Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust’s nearly $141 million in grantmaking during the last half of 2021 is a keen expression of both its legacy of long-term strategic investment in Maricopa County’s resilience and its unique ability to respond powerfully to unfolding crises.
From July through December 2021, Piper Trust awarded $140,961,650 in grants. This total includes $17,811,650 in its regular and COVID-response/related grantmaking and the $123,150,000 “Now is the Moment” surprise grants awarded to 71 local nonprofits in September. Through the “Now is the Moment” grants, the Trust showed gratitude for the hard work and dedication of the community’s nonprofit leadership and provided significant capital that will strengthen the organizations and help secure their futures.
The Trust was established nearly 22 years ago with Virginia G. Piper’s $590 million endowment to help nurture communities and individuals in Maricopa County. It does so by investing in people, such as the Piper Fellows program, and also by maintaining a strategic, long-term focus through investments in organizations and initiatives that enrich health, well-being, and opportunity for the people of Maricopa County.
But in 2020, a series of crises, including the devastating health, social, and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the stark, painful reckonings about inequity and racial injustice, compelled the Trust to respond differently and immediately. To date, the Trust has awarded $43,754,250 in COVID-19-response and COVID-19-related grants. Grantmaking in fall 2021 continued to place special emphasis on organizations serving Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. Twenty-two grants were awarded to museums, after-school arts programs, and cultural institutions that also place special emphasis on youth/underserved youth. Eighty grants were awarded to human services organizations that support vulnerable populations.
As we enter the third year of the pandemic amid ongoing concern about socioeconomic challenges, the Trust will maintain its commitment to addressing needs of the “here and now” while staying true to a legacy of strategic investment in specific areas for long-term community resilience in Maricopa County.
TRUST-INITIATED GRANT AWARDS DUE TO COVID-19 CRISIS—TOTAL: $12,296,250
Arts and Culture Organizations—Total: $2,021,250
Organizations listed below with youth/underserved youth, and/or Black, Indigenous, People of Color-centered missions received additional funds in their grant awards to support strengthening access to non-performing arts offerings for youth and to culturally specific art forms.
| ASU Foundation for ASU Art Museum ($110,000)
Act One ($67,500) Arizona Jewish Historical Society ($45,000) Arizona Science Center ($137,500) Artlink, Inc. ($30,000) CALA Alliance ($45,000) Children’s Museum of Phoenix ($137,500) Desert Botanical Garden ($137,500) Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation ($130,000) Free Arts for Abused Children of Arizona ($135,000) Heard Museum ($137,500) |
i.d.e.a. Museum ($56,250)
Musical Instrument Museum ($137,500) Phoenix Art Museum ($137,500) Phoenix Center for the Arts ($75,000) Phoenix Conservatory of Music ($67,500) Phoenix Zoo ($137,500) Rosie’s House: A Music Academy for Children ($67,500) SOUNDS Academy ($45,000) West Valley Arts Council ($30,000) Western Spirit: Scottsdale’s Museum of the West ($110,000) Xico, Inc. ($45,000) |
Human Services Organizations—Total: $10,275,000
Organizations listed below received grants based on their roles in providing critically important programs and services that serve vulnerable populations; organizations span the Trust’s core focus areas of children, older adults, education, healthcare and medical research, and religious organizations.
