Zs & M Wilf Foundation Inc.

The Zs & M Wilf Foundation operates as one of six private foundations under the Wilf Family Foundations umbrella, guided by the philanthropic legacy of Holocaust survivors Harry and Joseph Wilf, who immigrated to the United States and built a real estate empire that now includes co-ownership of the NFL's Minnesota Vikings. Second and third-generation family members — led by Zygmunt Wilf as President and Treasurer, and Mark Wilf as Vice President and Secretary — make all grantmaking decisions. All trustees are unpaid family members, confirming this is a tightly held family philanthropy with no professional program staff mediating between grantees and decision-makers.

This foundation is explicitly invitation-only. Their website states without ambiguity that they do not accept unsolicited grant applications and will not respond to funding requests. The contact email routes through Berlin Rosen, a strategic communications firm — not a program office. There are no application portals, RFPs, or submission deadlines.

What this means practically: access flows through relationships, not proposals. The foundation's deepest commitments — $3.79M to Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest NJ, $3.43M each to Jewish Federations of North America and Yeshiva University, $2.25M to Vanderbilt, $2M to University of Pennsylvania — are all multi-year, multi-grant relationships built over time. The foundation rewards organizations already in its orbit, funding the same institutions across 3-5 grant cycles.

The giving philosophy is rooted in two Jewish principles the Wilfs cite explicitly: tzedakah (charitable giving as obligation) and tikkun olam (repairing the world). For organizations aligned with Jewish communal life, Israel, or educational access for underserved communities, the ideological fit is strong — but the relationship pathway remains essential. Organizations that participate in Jewish federated giving ecosystems, particularly MetroWest NJ or national federation structures, have the most natural discovery channels. University development offices at Yeshiva, Rutgers, Princeton, or NYU also represent indirect access nodes. The family's active engagement in NJ real estate and professional sports philanthropy creates additional community touchpoints for organizations operating in Newark, Minneapolis, or South Florida.

Giving from the Zs & M Wilf Foundation has grown substantially over the past decade: from $4.2M in grants paid in 2012 to $12.04M in 2023 — nearly 3x growth against an asset base that expanded from $90.4M to $147.7M over the same period. The 2023 payout rate of 8.2% of assets significantly exceeds the required 5% private foundation minimum, signaling intentional strategic deployment rather than minimum compliance.

Grant size distribution (across 118 grants analyzed): median $25,000; average $81,253; range $500 to $1,612,500. The $56,000 gap between median and average reveals a sharply bimodal distribution. The vast majority of grants fall in the $10,000-$50,000 range, but a small cluster of flagship institutional grants — each exceeding $500,000 — dramatically inflate the average. The top five grantees account for roughly $14.9M of the $21.1M total across the analyzed dataset, or approximately 71% of all dollars flowing through just 5 of 176 documented grants.

Program area breakdown based on top 50 grantees by dollar volume: - Jewish community organizations (federations, synagogues, Hillel chapters, day schools): ~65% of total giving - Higher education (Yeshiva University, Vanderbilt, Penn, NYU, Princeton, Rutgers, Caltech): ~20% - Arts and culture with Jewish or community focus (Jewish Museum, Folksbiene Yiddish Theatre, Visual Arts Center of NJ, Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History): ~5% - Emergency relief and Israel (Red Cross, United Hatzalah, IsraAid, Birthright, American Israel Education Foundation): ~6% - Social justice and advocacy (ADL, Teach for America, Council on Foreign Relations): ~3% - Community human services (Jewish Family Service of Central NJ, Henry Street Settlement, Selfhelp Community Services): ~1%

Geographic distribution: New Jersey (64 grants) and New York (67 grants) together represent 74% of all documented grants. Minnesota (16 grants) reflects the Vikings ownership connection, primarily through Twin Cities Jewish institutions. DC (10 grants) reflects national advocacy organizations. International giving flows through US-based Israel-focused vehicles, not direct foreign grants.

Year-over-year giving trend: 2019 ($7.08M) → 2020 ($8.8M) → 2021 ($9.6M) → 2022 ($9.0M) → 2023 ($12.0M). The 2023 spike to $12M is the highest recorded figure and may reflect sustained post-October 7 giving urgency.

