Phelps Community Corporation

Phelps Community Foundation (the operating name of Phelps Community Corporation, EIN 13-3263295) launched on January 1, 2020, making it a relatively young private foundation by philanthropy standards. Despite its youth, it has built a coherent and well-documented grantmaking identity: healthcare access and wellness for Westchester and Rockland County residents, with a strong secondary emphasis on social determinants of health including food insecurity, domestic violence services, and disability programs.

The foundation's core philosophy values transformation over maintenance. Their published guidelines explicitly state they seek projects that 'strengthen existing programs and services or offer new programs' — not general operating support. Applicants should frame proposals as expansion initiatives or new program launches, even when the underlying organizational work is ongoing.

The grantee relationship model is decidedly long-term. The grantee database shows that nearly every top-funded organization has received two to four grants from Phelps, with cumulative investments ranging from $60,000 to $550,000 per grantee. Human Development Services of Westchester, Student Assistance Services, Planned Parenthood Hudson Peconic, Elizabeth Seton Children's Center, My Sisters' Place, and the Irvington Volunteer Ambulance Corps have each accumulated $250,000 across multiple awards. First-time applicants must compete for entry into this established cohort — the LOI is the sole recognized pathway.

Three factors signal a strong candidacy for first-time applicants: geographic specificity (serving Westchester residents, not just the broader region), a direct healthcare or wellness connection rather than an incidental one, and organizational stability (three or more years of continuous operation is a stated requirement). The 15% overhead cap structurally favors community health centers and lean direct-service nonprofits over administratively heavier organizations.

With assets of $17.9M in FY2023 and annual grantmaking historically between $739,000 and $1.6M, this is a mid-tier healthcare philanthropist best approached as a multi-year relationship investment rather than a one-time grant opportunity.

Phelps Community Foundation's annual grantmaking has varied considerably since inception. Grants paid totaled $170,000 in FY2020 (startup year), $1,307,450 in FY2021, $1,633,000 in FY2022 (peak), and $739,280 in FY2023 — a 55% decline from the prior-year high. This contraction likely reflects the foundation managing distributions conservatively as its asset base fluctuated: total assets fell from $18.97M in FY2021 to $15.09M in FY2022 before recovering to $17.9M in FY2023.

Across the historical grant database (92 grants, $5.63M total), the average grant is $61,144. The range is wide: food pantry grants start at $10,000-$15,000 per cycle, while major institutional partners receive $125,000-$250,000 per grant, and the largest documented award is $550,000 to Phelps Memorial Hospital Center for a telemetry and capital project. The foundation's published maximum is $150,000 per grant, or 10% of the applicant's annual budget, whichever is lower.

By sector, analysis of the top grantees suggests the following approximate distribution: direct healthcare and clinical services (hospitals, FQHCs, ambulance corps) account for roughly 25% of total awards; mental health services claim approximately 20%; food insecurity programs (15+ food pantry grants funded multiple times) account for about 15%; children's health and pediatric services about 10%; domestic violence and safety organizations about 12%; disability services about 8%; and LGBTQ+, reproductive health, and other specialized populations the remaining 10%.

Geographically, 88 of 92 grants (96%) have gone to New York-based organizations, nearly all in Westchester County. Four grants have gone to Connecticut-based recipients. The foundation explicitly requires that funded projects serve Westchester residents, with Rockland County inclusion optional.

The following comparable foundations share a similar asset profile (~$19-20M) and Human Services classification. Peer-level annual grantmaking disclosures are limited for smaller private foundations without robust public reporting.

Within this peer group, Phelps Community Corporation stands out for its unusual degree of public transparency — a documented LOI process, published grant cycles with firm deadlines, explicit eligibility criteria, a stated overhead cap, and a maximum grant amount. Most similarly-sized private foundations operate with far less public guidance, making Phelps significantly more approachable for grant seekers. The two other New York-based peers (Samberg Family Foundation and Seherr-Thoss Charitable Trust) have no public application infrastructure, reinforcing Phelps as the most actionable regional funder in this asset tier for Westchester-serving organizations.

No press releases, media coverage, or public announcements specific to Phelps Community Foundation (Sleepy Hollow, NY) were identified in web research for 2025 or 2026. The foundation maintains a deliberately low media profile consistent with its origins as a private healthcare philanthropist rather than a publicly-visible community grant program.

The most current public data derives from FY2023 IRS 990 filings, showing $739,280 in grants paid and total assets of $17.9M. The foundation's own website — the most authoritative source — confirms 66 organizations funded and $7.7M in cumulative awards since January 1, 2020, implying continued grantmaking into a sixth operational year in 2025, though no specific FY2024 or FY2025 awards have been publicly documented.

Leadership has been stable across available filing years. Kenneth Taber has served as Chairman, Kevin Plunkett as Vice Chairman, and Joanne Stewart as Secretary. Vincent Desantis serves as compensated Treasurer at approximately $83,250/year (FY2023), the only paid officer. Two board transitions were noted in FY2023 filings: James Diao stepped down as Director by June 2023, and Eileen Egan's directorship ended December 2023.

Notable single-grant recipients in grantee data — Joe Torre Safe at Home Foundation ($125,000 for youth trauma healing), Open Door Family Medical Center ($125,000 as a Federally Qualified Health Center), Yonkers Community Action Program ($10,000) — suggest the foundation continues adding new organizations to its funded portfolio even as multi-year partners dominate the top award tiers.

The most important strategic insight for prospective applicants: Phelps Community Foundation runs a bi-annual LOI cycle with firm deadlines (June 15 and December 15), and only organizations explicitly invited after LOI review may submit full proposals. The LOI is your sole entry point — invest time crafting it with precision.

Timing matters. Choose your cycle deliberately. The Summer cycle (June 15 deadline) delivers decisions by September 30, useful for organizations planning Q4 program launches. The Winter cycle (December 15 deadline) delivers decisions by March 31, better suited for spring program starts or fiscal-year alignment.

Healthcare framing is essential. Even if your organization primarily addresses housing, food access, domestic violence, or education, your LOI must clearly articulate the healthcare or wellness outcomes your work achieves. The foundation's stated priorities are expanding healthcare and mental health service access, specialized care for vulnerable populations (children, pregnant women, critical illness patients), improved emergency medicine, and addressing health-impacting social issues. Map your program language directly to these categories.

Budget discipline before submission. The overhead cap is 15% of project budget — meaning project overhead, not organizational overhead. Calculate your maximum allowable request before submitting: the lesser of $150,000 or 10% of your annual operating budget. An organization with a $600,000 annual budget caps at $60,000; an organization with $2M caps at $150,000. Submit a request that fits cleanly within these limits.

Hard disqualifiers to avoid: general operating support, advocacy or legislative work, endowment contributions, debt repayment, projects for private foundations or for-profit entities, and any project that cannot reasonably complete within 24 months. The foundation is explicit about all of these.

Language that resonates: 'expand access,' 'underserved Westchester residents,' 'transformational,' 'strengthen existing services,' 'new program offering,' 'long-term viability,' and specific population identifiers (children, pregnant women, domestic violence survivors, individuals with disabilities). Mirror the foundation's published priorities as closely as possible without fabricating program elements.

For repeat applicants: lead with measurable outcomes from prior funded work before requesting renewal. The foundation's demonstrated preference for multi-year relationships suggests it rewards documented accountability.