We seek to help people at a critical moment with a need triggered by an emergency. Our hope is that this assistance will make a difference in someone’s life with lasting impact.
The primary way that we offer assistance is by making grants to social service and other organizations (including colleges), whose staff then applies strict criteria and distributes grants averaging approximately $1,000. It is important that the organizations that receive our grant offer additional support services.
We focus on programs that work directly with individuals one-on-one. The majority of our Helping Hands grants go toward rent, particularly needed in the primary areas where we fund – New York City, Boston, and Palm Beach County – where there is not enough affordable housing. We also help with expenses such as utilities, transportation, moving, furniture, or clothing that an individual is temporarily unable to pay for because of an unexpected hardship.
We may make a limited number of grants to programs that connect individuals to additional community resources.
Reflections on Helping Hands
Lou Gerstner shares the origin of and his vision for the emergency grants program, lessons learned over the past decade, and his belief in the critical importance of the work.
Watch the videoFeatured Grantee
Sanctuary for Families
Sanctuary for Families is New York’s leading service provider and advocate for survivors of domestic violence, sex trafficking, and related forms of gender violence, helping them on their journeys from immediate safety and survivor, to stability, to long-term sufficiency. Gerstner Philanthropies supports Sanctuary’s Emergency Assistance Fund, which helps victims of abuse and their families in times of crisis by providing emergency cash grants for stable housing and other urgent needs. Support from Gerstner Philanthropies has expanded to include funding for Sanctuary’s Economic Empowerment Program (EEP), a career readiness and technology training program that helps participants break the cycle of poverty, homelessness, and abuse by attaining stable, higher paying employment to support themselves and their families. To learn more, please see www.sanctuaryforfamilies.org.
Our Grantees
Major Helping Hands Grants
Grants listed below may be from the Gerstner Family Foundation or another Gerstner family philanthropic vehicle. Amounts may reflect cumulative annual grants or multi-year grants. To see annual amounts, please see listings of grants paid each year.
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Adopt-A-Family
Lake Worth, FL | Visit Website
To support the Housing Stabilization Program.
$1,962,500
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The Bridge Fund of New York
New York and Westchester, NY | Visit Website
To support the emergency cash grant/loan program to prevent homelessness in New York, NY.
$1,962,500
To support the emergency cash grant/loan program to prevent homelessness in Westchester County, NY.
$632,500
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Coalition for the Homeless
New York, NY | Visit Website
To support the emergency cash grant program.
$970,000
To support the First Step Job Training Program.
$225,000
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FamilyAid Boston
Boston, MA | Visit Website
To support the emergency cash grant program.
$1,200,000
To support the holiday meals program.
$12.240
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Good Shepherd Services
New York, NY | Visit Website
To support the emergency cash grant program.
$937,500
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The Havens Relief Fund Society
New York, NY | Visit Website
To support the emergency cash grant program.
$2,050,000
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Lenox Hill Neighborhood House
New York, NY | Visit Website
To support the emergency cash grant program.
$600,000
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Part of the Solution
Bronx, NY | Visit Website
To support the emergency cash grant program.
$895,000
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Safe Horizon
New York, NY | Visit Website
To fund the Emergency Client Assistance Program.
$2,308,750
To support the Child Advocacy Centers.
$10,000
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Sanctuary for Families
New York, NY | Visit Website
To support the emergency cash grant program.
$955,000
To support the Economic Empowerment Program.
$225,000
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SUNY Student Emergency Funds
New York State
To support student emergency funds at several colleges and universities across New York State.
$934,732
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Treasure Coast Food Bank
Fort Pierce, FL | Visit Website
To support the mobile food pantry program and SNAP outreach.
$638,750
To support the workforce development program.
$100,000
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United Neighborhood Houses
New York, NY | Visit Website
To support the eviction prevention program across sixteen settlement houses.
$2,040,625
Stories
Mira is a disabled mother of one. She received disability payments while her partner worked two jobs. When her partner was laid off at his primary job, the family was unable to make their rent payments. They were on the verge of being evicted before they received a Gerstner Helping Hands grant for $1,200 in December 2019. Thanks to this grant, they were able to stay in their home and have not fallen behind on rent payments again. One year later, Mira reports that her partner started a new job and has been able to stay employed throughout the pandemic
Helping Hands News
