The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation

Private foundation · Grantmaker Somerville, MA EIN: 04-3251802

The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation is a private foundation based in Somerville, Massachusetts. In its 2025 filing, it reported 17 grants totaling $297,500 to charitable organizations.

Key facts about The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation

In short: The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation gave $298K across 17 grants in 2025 (avg $18K), top state Massachusetts. 53% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

EIN
04-3251802
Latest 990 filing
Form 990-PF, 2025
Annual giving (2025)
$297,500
Grants made (2025)
17
Average grant
$17,500
Median grant
$15,000
New grantees (estimate)
53% first-time grantees (9 of 17, 2025; small sample)
Total assets
$3,112,281
Primary geography
Massachusetts (46% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
Accepts unsolicited proposals
No
How to apply
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. Full details ↓

Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology). Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Financial Overview

From 2025 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing

Total Assets

$3.1M

-3.8% YoY

Annual Giving

$298K

+85.9% YoY

Grant Count

17

+88.9% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$18K

-1.6% YoY

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation reported a distributable amount of $194K for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.

Is The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation open to new grantees?

53%

first-time grantees, 2025

In 2025, 9 of 17 grantees (53%) were first-time recipients. With only 17 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 6 points. First grants averaged $13K; repeat grants $23K. How we count

Medians: $10K first-time, $23K repeat.

  • 47% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
  • Giving fell 93% from 2022 to 2025. Method
  • In 2025 it paid out 156% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method

Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2020–2025). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.

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 show support for a range of charitable organizations. For example, Feeding America describes its mission as ensuring equitable access to nutritious food, while the Rhode Island Community Food Bank says it works to advance solutions to hunger. The Northeast Wilderness Trust describes itself as a regional land trust that preserves and restores wild landscapes, and Everyday Boston says it works to bridge community divides through programming and storytelling. New Bedford Light describes its work as providing fact-based journalism and a platform for diverse community voices.

Grantmaking

In 2025, the foundation reported 17 grants totaling $297,500. Grant amounts ranged from $2,500 to $30,000, with a median of $15,000. Its largest grants included $30,000 each to Feeding America, GiveDirectly, and World Central Kitchen; $25,000 each to MASS Inc. and the Trustees of Tufts College–Center for Expanding Viewpoints; and $20,000 each to the Rhode Island Community Food Bank, The Greater Boston Food Bank, and Vermont Food Bank.

Other reported 2025 grants included $15,000 to the Northeast Wilderness Trust, $10,000 to Everyday Boston, $10,000 to the Jewish Community Relations Council, $10,000 to Buzzards Bay Coalition, and $10,000 to New Bedford Light.

How to Apply

The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

Recipients in Massachusetts received 46% of 2025 grant dollars, followed by recipients in New York (15%), Vermont (12%), Illinois (10%), and the District of Columbia (10%). The listed grants also include recipients in Rhode Island.

Grant Distribution by State

20states

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 17 itemized grants.

Cities

WashingtonBostonNew YorkAtlantaChicagoPeterboroughProvidenceAlbert LeaMerrifieldHalethorpeJamaica PlainMontgomeryOklahoma CitySan AntonioArlingtonBaltimoreBarreBrooklynLos AngelesManchester

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

$0$2M$4M$6M63 grants2020 43 grants2021 37 grants2022 7 grants2023 9 grants2024 17 grants2025

From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $95K (2023) to $4.4M (2022). In 2025 it made 17 grants totaling $298K.

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2025

Feeding America: $30KFeeding America$30KGive Directly: $30KGive Directly$30KWorld Central Kitchen: $30KWorld Central Kitchen$30KMass Inc: $25KMass Inc$25KTrustees of Tufts College-Ctr for Expdg Viewpoints: $25KTrustees of Tufts College-Ctrfor Expdg Viewpoints$25KRhode Island Community Food Bank: $20KRhode Island Community FoodBank$20KThe Greater Boston Food Bank: $20KThe Greater Boston Food Bank$20KVermont Food Bank: $20KVermont Food Bank$20KJewish Theological Seminary of America: $15KJewish Theological Seminary ofAmerica$15KAtrium School Atrium Fund: $15KAtrium School Atrium Fund$15K

The largest 2025 recipient was Feeding America ($30K). Together the top 10 received $230K.

