The Aldermere Foundation
The Aldermere Foundation is a private foundation based in Portland, Maine. Its 2025 grants went to charitable organizations in Maine, including organizations working in land conservation, environmental protection, education and music.
The Aldermere Foundation at a glance
In short: The Aldermere Foundation gave $434K across 19 grants in 2025 (avg $23K), mostly in Maine. 11% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $434,448
- +12.1% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 19
- +11.8% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $22,866
- +0.3% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $7,000
- Total assets
- $4,842,925
- -4.7% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 11% first-time grantees (2 of 19, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Maine (100% 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 The Aldermere Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations.
- Contact
Mailing address: Co Spinnaker Trust, Portland, ME 04101
Phone: (207) 553-7160
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Aldermere Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Maine Coast Heritage Trust ($304K). Together the top 10 received $394K.
Grant Size Distribution
89 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 84 grants of 89 (94%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
All listed 2025 grant dollars went to organizations in Maine.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 19 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is The Aldermere Foundation open to new grantees?
11%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 2 of 19 grantees (11%) were first-time recipients. With only 19 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 5 points. First grants averaged $4K; repeat grants $25K. How we count
Medians: $4K first-time, $8K repeat.
- 89% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 21% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 108% 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 $334K (2019) to $434K (2025). In 2025 it made 19 grants totaling $434K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Maine Coast Heritage Trust Topsham, ME | Aldermere Farm Operating Support | $304,448 |
| Coastal Mountains Land Trust Camden, ME | General Support | $15,000 |
| Maine Conservation Alliance Belfast, ME | General Support | $12,000 |
| Center for Ecological Teaching and Learning Dennysville, ME | General Support | $10,000 |
| Hurricaine Island Center for Science and Leadership Rockland, ME | General Support | $10,000 |
| Maine Farmland Trust Belfast, ME | General Support | $10,000 |
| Natural Resources Council of Maine Augusta, ME | General Support | $10,000 |
| Maine Conservation Law Foundation Portland, ME | General Support | $8,000 |
| Midcoast Conservancy Edgecomb, ME | General Support | $8,000 |
| Palaver Strings Portland, ME | General Support | $7,000 |
Ready to take the next step with The Aldermere Foundation?
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 | $4,842,925 | $249,428 | $485,845 | $434,448 | 19 | $446,290 | $209,989 | $413,331 |
| 2024 | $5,079,342 | $337,275 | $444,338 | $387,600 | 17 | $398,304 | $303,297 | $379,401 |
| 2023 | $5,186,405 | $632,503 | $406,819 | $361,644 | 17 | $371,609 | $601,152 | $341,834 |
| 2022 | $4,960,721 | $365,865 | $406,452 | $358,455 | 18 | $368,775 | $335,202 | $356,158 |
| 2021 | $5,001,308 | $420,411 | $397,633 | $356,039 | 18 | $366,487 | $389,265 | $376,936 |
| 2020 | $4,978,530 | $-62,846 | $393,982 | $349,417 | 17 | — | $129,687 | $322,578 |
| 2019 | $5,435,358 | $587,665 | $374,919 | $334,347 | 16 | — | $560,426 | $323,111 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Aldermere Foundation reported a distributable amount of $413K 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 grants include support for organizations whose work spans conservation, farming, education and the arts. For example, Maine Coast Heritage Trust says it advances conservation of Maine’s lands and waters, while Maine Farmland Trust says it protects farmland, supports farmers and advances the future of farming. Palaver Strings describes its mission as strengthening and inspiring community through music.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation made 19 grants totaling $434,448. Grants ranged from $1,000 to $304,448, with a median grant of $7,000. The largest grant was $304,448 to Maine Coast Heritage Trust for Aldermere Farm operating support. Other notable grants included $15,000 to Coastal Mountains Land Trust, $12,000 to Maine Conservation Alliance, and $10,000 each to the Center for Ecological Teaching and Learning, Hurricaine Island Center for Science and Leadership, Maine Farmland Trust, and Natural Resources Council of Maine. All 2025 grant dollars went to recipients in Maine.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Spinnaker Trust is listed as trustee on the 2025 filing.
The Aldermere Foundation is led by Spinnaker Trust, Trustee on every filing since 2019 — the only officer listed, and compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Spinnaker Trust
Trustee
On filings since 2019
0.7 hrs/week
$32K (2019) → $42K (2025)
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.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $42K, to Spinnaker Trust (Trustee).
Frequently asked questions about The Aldermere Foundation
How much does The Aldermere Foundation give each year?
The Aldermere Foundation gave $434K across 19 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $388K across 17 grants.
What is The Aldermere Foundation's typical grant size?
The Aldermere Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $7,000, and its average grant was $22,866, across 19 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Aldermere Foundation that year got $4K on average.
Where does The Aldermere Foundation give grants?
The Aldermere Foundation gives mostly in Maine: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Camden, ME (3 grants), Rockport, ME (3 grants), Belfast, ME (2 grants) and Rockland, ME (2 grants).
Does The Aldermere Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of The Aldermere Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (19 of 19) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are The Aldermere Foundation's largest grantees?
The Aldermere Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Maine Coast Heritage Trust ($304,448), Coastal Mountains Land Trust ($15,000) and Maine Conservation Alliance ($12,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 76% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Aldermere Foundation?
The Aldermere Foundation reported $4.8M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $446K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $413K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does The Aldermere Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its grants include support for organizations whose work spans conservation, farming, education and the arts. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Aldermere Foundation?
The foundation 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 The Aldermere Foundation's EIN?
The Aldermere Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 01-6059906. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Does The Aldermere 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
(3)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS July 9, 2020)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 14, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in The Aldermere Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Aldermere Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 13, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-aldermere-foundation-morg_36cf9f18f2194c05818dd01c0dd50d45
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_016059906_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Aldermere Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-aldermere-foundation-morg_36cf9f18f2194c05818dd01c0dd50d45},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-13. 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 The Aldermere 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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