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· Public charity

Massachusetts Charitable Society

The purpose of the society is to assist any member in need of assistance , and after death of a member to assist his widow and children in need; to accumulate a fund and to use the income therefrom for the purpose of rendering such assistance.

$442k
Granted FY2024still arriving
17
Grants FY2024still arriving
1
States reached
$26k
Largest
01What it funds
0199% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2024.

Food & Nutrition$368kHuman Services$366kYouth Development$249kHealth$208kHousing & Shelter$157kEducation$118kEmployment$84kPublic Safety & Disaster$75kOther$0
02FY2024 · 17 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

$26,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$25M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
HEADING HOME$26,000
FAMILY SERVICES OF THE MERRIMACK VALLEY$26,000
PATHWAY TO POSSIBLE$26,000
RILEY ROCKS MEMORIAL FOUNDATION INC$26,000
YMCA OF THE NORTH SHORE$26,000
BAMBINO BASKET INC$26,000
WE CAN$26,000
WELLSPRING HOUSE INC$26,000
INDEPENDENCE HOUSE INC$26,000
PARTAKERS INC$26,000
TEK COLLABORATIVE$26,000
NANTUCKET COMMUNITY TELEVISION INC$26,000
BETHANY HILL PLACE$26,000
TENACITY INC$26,000
OUR NEIGHBORS TABLE INC$26,000
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 (FY17–24, $426k) land where the poverty rate runs at 9%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 4% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%INTERFAITH SOCIAL SERVICES: $16k → 7%ANDREW JAMES LAWSON FOUNDATION INC: $20k → 8%INDEPENDENCE HOUSE INC: $26k → 8%FAMILY SERVICES OF THE MERRIMACK VALLEY: $26k → 10%CAPE ABILITIES: $18k → 8%WE CAN: $26k → 8%WELLSPRING HOUSE INC: $26k → 10%PATHWAYS FOR CHILDREN INC: $23k → 10%ACTION INC: $23k → 10%YMCA OF THE NORTH SHORE: $26k → 10%NORTH SHORE YMCA: $16k → 10%BAMBINO BASKET INC: $26k → 10%Vinfen: $7k → 8%OUR NEIGHBORS TABLE INC: $26k → 10%PATHWAY TO POSSIBLE: $26k → 8%ACORD FOOD PANTRY: $28k → 10%PETTENGILL HOUSE: $23k → 10%LATINO SUPPORT NETWORK: $23k → 10%YMCA Ipswich: $7k → 10%Horizons for Homeless children: $15k → 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.
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.

28%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$543k · 13 repeat orgs$1.4M to everyone else

13 repeat relationships: 4 still active in FY2024, 9 since wound down; 13 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

13
55

Total granted

$543k
$1.0M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+31%
+35%

Still filing today

100%
91%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 24% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $338k went to new ones.

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

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

’17’18’19’21’22’23’24
Human ServicesEducationFood & NutritionHealthHousing & ShelterYouth 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

  • PI
    PARTAKERS INC
    3× · 2019–2024 · $62k · revenue +364%
  • YMCA OF THE NORTH SHORE INC
    3× · 2017–2024 · $50k · revenue +79%
  • TECH GOES HOME INCORPORATED
    2× · 2019–2023 · $43k · revenue +131%

Funded once

  • AP
    A Place To Turn Inc
    one grant, 2022 · $28k · revenue +15%
  • SP
    SAINT PATRICKS PARISH
    one grant, 2022 · $28k
  • SB
    ST BRIDGET'S FOOD PANTRY
    one grant, 2022 · $28k
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
Triangle Inc

Through support, challenge and opportunity, triangle empowers people with disabilities and their families to enjoy rich, fulfilling lives. we are committed to helping the world recognize that we are all people with ability.

—
2
Lifestream Inc

Lifestream, inc. (the organization") provides community-based services that support individuals in attaining greater independence, promising opportunities, and lives that are meaningful and fulfilling on their own terms.

Health
3
Metropolitan Boston Housing Partnership Inc D/B/a Metro Housing Boston

Metro housing boston mobilizes wide-ranging resources to provide innovative and personalized services that lead families and individuals to housing stability, economic security, and an improved quality of life.

Housing & Shelter
4
Massachusetts Education & Career Opportunities Inc

Massachusetts education and career opportunities, inc. (massedco, inc.) is a statewide network of service sites that provides education and career advising to over 12,000 low-income, first generation individuals each year. massedco…

Education
5
Brookview House Inc

Brookview's mission is to help homeless and at risk families learn the skills necessary to break the cycle of homelessness and poverty.

