Ferree Foundation
Lancaster, PA · EIN 20-1060557. Reported 101 grants totalling $3,763,808 to 70 recipients across tax years 2021-2024. This foundation did not tell the IRS it funds only preselected organizations.
Does this foundation accept applications?
Yes -- on its own tax return. Form 990-PF asks every private foundation whether it makes grants only to organizations it selects itself. Of the 91,758 foundations in our data that made a grant and answered, 78% said yes -- and applying to those is wasted effort. Ferree Foundation did not check that box on its most recent filing, which puts it in the minority that is at least open to being approached.
How big are its grants?
The median grant is $18,500. Half of everything it gave fell between $10,000 and $50,000; the smallest was $1,300 and the largest $400,000. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong foundation.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Recipients are grouped by name and state as they were written on the returns, so an organization entered under two different names appears twice. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which that name received money.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin & Marshall College | Lancaster, PA | $1,000,000 | 4 | 2 | 2024 |
| Fulton Opera House Foundation | Lancaster, PA | $360,000 | 4 | 3 | 2023 |
| World of Scouting Museum Inc | Valley Forge, PA | $225,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Lancaster Country Day School | Lancaster, PA | $150,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Lancaster Historyorg | Lancaster, PA | $150,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Community First Fund | Philadelphia, PA | $100,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Fulton Theatre | Lancaster, PA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Millersville University | Millersville, PA | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| North Museum | Lancaster, PA | $85,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Hospice of Lancaster County | Lancaster, PA | $75,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Lancasterlebanon Habitat for Humanity | Lancaster, PA | $70,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Samaritan Counseling Center | Lancaster, PA | $70,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Central Penn College Education Foundation | Summerdale, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| City of Lancaster Pa | Lancaster, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Elizabethtown College | Elizabethtown, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Lancaster County Day School | Lancaster, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Lancaster County Food Hub | Lancaster, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Lancaster Mennonite | Lancaster, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Planned Parenthood | Lancaster, PA | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Spanish American Civic Association | Lancaster, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Union Community Care | Lancaster, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Willow Valley Memory Care | Willow Street, PA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Lancaster Science Factory | Lancaster, PA | $47,880 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Lancaster Cleft Palate Clinic | Lancaster, PA | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Lancaster Conservancy | Lancaster, PA | $40,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay | Lancaster, PA | $35,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Pennsylvania College of Art and Design | Lancaster, PA | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Central Market Trust | Lancaster, PA | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Hope Inspire Love | Lancaster, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Lancaster Farmland Trust | Strasburg, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Lancaster General Health Foundation | Lancaster, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Lower Susquehanna Riverkeeper Association | Lancaster, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Swan - Scaling Walls a Note at a Time | Lyndell, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Servant Stage | Strasburg, PA | $20,950 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Advoz Mediation & Restorative Practices | Lancaster, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Friendship Community | Lititz, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Oxford Area Historical Association | Oxford, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Little Conestoga Creek Foundation | Lancaster, PA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| United Way of Lancaster County | Lancaster, PA | $18,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Good Samaritan Services | Ephrata, PA | $16,920 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Aarons Acres | Lancaster, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Aim to Empower | Lititz, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Arch Street Center | Lancaster, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Echos | Elizabethtown, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Lancaster Safety Coalition | Lancaster, PA | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Music for Everyone | Lancaster, PA | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Parish Resource Center | Lancaster, PA | $15,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Visioncorps | Lancaster, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Lancaster Ems | Lancaster, PA | $12,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| 7TH Ward Reunion | Lancaster, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Alzheimer's Association | Mclean, VA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Assets | Lancaster, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Crossnet Ministries | New Holland, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Gaudenzia Vantage House | Lancaster, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Lancaster Redevelopment | Lancaster, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Lancaster YMCA | Lancaster, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Landis Communities | Lititz, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Trust for Public Land | Los Angeles, CA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Water for People | Denver, CO | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Advantage Lancaster | Lancaster, PA | $9,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Lancaster Dollars | Lancaster, PA | $8,920 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Susquehanna Service Dogs | Harrisburg, PA | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| African American Cultural Alliance | Lancaster, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Boy Scouts of America (pa Dutch Council) | Lancaster, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Lancaster County Christian School | Lancaster, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Mt Hope Nazarene Retirement Community | Manheim, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Long's Park Art Festival | Lancaster, PA | $4,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Pogil | Lancaster, PA | $3,588 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Schreiber Pediatric Rehab Center | Lancaster, PA | $3,250 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Pa Guild of Craftsman | Lancaster, PA | $1,300 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
17 of 70 (24%) received money in more than one year over the 4 years we hold.
Measured the way we measure every foundation -- what share of one year's grantees are funded again the next -- this one retains 33%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is less consistent than most. This measures how often it paid the same organizations again. It says nothing about whether it would consider a new one.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose field of its filings. This is the closest thing to a statement of what this foundation cares about, in its own words.
- Franklin & Marshall College
WARE INSTITUTE OF CIVIC ENGAGEMENT - Central Penn College Education Foundation
MEDICAL ASSISTING SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM - Community First Fund
COMMUNITY FIRST FUND CREDIT UNION - Hospice of Lancaster County
EXPANSION OF PEDIATRIC PALLIATIVE CARE SERVICES - Lancaster Mennonite
CAPITAL CAMPAIGN - LINCOLN HIGHWAY CAMPUS - Spanish American Civic Association
TUITION FOR LOW-INCOME ENROLLEES AT TEC CENTRO
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 61 grants where we could match the recipient to a registered organization. The categories are the IRS's. The match, made from the name and address on the return, is ours.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 28 | $878,420 | $11,000 |
| 2022 | 27 | $861,300 | $20,000 |
| 2023 | 18 | $905,450 | $20,000 |
| 2024 | 28 | $1,118,638 | $18,460 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- filings arrive about a year late, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a foundation winding down.
Where its money goes
99% of its giving went to organizations in Pennsylvania. If your organization is based elsewhere, look in the recipient list for grants to your area before writing.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These funders gave to organizations this one also funded -- some private foundations, some community foundations and other grantmaking charities. Shared grantees are a sign of overlapping priorities and nothing more: they do not show that any of these funders would consider a new organization. Each page says what its filings show.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $18,500. A request many times that size asks for something it has rarely or never given.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in Pennsylvania.
- Read the recipient list above for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer, and a cheap one to get.
- Look up the current filing before writing. The 990-PF names the foundation's officers and, where one exists, its application procedure. We link it below.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from Ferree Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). Grant figures are from its returns. Matching recipients to registered organizations, their IRS classifications, the retention rate and the funders that support the same organizations are our own calculations, described in how we build this.
Address of record on the latest return: 229 North Duke Street, Lancaster, PA, 17602. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS; many small foundations file through an accountant or a bank trust department, so it may not be where post to a programme officer should go.
EIN 20-1060557 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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