What Episcopal City Mission does

Episcopal City Mission (ECM) is a Massachusetts-based nonprofit organization founded in 1844 and headquartered at The Nonprofit Center, 89 South Street, Suite 202, Boston. Operating with an 8-person staff, ECM's stated mission is to "move people and money" to shrink the racial wealth gap in Massachusetts through two integrated functions: (1) reparative philanthropy that directs grants — including the Burgess Urban Fund, Rapid Response Grants, Finding Our Way Home, and Faith-Rooted Justice — to BIPOC-led grassroots power-building organizations and movement leaders; and (2) Episcopal organizing that mobilizes Episcopal parishes and individuals in Massachusetts around solidarity economies, reparations, and state/local policy advocacy, supported by resources such as the ICE Protocols for Churches, MA State Policy Toolkits, and the Sounds of Solidarity blog and podcast.

ECM's go-to-market is community- and event-led rather than transactional. The organization convenes monthly Emergent Action Network gatherings, an annual Season of Advocacy campaign, an Annual Meeting, and recruits faith-based volunteers for immigrant justice work through partner organizations LUCE and BIJAN. Revenue is generated through one-time and recurring donations via PayPal; ECM does not charge for its programs and does not publicly disclose revenue figures. The organization is governed in part by a Black and Indigenous Reparations Advisory Council and is a member of the Massachusetts Council of Churches, which — together with the national Episcopal Church — joined a federal lawsuit against DHS in February 2025 over the revocation of the sensitive locations policy.

The technology footprint is intentionally minimal: a Squarespace-hosted website and content platform, PayPal donation processing, and Constant Contact for email — consistent with a small faith-rooted advocacy nonprofit. There are no proprietary software products, APIs, AI/ML capabilities, or patents disclosed. Customer segments — in the nonprofit sense of beneficiaries and partners rather than paying customers — span BIPOC-led grassroots organizations, Episcopal churches and individuals across Massachusetts, immigrant communities needing accompaniment and legal support, and Massachusetts residents affected by housing affordability and gentrification. Strategic partners include LUCE, BIJAN, De Novo Center for Justice and Healing, Boston Ujima Project, the Reparations Interfaith Coalition of Massachusetts, UU Mass Action, the MA TPS Committee, the Massachusetts Council of Churches, the Center for Action and Contemplation, and the Center for Cooperative Development and Solidarity (CCDS).

Name

Episcopal City Mission

Legal name

Episcopal City Mission

Website

https://episcopalcitymission.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1844

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Episcopal City Mission is a Boston-based nonprofit founded in 1844 that uses reparative grants, faith-rooted organizing, and policy advocacy to shrink the racial wealth gap in Massachusetts, serving BIPOC-led grassroots organizations, Episcopal parishes, and immigrant communities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Faith-Based Community Organizing and Philanthropy

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Religious Organizations (813110)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Faith-Based Advocacy & Public Policy Organizations (BPAGAJAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Faith-Based Humanitarian Aid & Relief Ministries (BPAGAJAF), Faith-Based Social Services & Community Outreach (Food Pantries, Shelters, Counseling) (BPAGAJAG)

Keywords

• Faith-based philanthropy
• Community organizing services
• Grant programs
• Advocacy organizing
• Nonprofit social services

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston, MA

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations: Individual donors can make one-time gifts or recurring donations through secure payment via PayPal. The organization relies on charitable contributions from supporters aligned with its mission to shrink the racial wealth gap in Massachusetts.
2. Grants Program: ECM operates grant programs including the Burgess Urban Fund for BIPOC-led grassroots organizations, Rapid Response grants for unexpected challenges, Finding Our Way Home for healing and spiritual needs, and Faith-Rooted Justice for organizing in houses of worship. These are philanthropic distributions rather than revenue streams for ECM.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Episcopal City Mission is a faith-based nonprofit that funds and organizes to shrink the racial wealth gap in Massachusetts. It operates grant programs (Burgess Urban Fund, Rapid Response Grants, Finding Our Way Home, Faith-Rooted Justice) supporting BIPOC-led grassroots organizations, and runs organizing programs including the Emergent Action Network, ICE Protocols for Churches, MA State Policy Toolkits, the Season of Advocacy campaign, and a Volunteer for Immigrant Justice program partnering with LUCE and BIJAN.

Product overview

Episcopal City Mission operates as a nonprofit organization focused on shrinking the racial wealth gap in Massachusetts through philanthropy and advocacy organizing. The organization offers a portfolio of grant programs including the Burgess Urban Fund, Rapid Response Grants, Finding Our Way Home, and Faith-Rooted Justice grants to support BIPOC-led grassroots organizations. On the organizing side, it provides the Emergent Action Network for monthly online gatherings, ICE Protocols resources for churches, MA State Policy Toolkits, Season of Advocacy campaigns, and a Volunteer for Immigrant Justice program partnering with LUCE and BIJAN. The organization also produces content through its Sounds of Solidarity blog and podcast. These programs work together to move money and people toward racial wealth gap reduction through philanthropy, Episcopal organizing, and advocacy campaigns.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Emergent Action Network (EAN): A political and spiritual home through troubling times - a hub for Episcopal Churches and people in MA combining accessible ways to take action, spiritual grounding, and guidance from BIPOC-led grassroots initiatives.
• Burgess Urban Fund
• Finding Our Way Home
• Faith-Rooted Justice

