Helen and Ritter Shumway Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The Helen and Ritter Shumway Foundation supports community improvement, capacity building, and the environment in and around Rochester, New York.
FUNDING AREAS: Community improvement, capacity building, environment
IP TAKE: Contact this foundation for preservation needs to revive the unique history and culture of Rochester.
PROFILE: Established in 2002, the Helen and Ritter Shumway Foundation is an independent foundation based in the state of New York. Helen S. Mayer of Greenwich, Connecticut, started this foundation to support causes that she and her brother, Ritter Shumway, cared about during their lifetimes. Ritter Shumway was a manufacturer, sportsman, philanthropist and Presbyterian minister who died of cancer in 1992. He was a Rochester, New York, native who joined Ritter Company, a medical equipment manufacturer founded by his grandfather. He was also active in the figure skating community and became president of the U.S. Figure Skating Association in 1961. Bank of America’s New York office manages this foundation, and acts as co-trustee along with Paul Lambert and Frank R. Shumway III. Grantmaking includes community improvement, capacity building and the environment.
Grants for Environment and Community Development
This funder has deep roots in environmental conservation and historic preservation at the local level. In addition to these causes, the foundation trustees continue to support some of the same organizations that were important to Ritter Shumway and Helen Mayer. Past local grantees include Junior Achievement of Rochester, Charlotte Genesee Lighthouse, National Nature Conservancy, Goodwill of the Finger Lakes, and the Seneca Park Zoo. In the greater Northeast region of the U.S., the foundation has supported Herreshoff Marine Museum, Save the River, Abilis, the Antique Boat Museum and Greenwich Hospital.
Important Grant Details
Foundation grants range from $5,000 to $25,000. Grantmaking is focused largely on Rochester, New York, and surrounding areas. However, the funder will occasionally make grants outside of this region on the East Coast, as well on an invitation-only basis. A majority of grants are for one-year periods, and the Shumway Foundation provides both general operating support and program support.
This foundation accepts unsolicited grant applications from nonprofits based in or serving the Rochester, New York, region. The annual application deadline is August 31, and applicants can expect to hear back with a funding decision by December 31. Grantseekers must use the Bank of America online system to apply for a grant. Direct general questions to the staff at ny.grantmaking@ustrust.com or 646-743-0425.
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