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Cliff and Susan Rucker Charitable Foundation Inc at a glance

· Private foundation

Cliff and Susan Rucker Charitable Foundation Inc

Its FY2025 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$584k
Granted FY2025still arriving
32
Grants FY2025still arriving
10
States reached
$100k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0194% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2023 to 2025.

Religion$218kHuman Services$115kEducation$112kYouth Development$101kCommunity Improvement$100kEnvironment$55kAnimals$11kArts & Culture$10kOther$0
02FY2025 · 32 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k24 grants · $89k
  • $10k–50k2 grants · $35k
  • $50k–250k6 grants · $460k
$5,000
Median grant
10
States reached
$1.8M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
SOLA FOUNDATION$100,000
QUINSIGAMOND COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOUNDATION$100,000
THE WORCESTER GUARDIAN INC$100,000
CHABAD OF BEVERLY-SALEM$60,000
WORCESTER REGIONAL STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITIES$50,000
CHABAD OF THE NORTH SHORE$50,000
REGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL$25,000
WEDF$10,000
TEMPLE NER TAMID$9,066
WCRDSA$7,500
LAMACCHIA CARES FOUNDATION INC$7,500
MORGANS MESSAGE$5,000
AMERICAN INDIAN COLLEGE FUND$5,000
POST-22$5,000
GALS BEST PAL INC$5,000
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 (FY23–25, $105k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 98% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%DONEGAL SUBSTANCE ABUSE ALLIANCE: $2k → 9%COVENANT HOUSE: $3k → 17%THE WORCESTER GUARDIAN INC: $100k → 11%FRIENDS OF THE CHILDREN - BOSTON: $515 → 16%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.

Which US states its grants reach

NY
MA
PA
NJ
CA
CO
VA
KS
TN
NC
DC
GA
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.

46%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$358k · 6 repeat orgs$416k to everyone else

6 repeat relationships: 5 still active in FY2025, 1 since wound down; 27 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

6
8

Total granted

$358k
$26k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+4%
+8%

Still filing today

50%
75%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 33% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $390k went to new ones.

50%100%’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’23’24’25
Human ServicesEducationAnimalsHealthEnvironmentYouth DevelopmentOther
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

  • CL
    CHABAD LUBAVITCH OF THE NORTH SHORE
    2× · 2024–2025 · $100k
  • WR
    WORCESTER REGIONAL STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITIES FOUNDATION
    2× · 2024–2025 · $100k · revenue 0%
  • CO
    CHABAD OF BEVERLY-SALEM INC
    2× · 2024–2025 · $64k

Funded once

  • CO
    CHABAD OF THE NORTH SHORE
    one grant, 2023 · $10k
  • SA
    SUMMIT AGENCY INC
    one grant, 2024 · $5k · revenue +8%
  • AF
    ARTHRITIS FOUNDATION INC
    one grant, 2023 · $5k · revenue 0%
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
Massachusetts Higher Education Assistance Corporation

The organization's primary exempt purpose is to provide access to and conduct activities in furtherance of higher education.

—
2
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The mission of mit is to advance knowledge and educate students in science, technology, and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and the world in the 21st century.

Education
3
Boston Architectural College

The bac is committed to provide excellence in design education grounded in practice and accessible to diverse communities.

—
4
Wheaton College

Wheaton college provides a transformative liberal arts education, combining theory and practice, for intellectually curious students within a collaborative and vibrant extended community and network that values and strives to create an…

Education
5
Aclu Foundation of Massachusetts Inc

Aclu foundation of ma was established to defend freedoms guaranteed in the constitution and bill of rights through public education and litigation.

Civil Rights
6
Massachusetts Business Roundtable Inc

The mission of the roundtable is to make massachusetts the most desirable place to live, work and do business by engaging private sector executives and public leaders to ensure access to a robust, diverse and talented workforce that…

—
7
Gloucester Marine Genomics Institute Incorporated

Gloucester marine genomics institute's mission is to address critical challenges in ocean health, human health, and the environment through innovative marine biotechnology research and transformative science education. by combining…

Science & Tech
8
Proprietors of the Social Law Library

To provide research facilities to members and to the judicial, executive, and legislative branches of the massachusetts government.

—
9
American Association for the Advancement of Science

Advance science, engineering, and innovation throughout the world for the benefit of all. the world's largest multidisciplinary scientific society and a leading publisher of cutting-edge research through its science family of journals,…

Science & Tech
10
Massachusetts Advocates for Children Inc

Massachusetts advocates for children, inc. ("mac") is a non-profit organization dedicated to removing barriers to educational and life opportunities for children and youth. we do so by advocating for and partnering with students and…

Civil Rights
11
The Bridgespan Group Inc

Bridgespan's mission is to build a better world by strengthening the ability of mission-driven organizations and philanthropists to achieve breakthrough results in addressing society's most important challenges and opportunities.