Human Services
6
Greater Boston Food Bank Inc

Our costs consist of acquiring, sorting and distributing food to 617 member agencies, transportation and logistics, and community outreach to 69 direct distribution sites such as gbfb mobile markets, and federal distributions for low…

—
7
Massachusetts Affordable Housing Alliance Inc

Maha breaks down barriers facing first-time and first-generation home buyers and owners through education, counseling, advocacy, and grassroots organizing.

Housing & Shelter
8
Boston Harbor Now Inc

Our mission is to ensure that the people of greater boston benefit from a vibrant, resilient, and inclusive waterfront, harbor, and islands; these spaces are equitable, accessible, and adapted to climate change; and to ensure our public,…

Environment
9
The Arc of Bristol County Inc

To foster community partnerships, promote individual advocacy and create a pathway for growth and innovation by offering exceptional support and services to people with all abilities through the attraction, development and retention of…

—
10
Jewish Vocational Service Inc

To empower individuals from diverse communities to find employment and build careers, while partnering with employers to hire, develop, and retain productive workforces.

Employment
11
United Way of Greater New Bedford Inc

Our mission is to mobilize people, partnerships and resources to catalyze change that strengthens the communities served.

—
12
Center for Living & Working Inc

We work to ensure that individuals with disabilities can live independently as equal members of society.

Human Services
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Open Door Cape Ann Food Pantry Inc; the most unlike its peers is Forward 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

86 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

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 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 86 of the 88 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.

2
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
15
Early backer (in before they grew)
86/86
Grantees still filing
63/86
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

YMCA OF THE NORTH SHORE INC: $49,596 · Human ServicesYMCA OF THE NORTH SHORE…ACORD INC: $28,000 · Human ServicesACORD INCFAMILY SERVICES OF THE MERRIMACK VALLEY INC: $26,000 · Human ServicesFAMILY SERVICES OF THE …WELLSPRING HOUSE INC: $26,000 · Human ServicesWELLSPRING HOUSE INCPATHWAY TO POSSIBLE INC: $26,000 · Human ServicesPATHWAY TO POSSIBLE INCINDEPENDENCE HOUSE INC: $26,000 · Human ServicesINDEPENDENCE HOUSE INCBAMBINO BASKET INC: $26,000 · Human ServicesBAMBINO BASKET INCWE CAN CORPORATION: $26,000 · Human ServicesWE CAN CORPORATIONOur Neighbors' Table Inc: $26,000 · Human ServicesOur Neighbors' Table In…PATHWAYS FOR CHILDRENINC: $22,500 · Human ServicesACTION INC: $22,500 · Human ServicesThe Pettengill House Inc: $22,500 · Human ServicesTHE LATINO SUPPORT NETWORK INC: $22,500 · Human ServicesANDREW JAMES LAWSON FOUNDATION INC: $20,000 · Human ServicesCAPE ABILITIES INC: $18,000 · Human ServicesINTERFAITH SOCIAL SERVICES INC: $16,250 · Human ServicesHORIZONS FOR HOMELESS CHILDREN: $15,000 · Human Services+1 more: $7,346 · Human ServicesTECH GOES HOME INCORPORATED: $42,500 · OtherTECH GOES HOME INCORPORATEDA Place To Turn Inc: $28,000 · OtherSAINT PATRICKS PARISH: $28,000 · OtherST BRIDGET'S FOOD PANTRY: $28,000 · OtherMY BROTHER'S TABLE INC: $28,000 · OtherThe Haven Project Inc: $28,000 · OtherHEADING HOME INC: $26,000 · OtherTENACITY INC: $41,000 · OtherTENACITY INCPARTAKERS INC: $62,250 · OtherPARTAKERS INCREHEARSAL FOR LIFE INC: $34,250 · OtherNANTUCKET COMMUNITY TELEVISION INC: $26,000 · OtherGroundwork Lawrence Inc: $28,000 · OtherTEK Collaborative Inc: $26,000 · Other+20 more: $328,346 · Other+20 moreBERKLEE COLLEGE OF MUSIC INC: $42,500 · EducationBERKLEE COLLEGE …COTTING SCHOOL INC: $42,500 · EducationCOTTING SCHOOL I…BETHANY HILL PLACE: $41,000 · EducationBETHANY HILL PLA…NASHOBA LEARNING GROUP INC: $40,500 · EducationNASHOBA LEARNING…North Bennet Street School: $29,846 · EducationNorth Bennet Str…RILEY ROCKS MEMORIAL FOUNDATION INC: $26,000 · EducationRILEY ROCKS MEMO…ELEVATED THOUGHT INC: $20,000 · EducationELEVATED THOUGHT…BRIDGE BOSTON FOUNDATION INC: $18,000 · EducationBRIDGE BOSTON FO…THE POSSIBLE PROJECT INC: $15,000 · Education+3 more: $21,834 · Education+3 moreSPOONFULS: $34,250 · Food & NutritionSPOONFULSDANIEL'S TABLE INC: $28,000 · Food & NutritionDANIEL'S TAB…SALEM PANTRY INC: $28,000 · Food & NutritionSALEM PANTRY…BROOKLINE FOOD PANTRY INC: $28,000 · Food & NutritionBROOKLINE FO…CENTRE STREET FOOD PANTRY INC: $28,000 · Food & NutritionCENTRE STREE…THE NATICK COMMUNITY ORGANIC FARM INC: $26,000 · Food & NutritionTHE NATICK C…The Food Project Inc: $18,000 · Food & NutritionThe Food Pro…NEIGHBORS IN NEED INC: $16,250 · Food & NutritionNEIGHBORS IN…ROOT NS INC: $7,346 · Food & NutritionBRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATERS INC: $26,000 · HealthSTRONGWATER FARM THERAPEUTIC EQUESTRIAN CENTER INC: $22,500 · HealthWildstar Equine Assisted Activities and Therapy In: $22,500 · HealthBOSTON MEDICAL CENTER CORPORATION: $20,000 · HealthThe Children's Center Inc: $18,000 · HealthFOUNDATION FOR PRADER-WILLI RESEARCH INC: $18,000 · HealthTHE CARROLL CENTER FOR THE BLIND INC: $7,346 · HealthFRIENDS OF ST STEPHEN'S YOUTH PROGRAMS INC: $42,500 · Youth DevelopmentSQUASHBUSTERS INC: $40,500 · Youth DevelopmentBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF BOSTON INC: $15,000 · Youth DevelopmentESSEX COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $57,142 · PhilanthropyBoston Foundation Inc: $7,142 · PhilanthropyGreater Lowell Community Foundation Inc: $7,142 · PhilanthropyCOMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS: $7,142 · PhilanthropyGREATER WORCESTER COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $7,142 · PhilanthropySOUTHCOAST COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $7,142 · Philanthropy
Human Services$426,192Other$754,346Education$297,180Food & Nutrition$213,846Health$134,346Youth Development$98,000Philanthropy$92,852

