The Ben May Charitable Trust
Mobile, AL · EIN 23-7145009. Reported 237 grants totalling $5,557,132 to 100 organizations 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. The Ben May Charitable Trust 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 $10,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $5,000 and $25,000; the smallest was $1,000 and the largest $251,000. 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. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which the organization received money -- more than one means a real relationship rather than a one-off.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The University of Chicago | Chicago, IL | $1,001,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science | New York, NY | $1,000,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Jewish Theological Seminary | New York, NY | $318,000 | 5 | 4 | 2024 |
| Order of St John | Washington, DC | $282,000 | 5 | 4 | 2024 |
| American Friends of the Peres Institute for Peace | Miami, FL | $200,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Fuse Project | Mobile, AL | $155,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Nature Conservancy | Birmingham, AL | $125,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience | New Orleans, LA | $104,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Children of the World | Fairhope, AL | $100,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Congregation B'nai Jeshurun | New York, NY | $100,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Mount Vernon Ladies Assoc of the Union | Mount Vernon, VA | $100,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| St Ignatius | Mobile, AL | $100,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| St Ignatius Catholic School | Mobile, AL | $100,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| United Jewish Appeal | New York, NY | $100,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Community Foundation of South Alabama | Mobile, AL | $83,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Alabama Shakespeare Festival Inc | Montgomery, AL | $75,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters of Alabama | Mobile, AL | $75,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Azalea Center for the Arts | Mobile, AL | $65,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Congregation Orach Chaim | New York, NY | $64,600 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Alabama School of Math and Science | Mobile, AL | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Institute of Southern Jewish Life Inc | Jackson, MS | $50,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Mcgill Toolen Catholic School | Mobile, AL | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Jewish Agency for Israel | New York, NY | $49,999 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Government Street Presbyterian Church | Mobile, AL | $46,000 | 8 | 4 | 2024 |
| Dumas Wesley Community Center | Mobile, AL | $45,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Pef Israel Endowment Fund | New York, NY | $45,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| National Association of Scholars | New York, NY | $42,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Doe Fund | New York, NY | $42,400 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Israel Policy Forum | New York, NY | $40,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Competing Against Cancer | Mobile, AL | $35,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Boys & Girls Club | Mobile, AL | $35,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Dorot | New York, NY | $35,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Mobile Arts Council | Mobile, AL | $35,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Village of Spring Hill | Mobile, AL | $32,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Boy Scouts of America | Mobile, AL | $30,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Mulherin Custodial Home | Mobile, AL | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Pine Grove United Methodist Church | Leroy, AL | $30,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Prichard Preparatory School | Whistler, AL | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Red Door Community | New York, NY | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Avodah the Jewish Service Corps | New York, NY | $27,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| University of Albama School of Law | Tuscaloosa, AL | $25,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Alabama Policy Institute | Birmingham, AL | $25,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Broad Street Restoration Society | Mobile, AL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Jewish Federation of North America Inc | New York, NY | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Main Street Mobile | Mobile, AL | $25,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Mcgill Toolen Catholic High School | Mobile, AL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Cahaba Foundation | Selma, AL | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Foundation for New Media | Stone Ridge, NY | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Little Sisters of the Poor | Mobile, AL | $20,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Victory Health Partners | Mobile, AL | $20,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Dauphin Island Bird Sanctuaries Inc | Dauphin Island, AL | $19,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Springhill Avenue Temple | Mobile, AL | $18,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Veterans Recovery Resources | Mobile, AL | $17,500 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Central Park Conservacy | New York, NY | $15,333 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Alabama Coastal Foundation | Mobile, AL | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Prestwick Preservation Society | Leroy, AL | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| St Stephens Volunteer Fire Department | St Stephens, AL | $13,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Technoserve | Arlington, VA | $12,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Mobile Area Jewish Federation | Mobile, AL | $11,800 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| American Chestnut Fdn (al Chapter) | Ashville, NC | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Back Country Horsemen of America | Jackson, AL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Child Advocacy Center | Mobile, AL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Community of Mobile | Mobile, AL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| First Baptist Church of Leroy | Leroy, AL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Learning Tree | Mobile, AL | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Leroy Volunteer Fire Department | Leroy, AL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| National Society of Colonial Dames | Mobile, AL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Ronald Mcdonald House | Mobile, AL | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| St Stephens Nutrition Center | St Stephens, AL | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Midway Community Church | St Stephens, AL | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Mobile Baykeeper | Mobile, AL | $7,500 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Presbyterian Home for Children | Talladega, AL | $7,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Uss Alabama Battleship Foundation | Mobile, AL | $6,500 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Emmanuel Connection | Daleville, MS | $6,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Wounded Warrior Project | Jacksonville, FL | $6,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Alabama Contemporary Art Center | Mobile, AL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Bellingrath Gardens & Home | Theodore, AL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Child Advocacy Center of Southeast Alabama | Dothan, AL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Gilda's Club New York | New York, NY | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Infirmary Foundation | Mobile, AL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Mobile Infirmary Foundation | Mobile, AL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Ramah Darom | Atlanta, GA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| South Alabama Volunteer Lawyers | Mobile, AL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| St Jude Childrens Research Hospital | Memphis, TN | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| St Stephens Nutritional Center | St Stephens, AL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Stephen Siller Tunnel to Tower Foundation | Stanten Island, NY | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Wilmer Hall Children's Home | Mobile, AL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Shubuta United Methodist Church | Waynesboro, MS | $4,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Alabama Archives and History Foundation | Montgomery, AL | $3,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Fairhope Film Festival | Fairhope, AL | $3,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Barton Academy Foundation | Mobile, AL | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Colonial Williamsburg Foundation | Merrifield, VA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Dauphin Island Sea Lab | Dauphin Island, AL | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation | Jamestown, VA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Most Pure Heart of Mary Catholic | Mobile, AL | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Waterfront Rescue Mission | Mobile, AL | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Leroy High School | Leroy, AL | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Explore Center Inc | Mobile, AL | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| George Washington University School of Law | Washington, DC | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Mobile Ballet | Mobile, AL | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
61 of 100 (61%) 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 69%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is about typical. A high number means its list is close to settled and a newcomer has to displace someone; a low one means it is still moving money around, which is where an opening is.
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.
- American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science
BEN MAY CENTER FOR CHEMICAL THEORY AND COMPUTATION - Order of St John
RESEARCH GENETIC EYE DISEASE - St Ignatius Catholic School
EARLY LEARNING CENTER CAPITAL CAMPAIGN - Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience
RESEARCH LIBRARY AND READING ROOM - Children of the World
DOMESTIC ADOPTION PROGRAM - Broad Street Restoration Society
REVITALIZE NEW JERSEY STREET NEIGHBORHOOD
What kind of organizations it funds
By the recipient's own IRS classification, for the 117 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 67 | $1,373,833 | $7,500 |
| 2022 | 60 | $1,501,833 | $10,000 |
| 2023 | 61 | $1,349,233 | $10,000 |
| 2024 | 49 | $1,332,233 | $10,000 |
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
Foundations concentrate geographically far more than their mission statements suggest. 35% of this one's giving went to organizations in New York. If you are outside its footprint, that matters more than how well your programme fits.
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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 the strongest available signal that two funders have overlapping priorities, and a funder already backing your peers is a far warmer prospect than one that merely lists your cause.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $10,000. Asking for ten times that is the most common way small organizations waste a submission.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in New York.
- 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.
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Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from The Ben May Charitable Trust's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). Nothing here is scraped, inferred, or estimated.
Address of record on the latest return: 25 W I-65 Service Rd N, Mobile, AL, 36608. 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 23-7145009 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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