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Albert and Amelia Ferst Charitable Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Albert and Amelia Ferst Charitable Foundation

Its FY2025 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$62k
Granted FY2025still arriving
2
Grants FY2025still arriving
1
States reached
$58k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
0197% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2025.

Youth Development$440kHuman Services$24kEducation$14kHealth$9kArts & Culture$7kReligion$6kFood & Nutrition$5kPublic Safety & Disaster$5kOther$0
02FY2025 · 2 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k1 grant · $4k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $58k
$57,500
Median grant
1
States reached
$1.0M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
ALBERT & AMELIA FERST OPERATING FOUNDATION$57,500
FRIENDS OF WILBRAHAM SENIORS INC$4,350
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Its human-services grants (FY17–21, $10k) land where the poverty rate runs at 16%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%AMERICAN RED CROSS: $5k → 14%COMMUNITY SURVIVAL CENTER: $2k → 17%COMMUNITY SURVIVAL CENTER: $2k → 17%COMMUNITY SURVIVAL CENTER: $1k → 17%COMMUNITY SURVIVAL CENTER: $1k → 17%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

97%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$501k · 16 repeat orgs$18k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +32% since the first grant, against 0% for those funded once.

16 repeat relationships: 2 still active in FY2025, 14 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

16
13

Total granted

$501k
$18k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+32%
0%

Still filing today

44%
46%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
Human ServicesRecreation & SportsArts & CultureEducationAnimalsOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • AA
    ALBERT & AMELIA FERST OPERATING FOUNDATION
    9× · 2017–2025 · $436k · revenue +32%
  • FO
    FRIENDS OF WILBRAHAM SENIORS INC
    3× · 2021–2025 · $18k · revenue +180%
  • BG
    BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF GREATER WESTFIELD INC
    4× · 2017–2021 · $4k · revenue +60%

Funded once

  • AN
    American National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branchesgraduated
    one grant, 2021 · $5k · revenue +27%
  • MB
    MINNECHAUG BOOSTER CLUB
    one grant, 2019 · $3k
  • WS
    WILBRAHAM SENIOR CENTER
    one grant, 2017 · $1k
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Western New England University

Western new england university, a comprehensive private institution with a tradition of excellence in teaching and scholarship and a commitment to service, awards undergraduate, master's, and doctoral degrees in various departments from…

Education
2
Winchester Historical Society
—
3
Massachusetts Outdoor Heritage Foundation Inc Attn Susan Sacco
—
4
Young Men's Christian Association of Greater Boston Inc

The ymca of greater boston is dedicated to improving the health of mind, body, and spirit of individuals and families in our communities. we promote welcoming, belonging, and opportunity for all.

Human Services
5
Open Table Inc

Open table's mission is to address hunger in our local community by providing healthy food in a welcoming environment that respects the dignity and diversity of those served. we achieve our mission by offering a wide variety of healthy and…

Food & Nutrition
6
Massachusetts Historical Society

To promote understanding of the history of massachusetts and the nation by collecting and communicating materials and resources that foster historical knowledge.

Arts & Culture
7
Brookline Teen Center

Btc's vision is for all brookline students to engage in their community and emerge ready for college, career, and beyond. our mission is to provide a platform where all teens can explore, create, and discover who they are. through…

Youth Development
8
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Inc

Organization's mission statement true to the ambitious vision of its founder and her spirit of creative risk-taking, the mission of the isabella stewart gardner museum is: - to bring to life and preserve the rich historic collection; - to…

Arts & Culture
9
Lowell Observatory

The mission of lowell observatory is to pursue the study of astronomy, especially the study of our solar system and its evolution; to conduct pure research in astronomical phenomena; and to maintain quality public education and outreach…

Science & Tech
10
Boys & Girls Clubs of Dorchester Inc

Our mission is to always welcome and connect young people and families to opportunities that embrace diversity, nurture growth, and inspire success.

Youth Development
11
Mass General Brigham Incorporated & Affiliates Group Return

Mass general brigham incorporated is developing an integrated health care delivery system throughout the region that offers patients a continuum of coordinated, high-quality care.

Health
12
Boys & Girls Clubs of Pawtucket

To inspire and enable the young people of pawtucket and surrounding communities, especially those with the greatest need, to realize their full potential as healthy, productive, responsible and caring citizens.

