Episcopal Charities

What Episcopal Charities does

Episcopal Charities is a private nonprofit grant-making foundation operating as the charitable outreach arm of the Episcopal Diocese of New York. Founded around 1995 and currently celebrating 30 years of service, the organization provides critical funding and operational support to approximately 100 non-sectarian charitable organizations serving vulnerable populations across a 10-county footprint that includes Manhattan, the Bronx, Staten Island, Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess, Rockland, Orange, Ulster, and Sullivan counties. Episcopal Charities reports that more than 1 million vulnerable individuals are helped annually through its grantee programs.

The organization's core product is structured grant-making across three focus areas — Food Access, Youth Education & Development, and Shelter, Immigration & Wellness — supported by four grant types (Traditional, Limited Infrastructure, Innovation, and Program Improvement). Grantees must be sponsored by a parish within the Episcopal Diocese, embedding the foundation within a parish and volunteer network that also enables grassroots engagement through events such as EC Day of Service, EC Sunday, and the annual Tribute Dinner. Specialized programs include the Bulk Buy program (wholesale purchasing power for ~50 food pantries) and the Farm to Pantry program (Hudson Valley farm-to-grantee sourcing), both of which are designed to reduce food access costs for small community kitchens. The Sustainability Institute provides 4-5 capacity-building workshops per year on volunteer management, grant writing, and program leadership.

The business model is donation- and grant-funded rather than commercial. Revenue streams include individual, corporate, and foundation donations, major institutional grants (notably a $550,000 two-year award from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation in December 2024), and event revenue from the annual Tribute Dinner gala. Pricing is not applicable in a commercial sense; impact is quantified through donor-facing examples (e.g., $100 provides a grocery gift card feeding a family for a week; $700 enables a Bulk Buy shipment serving 550 people). The organization is BBB accredited, governed by a Board of Directors and Advisory Council, led by Executive Director Lauren Jenkins Chung (appointed 2025), and operates with 1-10 staff from Diocesan House at 1047 Amsterdam Avenue, New York.

Name

Episcopal Charities

Legal name

Episcopal Charities of the Diocese of New York

Website

https://episcopalcharities-newyork.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Episcopal Charities is a New York-based nonprofit grant-making foundation and the outreach arm of the Episcopal Diocese of New York, providing funding and operational support to approximately 100 non-sectarian charitable organizations across a 10-county region serving more than 1 million vulnerable individuals annually.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Grantmaking Foundation

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries (BPAGAKAE)

Keywords

• Nonprofit grantmaking foundation
• Food access programs
• Youth education grants
• Shelter immigration services
• Faith-based philanthropy

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: Individual, corporate, and foundation donations provide the primary funding for grants to recipient organizations.
2. Foundation Grants: Major grants from foundations such as Mother Cabrini Health Foundation ($550,000 two-year grant in December 2024) fund specific programs like Bulk Buy.
3. Event Revenue: Annual Tribute Dinner and other events generate contributions while celebrating honorees.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

Episcopal Charities is a nonprofit grant-making foundation that provides critical funding and operational support to approximately 100 non-sectarian charitable organizations in NYC and the Hudson Valley. It distributes grants across four grant types (Traditional, Limited Infrastructure, Innovation, and Program Improvement) focused on food access, youth education, and shelter/immigration/wellness programs, and operates complementary initiatives including the Bulk Buy purchasing program, the Farm to Pantry local-produce program, and the Sustainability Institute workshop series.

Product overview

Episcopal Charities is a nonprofit grant-making organization that provides critical funding and operational support to approximately 100 non-sectarian charitable organizations in NYC and the Hudson Valley. The organization operates three main grant focus areas: Youth Education & Development, Food Access, and Shelter/Immigration/Wellness. These grants are distributed through four grant types (Traditional, Limited Infrastructure, Innovation, and Program Improvement) and are complemented by the Sustainability Institute workshop program. Key food access initiatives include the Bulk Buy Program and Farm to Pantry Program, which help food pantries and community kitchens access fresh produce at reduced prices. All grants require sponsorship by a church within the Episcopal Diocese of New York.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Food Access Grants Grants supporting non-sectarian nonprofit organizations that provide individuals with access to nutritious meals and groceries, including food pantries, community kitchens, and emergency food service centers. Nearly 50 food access programs are supported across the 10-county Episcopal Diocese of New York.
• Youth Education & Development Grants Grants supporting organizations that provide education and enrichment services to youth throughout the academic year and summer, including academic enrichment, art and music programs, and skill-building initiatives. More than a third of grantee partners fall into this category.
• Shelter, Immigration & Wellness Grants Grants supporting organizations that provide services to those experiencing housing insecurity, including asylum seekers, migrants, refugees, the elderly, undocumented immigrants, and other displaced persons, as well as health and wellness services.
• Bulk Buy Program Provides food purchasing credits with a wholesaler to food pantries and community kitchens, enabling them to purchase fresh produce and proteins at reduced prices that are not readily available through food banks. Approximately 50 food access grant recipients across the 10-county Diocese participate, supported by a $550,000 two-year grant from the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation (December 2024).
• Farm to Pantry Program Connects grantee organizations with local Hudson Valley farms to supply them with fresh, locally grown produce, providing advance contracts for farmers and fresh food access for food access initiatives.
• Traditional Grants Grants for recipient organizations with established multi-year operating history, clear efficacy track record, demonstrated sustainability, and multiple sources of grants/funding.
• Limited Infrastructure Grants Grants for organizations with demonstrated operating and financial history but typically less mature than Traditional Grant applicants, with effective management and procedures in place.
• Innovation Grants