| A New Leaf ($200,000)
A Stepping Stone Foundation ($50,000) About Care, Inc. ($75,000) AGUILA Youth Leadership Institute ($75,000) Arizona Autism United ($150,000) Arizona Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Inc.* ($50,000) Arizona Centers for Comprehensive Education and Life Skills ($100,000) Arizona Faith Network* ($50,000) Arizona Recreation Center for the Handicapped ($50,000) Asian Pacific Community in Action ($75,000) Assistance League of Phoenix ($50,000) Association for Supportive Child Care* ($200,000) Aster Aging, Inc. ($225,000) AZCEND ($200,000) Be A Leader Foundation ($100,000) Benevilla ($200,000) Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Arizona ($125,000) Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale ($150,000) Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley ($150,000) Boys Hope Girls Hope of Arizona ($100,000) Central Arizona Shelter Services ($150,000) Chicanos Por La Causa, Inc. ($200,000) Child & Family Resources, Inc. ($150,000) Christ Church Lutheran [Creciendo Unidos/Growing Together] ($75,000) Chrysalis Shelter for Victims of Domestic Violence ($150,000) Circle the City ($150,000) Corporation for Supportive Housing* ($25,000) Discovery Triangle [Activate Food Arizona] ($100,000) DUET: Partners in Health & Aging ($225,000) Dysart Community Center ($50,000) Esperança, Inc.* ($50,000) Eye Care for Kids* ($25,000) Family Promise-Greater Phoenix ($50,000) Foundation for Blind Children ($100,000) Foundation for Senior Living* ($200,000) Friendly House, Inc. ($200,000) Future for KIDS ($100,000) Girl Scouts Arizona-Cactus Pine Council, Inc. ($150,000) Greater Phoenix Urban League, Inc. ($200,000) Homeless Youth Connection, Inc.* ($100,000) |
Hope Community Services ($225,000)
Hospice of the Valley ($75,000) Human Services Campus, Inc. ($225,000) ICAN ($175,000) International Rescue Committee [Phoenix] ($150,000) Jewish Family and Children’s Service ($150,000) Jobs for Arizona’s Graduates, Inc. ($100,000) Junior Achievement of Arizona, Inc. ($125,000) Lifewell Behavioral Wellness ($75,000) Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest* ($200,000) Maggie’s Place ($125,000) Make Way for Books* ($25,000) Mercy Housing Southwest* ($175,000) Mission of Mercy-Arizona ($100,000) Neighborhood Ministries, Inc. ($125,000) Neighbors Who Care, Inc. ($75,000) New Life Center ($150,000) New Pathways for Youth ($225,000) Northwest Valley Connect ($75,000) NourishPHX ($200,000) One Small Step ($50,000) one⋅n⋅ten ($225,000) Open Hearts ($150,000) Phoenix Allies for Community Health ($50,000) Phoenix Public Library Foundation [The College Depot] ($100,000) Raising Special Kids ($100,000) Rebuilding Together Valley of the Sun* ($75,000) Rehoboth Community Development Corporation ($75,000) Save the Family Foundation of Arizona ($150,000) Sojourner Center ($150,000) Southern AZ Association for the Visually Impaired* ($100,000) Southwest Autism Research & Resource Center ($150,000) Southwest Human Development ($150,000) St. Joseph the Worker ($100,000) Stand for Children Arizona* ($100,000) Tanner Community Development Corporation ($100,000) The Centers for Habilitation ($150,000) The Neighborhood Christian Clinic ($125,000) UMOM New Day Centers ($150,000) Zion Institute ($225,000) * For Maricopa County |
GRANTS UNRELATE TO COVID-19 CRISIS—TOTAL: $5,155,400
Prior to the need for COVID-related support, Piper Trust had responsive and Trust-initiated grantmaking underway. The following organizations received grants for non-COVID related work.
Responsive Grantmaking: grants that support nonprofit programs, capital campaigns, or capital projects that fit Trust core funding areas.
- Mayo Clinic Arizona: $3 million grant to support the North Phoenix campus expansion (Capital Campaign).
- Phoenix Rescue Mission: $270,000 grant to support renovation and expansion of the Transforming Lives Center in South Phoenix (Capital Campaign).
Trust-Initiated Grantmaking: grants that are unique, often long-term investments, and designed for broad impact.
- Arizona Community Foundation: $500,000 grant to support the Arizona Collective Impact Initiative for Child Safety and Well-Being.
- Arizona Community Foundation: $50,000 grant to support the Disaster Relief Fund for Arizona communities devastated by wildfires.
- Friends of Public Radio Arizona: $70,000 grant to support studio renovation and broadcast media equipment and infrastructure (Capital Project).
- Piper Trust Holiday Grants: 66 nonprofits received a total of $1,265,400 in grants to help provide a joyous holiday experience to their clients. These nonprofits range from large agencies with robust holiday programs to smaller organizations serving specific populations such as underserved youth, older adults, people experiencing housing challenges, individuals with intellectual and physical disabilities, and underserved families.
