The Esther and William Benenson
The Esther and William Benenson is a private foundation based in New York, NY. Its 2025 filing reports 16 grants totaling $97,000, including grants for education and social affairs.
The Esther and William Benenson at a glance
In short: The Esther and William Benenson gave $97K across 16 grants in 2025 (avg $6K), mostly in New York. 6% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $97,000
- +0.0% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 16
- +6.7% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $6,063
- -6.3% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $3,000
- Total assets
- $1,062,640
- -3.9% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 6% first-time grantees (1 of 16, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- New York (89% 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 Esther and William Benenson
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: 1185 Park Avenue 12C, New York, NY 10128
Phone: (914) 874-4792
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Esther and William Benenson funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was American Friends of Hebrew University ($50K). Together the top 10 received $86K.
Grant Size Distribution
68 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 63 grants of 68 (93%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 89% of grant dollars went to recipients in New York. The reported shares for other recipient states were DC 4%, California 4%, Alabama 3%, and Illinois 1%.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 16 itemized grants.
Cities
Is The Esther and William Benenson open to new grantees?
6%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 1 of 16 grantees (6%) were first-time recipients. With only 16 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 6 points. First grants averaged $3K; repeat grants $6K. How we count
Medians: $3K first-time, $3K repeat.
- 94% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (−3%). Method
- In 2025 it paid out 84% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Foundations have until the end of the next year to meet it. 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 $97K (2021) to $111K (2023). In 2025 it made 16 grants totaling $97K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| American Friends of Hebrew University New York, NY | Education | $50,000 |
| U J a Federation New York, NY | Social Affairs | $10,000 |
| Naral Pro Choice American Foundation Washington, DC | Social Affairs | $4,000 |
| Planned Parenthood Federation New York, NY | Social Affairs | $4,000 |
| Israaid Global Humanitarian Beverly Hills, CA | Social Affairs | $3,500 |
| Cooke Ctr for Learning & Development New York, NY | Education | $3,000 |
| The Wassaic Project Wassaic, NY | Education | $3,000 |
| American Jewish Committee New York, NY | Education | $3,000 |
| Camp Ramapo for Children New York, NY | Education | $3,000 |
| Anti-Defamation League New York, NY | Social Affairs | $2,500 |
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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 | $1,062,640 | $63,102 | $105,720 | $97,000 | 16 | $98,583 | $56,049 | $117,720 |
| 2024 | $1,105,258 | $1,321 | $109,651 | $97,000 | 15 | $98,583 | $49,200 | $98,614 |
| 2023 | $1,213,588 | $101,422 | $117,603 | $110,500 | 16 | $110,750 | $94,569 | $98,362 |
| 2022 | $1,229,769 | $34,423 | $111,289 | $100,500 | 12 | $101,817 | $32,290 | $108,978 |
| 2021 | $1,306,635 | $41,071 | $108,323 | $96,500 | 9 | — | $31,197 | $102,512 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Esther and William Benenson reported a distributable amount of $118K 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 include support designated for education and social affairs. Among the grantees, the American Jewish Committee describes its mission as enhancing the wellbeing of Jewish people and Israel and advancing human rights and democratic values. The Wassaic Project describes itself as a contemporary arts organization using art and arts education to foster positive social change and build local pride. The Southern Poverty Law Center describes its work as advancing racial justice and human rights, and the Anti-Defamation League describes its mission as combating antisemitism and other forms of hate.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation reported 16 grants totaling $97,000. Grants ranged from $500 to $50,000, with a median grant of $3,000.
The largest reported grant was $50,000 to American Friends of Hebrew University for education. Other notable grants included $10,000 to U J A Federation for social affairs; $4,000 each to NARAL Pro-Choice American Foundation and Planned Parenthood Federation for social affairs; and $3,500 to IsraAid Global Humanitarian for social affairs. The foundation also awarded $3,000 each to Cooke Center for Learning & Development, The Wassaic Project, American Jewish Committee, and Camp Ramapo for Children.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Blanche Benenson as president; Michael Benenson as vice president; Amy Benenson as vice president; and Sharon Benenson Sydney as vice president, secretary, and treasurer.
The Esther and William Benenson is led by Blanche Benenson, President on every filing since 2021; none of the 4 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Blanche Benenson
President
On filings since 2021
No compensation reported
Amy Benenson
Vice President
On filings since 2021
No compensation reported
Michael Benenson
Vice President
On filings since 2021
No compensation reported
Sharon Benenson Sydney
Vice President, Secretary & Treasurer
On filings since 2021
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 The Esther and William Benenson
How much does The Esther and William Benenson give each year?
The Esther and William Benenson gave $97K across 16 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $97K across 15 grants.
What is The Esther and William Benenson's typical grant size?
The Esther and William Benenson's median grant in 2025 was $3,000, and its average grant was $6,063, across 16 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Esther and William Benenson that year got $3K on average.
Where does The Esther and William Benenson give grants?
The Esther and William Benenson gives mostly in New York: 89% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were New York, NY (11 grants).
Does The Esther and William Benenson give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 16 grants with a stated purpose on The Esther and William Benenson's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Social Affairs" (10 grants) and "Education" (5 grants).
Who are The Esther and William Benenson's largest grantees?
The Esther and William Benenson's largest 2025 grantees include American Friends of Hebrew University ($50,000), U J a Federation ($10,000) and Naral Pro Choice American Foundation ($4,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 66% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Esther and William Benenson?
The Esther and William Benenson reported $1.1M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $99K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $118K (roughly 5% of its investment assets). Falling short in one year is not a violation: foundations have until the end of the next year to meet the minimum.
What does The Esther and William Benenson fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants include support designated for education and social affairs. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Esther and William Benenson?
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 Esther and William Benenson's EIN?
The Esther and William Benenson's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 11-3352088. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2021–2025.
Does The Esther and William Benenson 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 2021–2025
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Esther and William Benenson funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-esther-and-william-benenson-morg_6e150967b1aa4d708ff6e7f8c0029e36
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_113352088_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Esther and William Benenson funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-esther-and-william-benenson-morg_6e150967b1aa4d708ff6e7f8c0029e36},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-12. 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 Esther and William Benenson'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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