The Zs & M Wilf Foundation's $147.7M in assets (2023 Form 990) places it among mid-tier family private foundations. The five closest asset-class peers identified in foundation databases are all in the $164-165M range, slightly above Wilf's reported 2023 figure but within the same strategic tier. The DB-reported asset figure of $164.8M likely reflects a more recent valuation incorporating market appreciation.

The Wilf Foundation stands out among asset-class peers for three reasons. First, its payout rate (8.2% in 2023) substantially exceeds the 5% minimum and the estimated peer-average of ~5%, indicating active philanthropic intent rather than passive endowment management. Second, its laser concentration on Jewish communal giving (over 60% of grants) creates a highly distinctive grantee profile without close parallel among general philanthropic peers. Third, the Mandel Family Foundation (Weinberg Fund) in Ohio represents the closest ideological peer — also a Jewish family foundation with education and arts commitments — and similarly operates on an invited/preselected basis, suggesting this closed-door model is standard for family foundations of this type.

The Wilf Family Foundations have been notably active in emergency response and Israel advocacy since late 2023, driven by the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel. In 2024, the foundations co-founded Machane Am Echad (Camp One People), a program for displaced Israeli children that catalyzed the broader Campers2Gether movement — placing over 1,000 displaced Israeli youth in Jewish camps across America during summer 2024. This represents a significant programmatic initiative beyond the foundation's typical grant-check philanthropy.

In fall 2024, the Wilf Family Foundations contributed $450,000 in hurricane relief following Hurricanes Helene and Milton: $350,000 to the American Red Cross and $100,000 to Heart of Florida United Way. This mirrors their historic American Red Cross grant of $200,000 documented in prior filings and signals a continued emergency-relief commitment that extends beyond Jewish community disaster response.

In early 2025, the foundations announced a formal pilot partnership with Newark Public Schools aimed at expanding college access and workforce-readiness skills for students in greater Newark — a notable expansion toward public education infrastructure in their home NJ market.

Foundation president Zygmunt Wilf published a Jerusalem Post op-ed on June 10, 2024, focused on Jewish community unity and Israel advocacy, reinforcing personal family leadership on Israel-related giving priorities. The foundation's news page contains limited public announcements; most grant activity is documented through IRS filings with a 12-18 month lag. The most recent publicly available 990 covers fiscal year 2023.

Because the Zs & M Wilf Foundation does not accept unsolicited applications, conventional grant-writing advice is largely irrelevant. The following tips address the only realistic pathway to consideration: relationship development that positions your organization to be discovered and invited.

1. Prioritize the MetroWest NJ Jewish Federation ecosystem. Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest NJ is the foundation's single largest grantee ($3.79M cumulative). Participating in federation campaigns, serving on federation committees, and attending MetroWest-affiliated events places your organization in direct view of Wilf family philanthropic staff and allies.

2. Map your board to their grantee network. Before any outreach, cross-reference your board members, major donors, and institutional partners against documented Wilf grantees: Yeshiva University, Vanderbilt University, Princeton University, Rutgers University, NYU School of Law, Rutgers Hillel, Jewish Educational Center, Newark Academy, Visual Arts Center of NJ, ADL. A single overlapping connection is your most valuable asset.

3. Use their exact language. When building visibility materials — annual reports, event programs, press releases — use the Wilf foundations' framing explicitly: tzedakah and tikkun olam, Holocaust legacy, Jewish homeland, underserved communities, social justice. Organizations that mirror this vocabulary in their public positioning signal mission alignment without making a direct ask.

4. Lead with Israel programming where genuine. Post-October 7, the family's Israel-focused giving has intensified. Organizations with active Israel programming, diaspora-Israel bridge initiatives, or Jewish emergency relief capacity should foreground these in any context where Wilf family members are present.

5. Target NJ geography aggressively. 74% of grants go to NJ and NY organizations. New Jersey nonprofits — especially those in Essex, Union, and Morris Counties near the Short Hills headquarters — have the strongest geographic alignment.

6. Be patient. The Wilf family funds the same organizations across 3-5 grant cycles before dramatically increasing commitment. Jewish Educational Center has received four grants; Congregation Etz Chaim, five. Entry-level grants in the $10,000-$25,000 range are feasible first-stage relationships. Do not expect a seven-figure commitment without an established history.

7. Never send an unsolicited application to WilfFamilyFoundations@berlinrosen.com. This contact routes to a PR firm and signals you are not familiar with how the foundation operates.