Simon Willard Foundation
The Simon Willard Foundation is a private foundation based in Boston, Massachusetts. In 2024, it gave $302,000 through 10 grants to organizations including a university, a horse-care organization, wildlife conservation groups, and organizations serving women and people experiencing poverty.
Simon Willard Foundation at a glance
In short: Simon Willard Foundation gave $302K across 10 grants in 2024 (avg $30K), mostly in Massachusetts. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2024)
- $302,000
- +7.9% vs 2023
- Grants made (2024)
- 10
- +25.0% vs 2023
- Average grant
- $30,200
- -13.7% vs 2023
- Median grant
- $7,000
- Total assets
- $5,043,825
- -2.4% vs 2023
- Primary geography
- Massachusetts (91% of itemized 2024 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2024 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2024; updated October 2026.
How to apply to Simon Willard 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: Hemenway Barnes Box 961209, Boston, MA 02196
Phone: (978) 944-8878
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Simon Willard Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
The largest 2024 recipient was Fitchburg State University ($125K). Together the top 10 received $302K.
Grant Size Distribution
18 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 14 grants of 18 (78%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2024, 91% of grant dollars went to recipients in Massachusetts. The remaining grant dollars went to recipients in Tennessee, Washington, D.C., New York, and California, each receiving 2%.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 10 itemized grants.
Cities
How Simon Willard Foundation gives
- 80% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
- In 2024 it paid out 110% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2024). 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 2023 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $280K (2023) to $302K (2024). In 2024 it made 10 grants totaling $302K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Fitchburg State University Fitchburg, MA | Stipends for Unpaid Intern Program | $125,000 |
| Project Comeback Holliston, MA | General Operating Support/Future Land Purchase | $125,000 |
| Elephant Sanctuary Hohenwald, TN | General Operating Support | $7,000 |
| Mission Safe Roxbury, MA | General Operating Support | $7,000 |
| Plan C (NWHN) Washington DC, DC | For Plan C | $7,000 |
| Save the Rhino International New York, NY | General Operating Support | $7,000 |
| Sheldrick Wildlife Trust Laguna Hills, CA | General Operating Support | $7,000 |
| Women's Lunch Place Boston, MA | General Operating Support | $7,000 |
| Lazurus House Lawrence, MA | General Operating Support | $5,000 |
| Creative Life Foundation Boston, MA | General Operating 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $5,043,825 | $289,117 | $413,450 | $302,000 | 10 | $302,000 | $246,227 | $275,776 |
| 2023 | $5,169,803 | $5,477,819 | $306,285 | $280,000 | 8 | $280,000 | $4,220,197 | $104,421 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Simon Willard Foundation reported a distributable amount of $276K for 2024 — 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 2024 grants show support for varied organizations and purposes, including intern stipends, general operating support, and a future land purchase.
Among the grantees, Project Comeback describes its mission as providing lifelong care to horses and creating opportunities for horses and veterans to heal together. Save the Rhino International says it collaborates with partners to support endangered rhinos in Africa and Asia. Women’s Lunch Place describes its work as supporting women experiencing hunger, homelessness, and poverty through a welcoming day-shelter community and services focused on nutrition, health, housing, and economic empowerment.
Grantmaking
In 2024, the foundation made 10 grants totaling $302,000. Grant amounts ranged from $5,000 to $125,000, with a median of $7,000. The largest grants were $125,000 to Fitchburg State University for stipends for its unpaid intern program and $125,000 to Project Comeback for general operating support and a future land purchase. Other grants included $7,000 each to Elephant Sanctuary, Mission SAFE, Plan C (NWHN), Save the Rhino International, Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, and Women’s Lunch Place, and $5,000 each to Lazurus House and Creative Life Foundation.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Tracy W. Barron is listed as president and director on the 2024 filing.
Simon Willard Foundation is led by Tracy W. Barron, President & Director on every filing since 2023 — the only officer listed, and uncompensated.
Officers on the 2024 filing
Tracy W. Barron
President & Director
On filings since 2023
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2023–2024. "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 Simon Willard Foundation
How much does Simon Willard Foundation give each year?
Simon Willard Foundation gave $302K across 10 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2023 it gave $280K across 8 grants.
What is Simon Willard Foundation's typical grant size?
Simon Willard Foundation's median grant in 2024 was $7,000, and its average grant was $30,200, across 10 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does Simon Willard Foundation give grants?
Simon Willard Foundation gives mostly in Massachusetts: 91% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Boston, MA (2 grants).
Does Simon Willard Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 80% of Simon Willard Foundation's 2024 grants with a stated purpose (8 of 10) were for general or operating support, per its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Simon Willard Foundation's largest grantees?
Simon Willard Foundation's largest 2024 grantees include Fitchburg State University ($125,000), Project Comeback ($125,000) and Elephant Sanctuary ($7,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 85% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.
How large is Simon Willard Foundation?
Simon Willard Foundation reported $5.0M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $302K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $276K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Simon Willard Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2024 grants show support for varied organizations and purposes, including intern stipends, general operating support, and a future land purchase. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Simon Willard 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 Simon Willard Foundation's EIN?
Simon Willard Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 88-4114857. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2023–2024.
Does Simon Willard 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
(1)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2023–2024
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Simon Willard Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 15, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/simon-willard-foundation-morg_c3df0ca4e3184f14974c0e839c75c91e
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_884114857_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Simon Willard Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/simon-willard-foundation-morg_c3df0ca4e3184f14974c0e839c75c91e},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-15. 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 Simon Willard 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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