Community Improvement
12
The Waldorf School Inc

The waldorf school of lexington nurtures each child's curiosity, ingenuity, and love of learning so that they can meet the future with wonder, confidence, and resilience.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Grey Muzzle Organization; the most unlike its peers is Morgans Message Inc. 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

25 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. 25 of the 41 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)
6
Early backer (in before they grew)
25/25
Grantees still filing
14/25
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

CHABAD LUBAVITCH OF THE NORTH SHORE: $100,000 · OtherCHABAD LUBAVITCH OF THE NORTH SHORECHABAD OF BEVERLY-SALEM INC: $63,600 · OtherCHABAD OF BEVERLY-SALEM INCTEMPLE NER TAMID: $16,266 · OtherTEMPLE NER TAMIDCHABAD OF THE NORTH SHORE: $10,000 · OtherWEDF: $10,000 · Other+23 more: $78,987 · Other+23 moreQuinsigamond Community College Foundation Inc: $100,000 · EducationQuinsigamond Com…SUMMIT AGENCY INC: $5,000 · EducationAMERICAN INDIAN COLLEGE FUND: $5,000 · EducationTHE WORCESTER GUARDIAN INC: $100,000 · Human ServicesTHE WORCESTER G…+3 more: $4,682 · Human ServicesTHE SOLA FOUNDATION: $100,000 · Youth DevelopmentTHE SOLA FOUND…WORCESTER REGIONAL STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITIES FOUNDATION: $100,000 · Arts & CultureWORCESTER REGI…REGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL INC: $50,000 · Environment+2 more: $2,726 · EnvironmentLAPPIN FOUNDATION: $28,500 · Religion
Other$278,853Education$110,000Human Services$104,682Youth Development$100,000Arts & Culture$100,000Environment$52,726Religion$28,500

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 budgetWORCESTER REGIONAL STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITIES FOUNDATION: $100,000 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetQuinsigamond Community College Foundation Inc: $100,000 over 1y, 6.8% of budgetREGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL INC: $50,000 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetLAPPIN FOUNDATION: $28,500 over 2y, 1.0% of budgetTHE GREY MUZZLE ORGANIZATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetSUMMIT AGENCY INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetARTHRITIS FOUNDATION INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMORGANS MESSAGE INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetAMERICAN INDIAN COLLEGE FUND: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION FOUNDATION INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCOVENANT HOUSE: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetROSIE'S PLACE INC: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBEVERLY BOOTSTRAPS COMMUNITY SERVICES I: $1,830 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSweet Paws Rescue Inc: $1,250 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetGREATER WORCESTER LAND TRUST: $1,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetFRIENDS OF THE CHILDREN - BOSTON INC: $515 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC: $100 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.

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.

Eastern Bank Foundati…Boston Foundation IncCombined Jewish Phila…The Pfizer Foundation…The Blackbaud Giving …Vanguard Charitable E…Network for GoodMorgan Stanley Global…National Philanthropi…Paypal Charitable Giv…The Bank of America C…American Online Givin…
Eastern Bank FoundationMA14.4× affinity5 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Eastern Bank Foundation · Boston Foundation Inc · Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston Inc · The Pfizer Foundation Inc · The Blackbaud Giving Fund · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Network for Good · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · Paypal Charitable Giving Fund · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc

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 Cliff and Susan Rucker Charitable Foundation Inc funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Cliff and Susan Rucker Charitable Foundation Inc. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 50%6%25%56%100%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 4%
  • Regional Environmental Council Inc: 6% of income from government
  • Friends of the Children - Boston Inc: 4% of income from government
  • Rosie's Place Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Pan-Massachusetts Challenge Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
5get no government money at all
7report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
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.
05Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to Cliff and Susan Rucker Charitable Foundation Inc?

Find your warmest path to Cliff and Susan Rucker Charitable Foundation Inc through trustees and officers whose names appear on both boards. Search for your organization and Plinth traces the shortest route it can evidence.

Each link is a name appearing on two organizations’ public IRS 990 filings, matched on that name and, where the filings support it, on location. A same-state match has geographic support, which is a second matching feature rather than confirmation that the two are one person; a cross-state one is the likeliest to be two people who share a name. Every hop shows its tier, low-confidence and distant paths are held back rather than guessed, and it is worth confirming the person before you use the introduction.

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 41 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 Cliff and Susan Rucker’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