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

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetPARTAKERS INC: $62,250 over 3y, 13% of budgetESSEX COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $57,142 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetYMCA OF THE NORTH SHORE INC: $49,596 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetFRIENDS OF ST STEPHEN'S YOUTH PROGRAMS INC: $42,500 over 2y, 3.6% of budgetTECH GOES HOME INCORPORATED: $42,500 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetBERKLEE COLLEGE OF MUSIC INC: $42,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCOTTING SCHOOL INC: $42,500 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetBETHANY HILL PLACE: $41,000 over 3y, 1.4% of budgetTENACITY INC: $41,000 over 3y, 0.6% of budgetSQUASHBUSTERS INC: $40,500 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetNASHOBA LEARNING GROUP INC: $40,500 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetREHEARSAL FOR LIFE INC: $34,250 over 2y, 1.3% of budgetSPOONFULS: $34,250 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetNorth Bennet Street School: $29,846 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetA Place To Turn Inc: $28,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetDANIEL'S TABLE INC: $28,000 over 1y, 2.4% of budgetSALEM PANTRY INC: $28,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetACORD INC: $28,000 over 1y, 8.2% of budgetMY BROTHER'S TABLE INC: $28,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetBROOKLINE FOOD PANTRY INC: $28,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetThe Haven Project Inc: $28,000 over 1y, 3.1% of budgetGroundwork Lawrence Inc: $28,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetCENTRE STREET FOOD PANTRY INC: $28,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetNANTUCKET COMMUNITY TELEVISION INC: $26,000 over 1y, 2.5% of budgetFAMILY SERVICES OF THE MERRIMACK VALLEY INC: $26,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetWELLSPRING HOUSE INC: $26,000 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetPATHWAY TO POSSIBLE INC: $26,000 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetHEADING HOME INC: $26,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetINDEPENDENCE HOUSE INC: $26,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetTHE NATICK COMMUNITY ORGANIC FARM INC: $26,000 over 2y, 2.0% of budgetTEK Collaborative Inc: $26,000 over 1y, 9.6% of budgetRILEY ROCKS MEMORIAL FOUNDATION INC: $26,000 over 1y, 27% of budgetWE CAN CORPORATION: $26,000 over 2y, 1.6% of budgetOur Neighbors' Table Inc: $26,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetBRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATERS INC: $26,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetROSIE'S PLACE INC: $22,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPATHWAYS FOR CHILDRENINC: $22,500 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetSTRONGWATER FARM THERAPEUTIC EQUESTRIAN CENTER INC: $22,500 over 1y, 2.1% of budgetBREAKTIME UNITED INC: $22,500 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetWildstar Equine Assisted Activities and Therapy In: $22,500 over 1y, 6.8% of budgetACTION INC: $22,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetFORWARD INC: $22,500 over 1y, 4.6% of budgetThe Pettengill House Inc: $22,500 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetTHE LATINO SUPPORT NETWORK INC: $22,500 over 1y, 13% of budgetANDREW JAMES LAWSON FOUNDATION INC: $20,000 over 1y, 25% of budgetPROJECT PLACE GATEHOUSE INC: $20,000 over 1y, 9.4% of budgetELEVATED THOUGHT INC: $20,000 over 1y, 5.2% of budgetBOSTON MEDICAL CENTER CORPORATION: $20,000 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.

