One More Reason to Love Meryl Streep: Her Active Philanthropy

When you think about Meryl Streep's career in acting, the word longevity comes to mind. Streep has built a long and successful career in Hollywood and has the most Academy Award nominations of any actress ever. She's also amassed quite a bit of wealth over the years, and has a net worth of $45 million by one estimate.

Streep broke into films in the 1970s. Oscar recognition followed not long after with Streep's roles in The Deer Hunter and Kramer vs. Kramer. Today, she's still going stong, earning yet another Oscar nomination earlier this year for her role in Into the Woods.

Streep has also been engaged in philanthropy for some time, and in the early 1980s, established the Silver Mountain Foundation for the Arts, which she runs with her husband, sculptor Donald Gummer.

The foundation doesn't have much of a web presence or a clear way to get in touch, but has given around $1 million a year lately. Grantmaking focuses on the East Coast, and the couple lives in Connecticut, where a number of outfits have been funded.

As the name of their foundation, Silver Mountain Foundation for the Arts, suggests, Streep and Gummer have a strong interest in arts and culture. Recent money has gone to Butler Museum of American Art in Ohio, the recipient of a $25,000 grant in 2014, and a $50,000 grant in 2013. Large sums have also gone to New York Shakespeare Festival, with $335,000 going there in each of the last three tax years we have available. Money has also gone to Mass MoCA Foundation, Jacob Burns Film Center, Opus 118 Harlem School of Music, and Museum Of Fine Arts in Boston. It's worth mentioning that Gummer is a School of Museum of Fine Arts graduate. Streep also gave a $1 million grant to Public Theater in New York in 2012.

The couple also supports education. Recent support has gone to Indiana University Foundation. Donald received an honorary degree from Indiana University recently. The couple has also funded Vassar College, Streep's alma mater. Other support has gone to Poly Prep Country Day School in Brooklyn, Yale University School of Art, and Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at New York University. Streep has also supported Segue Institute for Learning, a charter school, and Upward Bound, which prepares low-income students for college.

Streep recently starred in the 2015 film Suffragette and has spoken out on women's issues, such as the pay gap between actors and actresses in Hollywood. As we've reported, Streep recently funded an intensive training program for eight women screenwriters over 40, to be run by New York Women in Film and Television and IRIS, a collective of women filmmakers. The actress is a longtime supporter of NYWIFT. Streep donated a significant amount to fully fund the initiative, dubbed the Writer’s Lab.

Her women's funding has also gone to outfits such as Vital Voices Global Partnership, whose mission is to "identify, invest in and bring visibility to extraordinary women around the world," Women's Refugee Commission, Women for Women International, and Women In Need have been supported.

Grantmaking has also involved the environment, health, and supporting youth. Money has gone as well to historic preservation, and a handful of religious outfits.

Related: Meryl Streep Profile