Quantifiable outcome

• $550,000 grant from Mother Cabrini Health Foundation enables $1.1 million in fresh food value for food access programs over two years
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered founding, featured, program and core.

• Debevoise & Plimpton LLPfoundingOthers · 1 January 1996Founding counsel since 1996, providing legal expertise and guidance. Retired partners Cecil Wray and Wolcott B. Dunham, Jr. were pivotal in the organization's founding.
• The New York Community TrustfeaturedStrategic or Co-development PartnerFeatured in their data story 'The Wide-Ranging Impacts of Food Insecurity Shape Local Action in Westchester,' highlighting collaborative efforts to address food insecurity in Westchester County.
• Glynwood Center for Regional Food and FarmingprogramStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in food access initiatives, collaborating on events like 'Growing Hope: Connecting Communities & Food' and featured in Westchester food insecurity coverage.
• Meals on Main StreetprogramStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term partner since 2019, providing innovative mobile food pantry services in Port Chester. Partnered with Episcopal Charities for EC Day of Service events.
• Feeding WestchesterprogramStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization referenced for advocacy resources and SNAP support initiatives.
• Episcopal Diocese of New YorkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent organization providing parish network, Diocesan House headquarters, and co-presenting campaigns like #OneSingleAct. Parish churches sponsor all eligible grantee organizations.
• Cathedral of St. John the DivinecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-presenting #OneSingleAct campaign and host venue for Tribute Dinner 2025. Cathedral Community Cares is a major grantee partner.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• The Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation: Although based in Western New York, this is a comparable grantmaking foundation model combining traditional grantmaking with programmatic innovation in human services and youth development, similar to Episcopal Charities' innovation grants.
• Mother Cabrini Health Foundation: New York statewide health-focused foundation that provided Episcopal Charities' $550K Bulk Buy grant. Larger foundation with broader statewide scope, serving as a critical upstream funder and structural peer in the regional funding ecosystem.

Direct peers

• Robin Hood Foundation: A leading NYC anti-poverty foundation that funds programs in food access, youth education, and shelter — the same three focus areas as Episcopal Charities. Both serve vulnerable New York populations through grantmaking.
• The New York Community Trust: A major NYC regional community foundation that makes grants to nonprofits across similar program areas. Episcopal Charities is featured in its food-insecurity data story, indicating direct parallel grantmaking activity in the same geography.
• United Way of New York City: Major NYC-focused fundraising and grantmaking organization that pools donations and distributes funds to nonprofits addressing food insecurity, youth education, and housing — the same core focus areas as Episcopal Charities.
• Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York: Faith-based charitable arm of a Catholic archdiocese operating in the same NYC geography with parallel social services, food access, youth, and immigration programs. Directly comparable model of denominational outreach grantmaking.
• Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies: NYC faith-based human services network that provides funding, capacity-building, and advocacy support to nonprofits — closely analogous to Episcopal Charities' grant-plus-capacity-building model across similar service areas.

Regional players

• Dyson Foundation: Dutchess County-based community foundation that co-supports Pawling Resource Center alongside Episcopal Charities. Operates programmatic grantmaking in the Hudson Valley region with overlapping food access and human services missions.
• Long Island Community Foundation: A regional New York community foundation that funds nonprofits across food access, youth, and human services. Comparable community-foundation grantmaking model with geographic focus in a different New York sub-region.

Emerging players

• Episcopal Relief & Development: The Episcopal Church's international relief and development organization. Shares Episcopal denominational affiliation and faith-based grantmaking approach, though it operates globally rather than regionally like Episcopal Charities.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/epischaritiesny
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCZ498dsGqtVb3aIhuuv7znw
• Facebookfacebook.com/episcopalcharitiesnewyork
• Instagraminstagram.com/episcopalcharities

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Episcopal Charities