets
- $3,952,015
- -5.7% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 24% first-time grantees (10 of 42, 2025)
- Primary geography
- California (48% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated September 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests.
- Contact
Mailing address: Co Rcm PO Box 5016, New York, NY 10185-5016
Phone: (212) 549-5544
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Stanford University ($40K across 7 grants). Together the top 10 received $160K.
Grant Size Distribution
203 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 202 grants of 203 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, California accounted for 48% of grant dollars, followed by the District of Columbia at 21%, New York at 10%, Virginia at 6%, and Maryland at 4%.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 120 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation open to new grantees?
24%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 10 of 42 grantees (24%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $5K; repeat grants $7K. How we count
Medians: $5K first-time, $5K repeat.
- 76% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 1226% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 107% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2022–2025). 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 2022 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $22K (2022) to $288K (2025). In 2025 it made 120 grants totaling $288K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Stanford University Stanford, CA | General Support | $12,500 |
| Stanford University Stanford, CA | General Support | $12,500 |
| Stanford University Stanford, CA | General Support | $12,500 |
| World Central Kitchen Inc Washington, DC | General Support | $10,000 |
| American Red Cross Washington, DC | General Support | $10,000 |
| Peninsula Open Space Trust Palo Alto, CA | General Support | $6,000 |
| Peninsula Open Space Trust Palo Alto, CA | General Support | $6,000 |
| ACLU Foundation of Northern California San Francisco, CA | General Support | $5,000 |
| Center for Reproductive Rights New York, NY | General Support | $5,000 |
| Center for Reproductive Rights New York, NY | General Support | $5,000 |
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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 | $3,952,015 | $426,202 | $351,920 | $288,048 | 120 | $302,826 | $377,488 | $282,525 |
| 2024 | $4,190,873 | $-852,447 | $291,697 | $235,547 | 42 | $259,047 | $51,183 | $263,248 |
| 2023 | $4,737,768 | $-536,071 | $163,929 | $97,921 | 22 | $124,822 | $57,688 | $243,880 |
| 2022 | $4,858,549 | $4,897,838 | $53,501 | $21,725 | 19 | $32,419 | $10,315 | $140,161 |
| 2021 | $4,500 | $10,000 | $5,500 | — | — | $5,500 | — | $8 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation reported a distributable amount of $283K 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 several areas. World Central Kitchen describes its mission as providing meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises. Peninsula Open Space Trust says it protects open space on the Peninsula and in the South Bay. The San Francisco Symphony says it serves audiences and communities through musical performance. Other supported organizations include the American Heart Association, whose mission is to promote longer, healthier lives, and wildlife conservation organizations such as World Wildlife Fund and Defenders of Wildlife.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 120 grants totaling $288,048. Grants ranged from $48 to $12,500, with a median grant of $2,250. The largest listed awards included three grants of $12,500 each to Stanford University for general support, and $10,000 each to World Central Kitchen and the American Red Cross, also for general support. Other listed grants included $6,000 awards to Peninsula Open Space Trust and $5,000 awards to the ACLU Foundation of Northern California and the Center for Reproductive Rights, all for general support.
Grantmaking totals increased from $97,921 across 22 grants in 2023 to $235,547 across 42 grants in 2024.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Robert Louis Ford as director and vice president, and Dr. Sharon Ullman Ford as director, president, secretary, and treasurer.
Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation is led by Sharon Ullman Ford, Director, President, Secretary & Treasurer on every filing since 2021; none of the 2 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Sharon Ullman Ford
Director, President, Secretary & Treasurer
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Robert Louis Ford
Director & Vice President
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
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 Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation
How much does Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation give each year?
Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation gave $288K across 120 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $236K across 42 grants.
What is Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation's typical grant size?
Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $2,250, and its average grant was $2,400, across 120 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation that year got $5K on average.
Where does Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation give grants?
Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation's top state is California, with 48% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were District of Columbia (21%) and New York (10%). The most frequent recipient cities were San Francisco, CA (26 grants), Washington, DC (12 grants), New York, NY (11 grants) and Stanford, CA (7 grants).
Does Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (120 of 120) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation's largest grantees?
Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Stanford University ($40,000 across 7 grants), World Central Kitchen Inc ($20,000 across 4 grants) and Center for Reproductive Rights ($20,000 across 4 grants), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 28% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation?
Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation reported $4.0M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $303K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $283K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for organizations working in several areas. World Central Kitchen describes its mission as providing meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation?
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation's EIN?
Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 87-3495360. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2021–2025.
Does Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?
No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑
Data last updated September 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 September 15, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS April 18, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 20, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 12, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 4, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2021–2024
Live grants for the work Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation funds
Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
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Browse active grant opportunities in Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Sharon & Bob Ford Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 21, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/sharon-and-bob-ford-foundation-morg_62be9b795e364d8cb97cc893365b0c98
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_873495360_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Sharon \& Bob Ford Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/sharon-and-bob-ford-foundation-morg_62be9b795e364d8cb97cc893365b0c98},
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 Sharon & Bob Ford 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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