Youth Development
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Boys & Girls Club of Greater Westfield Inc; the most unlike its peers is Minnechaug Booster Club. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

15 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2026.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2026, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 15 of the 29 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
3
Early backer (in before they grew)
13/15
Grantees still filing
8/15
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

ALBERT & AMELIA FERST OPERATING FOUNDATION: $435,591 · Recreation & SportsALBERT & AMELIA FERST OPERATING FOUNDATION+1 more: $2,000 · Recreation & SportsFRIENDS OF WILBRAHAM SENIORS INC: $17,500 · OtherFRIENDS OF W…Hampden Wilbraham Regional School District: $8,950 · OtherHampden Wilb…WILBRAHAM UNITED CHURCH: $5,000 · OtherWILBRAHAM UN…RAYS OF HOPEBAYSTATE HEALTH FOUNDATION: $5,000 · OtherRAYS OF HOPE…FRIENDS OF THE WILBRAHAM PUBLIC LIBRARY: $4,000 · OtherFRIENDS OF T…TLJ FOUNDATION: $4,000 · OtherTLJ FOUNDATI…BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF GREATER WESTFIELD INC: $4,000 · OtherBOYS & GIRLS…Individual grant recipient: $2,000 · OtherMOTHERS AGAINST DRUNK DRIVING: $2,000 · Other+8 more: $6,800 · Other+8 moreAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $5,000 · Human ServicesTHE COMMUNITY SURVIVAL CENTER: $5,000 · Human ServicesWOUNDED WARRIOR PROJECT INC: $2,000 · Human ServicesOPEN PANTRY COMMUNITY SERVICES INC: $2,000 · Human ServicesSPRINGFIELD RESCUE MISSION: $1,000 · Human ServicesMINNECHAUG BOOSTER CLUB: $2,500 · EducationSPRINGFIELD COLLEGE: $1,000 · EducationTHE OLD POST ROAD ORCHESTRA INC: $1,500 · Arts & CultureWGBH Educational Foundation: $1,000 · Arts & CultureDAKIN PIONEER VALLEY HUMANE SOCIETY INC: $1,000 · Animals
Recreation & Sports$437,591Other$59,250Human Services$15,000Education$3,500Arts & Culture$2,500Animals$1,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetALBERT & AMELIA FERST OPERATING FOUNDATION: $435,591 over 9y, 6.6% of budgetFRIENDS OF WILBRAHAM SENIORS INC: $17,500 over 3y, 17% of budgetAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE COMMUNITY SURVIVAL CENTER: $5,000 over 4y, 0.5% of budgetBOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF GREATER WESTFIELD INC: $4,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetWOUNDED WARRIOR PROJECT INC: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetOPEN PANTRY COMMUNITY SERVICES INC: $2,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetCAMP SUNSHINE AT SEBAGO LAKE INC: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetSPRINGFIELD RESCUE MISSION: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWGBH Educational Foundation: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSPRINGFIELD COLLEGE: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetDAKIN PIONEER VALLEY HUMANE SOCIETY INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

  • Who funds ALBERT & AMELIA FERST OPERATING FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds FRIENDS OF WILBRAHAM SENIORS INC ↗
  • Who funds American National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches ↗
  • Who funds THE COMMUNITY SURVIVAL CENTER ↗
  • Who funds BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF GREATER WESTFIELD INC ↗
  • Who funds MINNECHAUG BOOSTER CLUB ↗
  • Who funds WOUNDED WARRIOR PROJECT INC ↗
  • Who funds OPEN PANTRY COMMUNITY SERVICES INC ↗
  • Who funds CAMP SUNSHINE AT SEBAGO LAKE INC ↗
  • Who funds THE OLD POST ROAD ORCHESTRA INC ↗
  • Who funds SPRINGFIELD RESCUE MISSION ↗
  • Who funds WGBH Educational Foundation ↗
  • Who funds SPRINGFIELD COLLEGE ↗
  • Who funds DAKIN PIONEER VALLEY HUMANE SOCIETY INC ↗
  • Who funds ATHENEUM SOCIETY OF WILBRAHAM INC ↗

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

Community Foundation …The Antonacci Family …The Beveridge Family …The Bank of America C…American Online Givin…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
Community Foundation of Western MassachusettsMA17.6× affinity6 shared granteesties to 6 of 6Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts · The Antonacci Family Foundation for Charitable Giving Inc · The Beveridge Family Foundation · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Amazonsmile Foundation

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization Albert and Amelia Ferst Charitable Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Albert and Amelia Ferst Charitable Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 50%1%5%11%20%funder's share of their income ↑0%3%5%8%10%share of the org’s income from government →median 1%
  • Springfield College: 1% of income from government
  • Wgbh Educational Foundation: 1% of income from government
  • Wounded Warrior Project Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
5get no government money at all
3report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–10%
typical government reliance, FY20–25
How this is measured
Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.

On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 29 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

How this is measured
Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

Generated from the IRS Form 990-PF e-file return for fiscal year 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Albert and Amelia Ferst’s filings →

More from the funding graph

The unnamed billions
grants reported with no recipient in the public record
The regranting layer
51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
The DAF merry-go-round
$9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
The endowment market
who holds foundation money, and what just moved
The camps
funders cluster by geography, not ideology
By state
where grant money is based, and what stays home