Products and services

• Burgess Urban Fund Grant program supporting BIPOC-led grassroots power-building organizations working in response to the racialized wealth gap in Massachusetts.
• Rapid Response Grants One-time grants to support organizations facing unexpected challenges or movement opportunities that meet the Burgess Fund criteria.
• Finding Our Way Home Grant program supporting the healing and spiritual needs of grassroots power-building organizations and BIPOC movement leaders.
• Faith-Rooted Justice Grant program supporting organizing in houses of worship of any lineage, building with BIPOC-led movement organizations to respond to the racial wealth gap in Massachusetts.
• Emergent Action Network (EAN) Monthly online gathering hub for Episcopal churches and individuals in Massachusetts combining accessible action opportunities, spiritual grounding, and guidance from BIPOC-led grassroots initiatives.
• ICE Protocols for Churches Comprehensive guide with protocols, policies, FAQs, and sample signage for Episcopal Churches to provide safe spaces and protect ministry services despite potential ICE presence.
• MA State Policy Toolkits Advocacy toolkits focusing on bills at the Massachusetts State House including PROTECT Act, Reparations Commission, Corporate Fair Share Act, Dignity Not Deportations, and Rent Stabilization.
• Volunteer for Immigrant Justice Program Partnership with LUCE (ICE Watch) and BIJAN to support immigrants facing detention and deportation through letter writing, court accompaniment, hotline support, and hosting.
• Season of Advocacy Annual focused faith-rooted advocacy campaign with weekly toolkits covering specific justice issues including immigration, affordable housing, and reparations.
• Sounds of Solidarity (Blog & Podcast) Blog and podcast featuring stories about spirituality, advocacy, and the fight for justice, including episodes on topics like reparations and solidarity economies.

Quantifiable outcome

• Raising $200,000 for grassroots organizing movements

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• LUCE (ICE Watch)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerECM partners with LUCE to support immigrants facing detention and deportation. LUCE provides training and connects volunteers to local hubs for ICE Watch activities. ECM refers volunteers and supports LUCE's work through its network of Episcopal churches.
• BIJAN (Beyond Bond & Incarceration Justice - Accompaniment Network)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerECM partners with BIJAN for court accompaniment, hotline support, and hosting for detained immigrants. BIJAN provides volunteer opportunities and the Beyond Bond Fund for legal defense. ECM recruits volunteers from faith communities and co-sponsors events.
• De Novo Center for Justice and HealingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerECM recruits faith-based volunteers to support De Novo's immigration legal aid clinic, which provides free legal support for asylum cases. Volunteers assist with legal research, client interviews, and affidavits under professional attorney supervision.
• Boston Ujima ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerECM co-sponsors the Ujima Faith Network Gathering with Boston Ujima Project, a democratic member-run organization building a cooperative business, arts, and investment ecosystem to return wealth to working-class communities of color.
• Reparations Interfaith Coalition of MassachusettscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerECM partners with the Reparations Interfaith Coalition to mobilize support for reparations bills S1181/H1753 and hosts events like Reparations Action Hours and Reparations Summits.
• UU Mass ActionminorGTM or Marketing PartnerECM co-sponsors events with UU Mass Action including the Rent Control Action Hour and phone banking events for housing justice advocacy.
• MA TPS CommitteeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerECM co-hosts events with the MA TPS Committee to support immigrants with Temporary Protected Status fighting to maintain their legal immigration status.
• Massachusetts Council of ChurchescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerECM is a member of the Massachusetts Council of Churches and co-sponsors events including the Faithful Resistance training and Nonresistance & Noncooperation Training.
• Center for Action and ContemplationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerECM's Co-Director of Philanthropy Dan Gelbtuch spoke with Dawson Allen from Center for Action and Contemplation, a social justice funder, for ECM's Finding Our Way Home program podcast episode.
• Center for Cooperative Development and Solidarity (CCDS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerECM co-hosts webinars with CCDS about solidarity economies and the campaign to secure a permanent Solidarity Economy Headquarters in East Boston.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Gamaliel Foundation: Interfaith community organizing network training clergy and lay leaders to lead campaigns on racial equity, housing, and immigration; directly comparable to ECM's Episcopal organizing and coalition work.
• Network Lobby for Catholic Social Justice: Catholic social justice lobby that organizes faith communities to advocate on federal policy around economic equity, immigration, and healthcare; structurally similar to ECM's faith-rooted advocacy and toolkits approach.
• Massachusetts Council of Churches: Ecumenical body of Christian denominations in Massachusetts that convenes faith communities for justice work; ECM is a member and active co-sponsor of events with this organization.
• Boston Ujima Project: Cooperative member-run organization building solidarity economy ecosystems to return wealth to working-class communities of color; ECM co-sponsors events with this group and aligns on reparations and cooperative economics work.
• Faith in Action: National faith-based community organizing network that builds power in congregations to drive policy change on racial and economic justice, closely matching ECM's faith-rooted organizing and BIPOC-led partnership model.
• UU Mass Action: Massachusetts-based faith-rooted advocacy organization that mobilizes Unitarian Universalists on housing, immigrant, and economic justice campaigns, directly paralleling ECM's state policy advocacy and coalition approach.
• Jewish Community Relations Council: Jewish communal advocacy organization that mobilizes congregations on civil rights, immigrant justice, and reparations; directly comparable to ECM in faith-rooted public policy organizing.

Broad incumbents

• National Council of Churches: National ecumenical body of Christian denominations coordinating justice, peace, and advocacy initiatives; ECM's denominational affiliation places it within this broader governance and advocacy ecosystem.
• Bread for the World: National Christian advocacy organization mobilizing constituent lobbying on hunger and poverty policy; comparable to ECM's faith-rooted policy advocacy model but with a federal, not state, focus.
• Catholic Charities USA: Large national faith-based social services network providing humanitarian aid, immigration legal services, and community programs; overlaps with ECM's immigrant justice work and grantmaking but at significantly greater scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ecm_ma

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Episcopal City Mission