Ploughshares Foundation
Accepts applications
Ploughshares Foundation is a private foundation in Highland Park, Illinois. In tax year 2025 it gave $3.6 million in 368 grants; the typical grant was $6,000 and the largest $85,000. It accepts applications; its filing gives the instructions below.
From its IRS Form 990-PF for tax year 2025.
- Grants paid, 2025$3.6 million
- Number of grants368
- Typical grant$6,000
- Largest grant$85,000
- Assets$80.6 million
- New grantees6%
Giving in 2025 was up from $3.5 million the year before.
6% of its 2025 grantees had not received a grant from it the year before, so most of its money goes to organizations it already funds.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants paid | Number of grants | Assets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | $3.5 million | 369 | $63.3 million |
| 2024 | $3.5 million | 367 | $70.8 million |
| 2025 | $3.6 million | 368 | $80.6 million |
How to apply
| Contact | D M Ephraim 2070 Green Bay Road 199, Highland Park, IL 60035 |
|---|---|
| Phone or email | (312) 321-9700 |
| What to submit | All applications must be in written form. They must include a description of the organization which is submitting the application, the grant amount(s) requested by such organization and the use which the submitting organization intends to make of any grant(s) that may be received from this foundation. All applications must, in addition, include a copy of the submitting organization's IRS determination letter evidencing qualification as a section 501(c)(3) organization, together with a copy of the submitting organization's most recently filed IRS form 990. |
What Ploughshares Foundation funds
Where it gives
Its grants went to recipients in 30 states, the most to Massachusetts.
| State | Grants | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts | 166 | $1.5 million |
| New York | 37 | $389,499 |
| District of Columbia | 35 | $338,000 |
| Maine | 26 | $308,000 |
| California | 33 | $271,000 |
| Connecticut | 3 | $96,000 |
| Pennsylvania | 7 | $86,000 |
| Maryland | 2 | $82,000 |
| Iowa | 2 | $75,000 |
| Texas | 12 | $71,000 |
Grants paid in 2025
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Partners in Health | $50,000 for work in haiti and mexico | $85,000 |
| Lenny Zakim Fund | Youth violence prevention, social justice, human rights and alleviation of poverty and illness | $75,000 |
| Doctors Without Borders | For aid to gaza, the west bank, and israel and for work along the us/mexico border | $70,000 |
| American Friends Service Committee | $20,000 for prison justice programs; and $40,000 for relief/aid to gaza | $60,000 |
| Earlham College | $40,000 for student scholarships; $20,000 for faculty development | $60,000 |
| Unitarian Universalist Service Committee | $20,000 for climate crisis | $60,000 |
| First Parish in Cambridge | $30,000 for tuesday meals endowment; $20,000 for first parish | $50,000 |
| Mercy Corps | Humanitarian aid in gaza and the middle east | $50,000 |
| Save the Children | For programs in syria, yemen, south sudan, haiti, and along us border with mexico; and for emergency aid to ukraine and to children in gaza | $50,000 |
| United Mid Coast Charities Inc | General | $50,000 |
| Direct Relief International | Work in yemen, lebanon, haiti, in the middle east and where most needed | $45,000 |
| International Rescue Committee | For crisis work in gaza and the middle east | $45,000 |
| American Jewish World Service | For work outside the united states | $41,000 |
| Americares Foundation Inc | For work in gaza and ukraine | $40,000 |
| Planned Parenthood Federation of America Inc | General | $40,000 |
| Amnesty International USA | For programs aimed at refugee and migrant rights; eliminating the death penalty and reducing gun violence and to protect human rights in gaza | $38,000 |
| Greater Boston Food Bank | General | $38,000 |
| Cambridge Community Foundation | $10,000 for rise up cambridge | $35,000 |
| Museum of Fine Arts | Egyptian department curators fund | $35,000 |
| Wbur Radio Station Fund | $25,000 for news and special coverage | $35,000 |
| 350ORG | General | $30,000 |
| Mills College Legacy Scholarship Fund | For mills student scholarships and mills faculty salaries | $30,000 |
| Natural Resource Defense Council | General | $30,000 |
| Oxfam America | $25,000 for global refugee and immigration crisis and aid to gaza emergency appeal | $30,000 |
| Unrwa USA National Committee | General | $30,000 |
| US Fund for UNICEF | For work with migrant children and families and families and children in gaza and the west bank | $28,000 |
| Project Bread | General | $26,000 |
| Catholic Relief Services | For work in mexico, central america, ukraine and in the west bank and gaza | $25,000 |
| Global Giving | For programs to benefit women and girls, and for middle east crisis relief fund | $25,000 |
| Greater Boston Legal Services | General | $25,000 |
| Cure Violence Global | Programs in central america and us cities | $22,000 |
| Hand in Hand | General | $22,000 |
| Natural Resources Council of Maine | General | $22,000 |
| Nature Conservancy of Maine | General | $22,000 |
| World Central Kitchen | Relief efforts for gaza and for ukrainian families | $22,000 |
| California Community Foundation -Wildfire Recovery Fund | For relief and recovery in altadena | $20,000 |
| Care | $6,000 for aid to afghan families; $8,000 to ukraine and $6,000 for relief efforts in lebanon | $20,000 |
| Casa Myrna | General | $20,000 |
| City of Cambridge Scholarship Fund | General | $20,000 |
| Greenpeace Fund | General | $20,000 |
Officers and trustees
- Donald M Ephraim
- Eliot S Ephraim
- David M Ephraim
Questions people ask
Does Ploughshares Foundation accept grant applications?
Yes. Its latest IRS filing says it accepts applications.
How much does Ploughshares Foundation give?
$3.6 million in tax year 2025, across 368 grants, with a typical grant of $6,000.
Who runs Ploughshares Foundation?
Its 2025 filing lists Donald M Ephraim (Officer & Director), Eliot S Ephraim (Officer & Director) and David M Ephraim (Officer & Director).
What does Ploughshares Foundation fund?
Based on its grants, mainly international, human services and youth programs.