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 FoundationMA67.2× affinity40 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Eastern Bank Foundation · Cummings Foundation Grants Inc (Fka Oneworld Boston Inc) · Boston Foundation Inc · Amelia Peabody Charitable Fund Trust · Essex County Community Foundation Inc · Rockland Trust Charitable Foundation Inc · Salem Five Charitable Foundation Inc · United Way Of Massachusetts Bay Inc · Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston Inc · Institution for Savings in Newburyport & Its Vicinity Charitable Foundation Inc · Arbella Insurance Foundation · The Peter and Elizabeth C Tower 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 Massachusetts Charitable Society funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Massachusetts Charitable Society. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 230%2%8%17%30%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 10%
  • Pathways for Childreninc: 86% of income from government
  • Independence House Inc: 85% of income from government
  • Pathway to Possible Inc: 84% of income from government
  • Vinfen Corporation: 83% of income from government
  • Cape Abilities Inc: 81% of income from government
  • Partakers Inc: 59% of income from government
  • Bridge Over Troubled Waters Inc: 32% of income from government
  • The Second Step Inc: 26% of income from government
  • Root Ns Inc: 26% of income from government
  • More Than Words Inc: 24% of income from government
  • Boston Medical Center Corporation: 23% of income from government
  • Horizons for Homeless Children: 21% of income from government
  • Citizens Inn Inc: 18% of income from government
  • Greater Lowell Community Foundation Inc: 18% of income from government
  • Heading Home Inc: 17% of income from government
  • Nashoba Learning Group Inc: 14% of income from government
  • Salem Pantry Inc: 12% of income from government
  • Rehearsal for Life Inc: 11% of income from government
  • Family Services of the Merrimack Valley Inc: 11% of income from government
  • Acord Inc: 10% of income from government
  • Southcoast Community Foundation Inc: 10% of income from government
  • Tech Goes Home Incorporated: 10% of income from government
  • Wellspring House Inc: 9% of income from government
  • Our Neighbors' Table Inc: 8% of income from government
  • Ymca of the North Shore Inc: 6% of income from government
  • Neighbors in Need Inc: 3% of income from government
  • The Carroll Center for the Blind Inc: 3% of income from government
  • Action Inc: 3% of income from government
  • Community Rowing Inc: 2% of income from government
  • Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston Inc: 2% of income from government
  • Cape Cod Foundation Inc: 2% of income from government
  • Essex County Community Foundation Inc: 2% of income from government
  • Breaktime United Inc: 1% of income from government
  • Lazarus House Inc: 1% of income from government
  • Berklee College of Music Inc: 1% of income from government
  • Greater Worcester Community Foundation Inc: 1% of income from government
  • The Possible Project Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Emmanuel College: 0% of income from government
  • We Can Corporation: 0% of income from government
  • Rosie's Place Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Our Sisters School: 0% of income from government
  • Cotting School Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Boston Foundation Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
23get no government money at all
13report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
6rely 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 Massachusetts Charitable Society?

Find your warmest path to Massachusetts Charitable Society 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 88 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 e-file return for fiscal year 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

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