Grant Size Distribution

113 grants across all recorded years

111<$50K1$50–100K$100–250K$250–500K$500K–1M1$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 111 grants of 113 (98%).

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Feeding America Chicago, ILCharitable$30,000
Give Directly New York, NYCharitable$30,000
World Central Kitchen Washington, DCCharitable$30,000
Mass Inc Boston, MACharitable$25,000
Trustees of Tufts College-Ctr for Expdg Viewpoints Medford, MACharitable$25,000
Rhode Island Community Food Bank Providence, RICharitable$20,000
The Greater Boston Food Bank Boston, MACharitable$20,000
Vermont Food Bank Barre, VTCharitable$20,000
Jewish Theological Seminary of America New York, NYCharitable$15,000
Atrium School Atrium Fund Watertown, MACharitable$15,000

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Filing year Assets Revenue Expenses Grants Grant count
2025 $3,112,281 $227,191 $348,386 $297,500 17
2024 $3,235,483 $255,751 $205,711 $160,000 9
2023 $3,184,163 $115,615 $134,265 $95,000 7
Revenue
Expenses
Qualifying Distributions
Net Investment Income
$0$2.5M$5M$7.5M$10M2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Metric202520242023
Total Assets$3,112,281$3,235,483$3,184,163
Revenue$227,191$255,751$115,615
Expenses$348,386$205,711$134,265
Qualifying Distributions$302,670$165,205$100,200
Net Investment Income$186,487$216,663$81,550
Distributable Amount$194,110$183,243$163,622

Data update history

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS April 14, 2021)
  2. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS April 7, 2022)
  3. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 15, 2023)
  4. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS March 26, 2024)
  5. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS March 3, 2025)
  6. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS April 16, 2026)
  7. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2025

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists Ariane Torres and Jess M. Torres as trustees.

The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation's 2025 filing lists 2 officers; none of the 2 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Ariane Torres

    Trustee

    On filings since 2022

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Jess M. Torres

    Trustee

    On filings since 2023

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (6)
  • Former: Ariane Davisson (2020–2021) — Trustee
  • Former: Catherine Bye (2020–2021) — Trustee
  • Former: Lisa B. Bob (2020–2021) — Trustee
  • Former: Philip Bye (2020–2021) — Trustee
  • Former: Elsie P. Van Buren (2020) — Trustee
  • Former: William H. P. Davisson (2020) — Trustee

Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.

Contact

Mailing address: 50 Spring St Unit B, Somerville, MA 02143
Phone: (646) 505-9380

Frequently asked questions about The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation

How much does The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation give each year?

The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation gave $298K across 17 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $160K across 9 grants.

What is The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation's typical grant size?

The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $15,000, and its average grant was $17,500, across 17 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation that year got $13K on average.

Where does The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation give grants?

The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation's top state is Massachusetts, with 46% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were New York (15%) and Vermont (12%). The most frequent recipient cities were Boston, MA (5 grants), New York, NY (2 grants) and New Bedford, MA (2 grants).

Does The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation give general operating support?

Not in 2025: none of the 17 grants with a stated purpose on The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Charitable" (17 grants).

Who are The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation's largest grantees?

The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Feeding America ($30,000), Give Directly ($30,000) and World Central Kitchen ($30,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 30% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.

How large is The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation?

The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation reported $3.1M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $303K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $194K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).

What does The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation fund?

No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its grants show support for a range of charitable organizations. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation?

The foundation 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 The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation's EIN?

The Elsie Procter Van Buren Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 04-3251802. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.

Does The Elsie Procter Van Buren 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.

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