Helping Hands

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 $1,200. 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.

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.

  • Adopt-A-Family

    Lake Worth, FL | Visit Website

    To support the Housing Stabilization Program.

    $2,684,500

  • The Havens Relief Fund Society

    New York, NY | Visit Website

    To support the emergency cash grant program.

    $2,625,100

  • Safe Horizon

    New York, NY | Visit Website

    To fund the Emergency Client Assistance Program.

    $3,475,358

  • Coalition for the Homeless

    New York, NY | Visit Website

    To support the emergency cash grant program.

    $1,680,000

  • Sanctuary for Families

    New York, NY | Visit Website

    To support the emergency cash grant program.

    $1,579,500

  • FamilyAid

    Boston, MA | Visit Website

    To support the emergency cash grant program.

    $1,914,000

  • United Neighborhood Houses

    New York, NY | Visit Website

    To support the eviction prevention program across 26 settlement houses. For a list of participating settlement houses and their websites, please click 'Visit Website' above.

    $5,221,125

  • Family Promise

    Summit, NJ | Visit Website

    To support the Shelter Diversion Initiative.

    $1,000,000

Stories

Pia was injured when she was attacked by an unknown assailant and was unable to work for a month. When she reported the assault to her local precinct, the desk sergeant introduced Pia to a crime victim advocate with Safe Horizon’s Crime Victim Assistance Program. After reporting the crime, Pia connected with Safe Horizon’s Crime Victim Assistance Program and shared that she would be unable to pay her rent because of lost income while recovering from her injuries. Thanks to a Gerstner Helping Hands Program, Pia was able to pay her rent and recover in peace without worrying about falling into arrears. Pia is now back at work and very grateful for the one-time assistance to help her through such a difficult time


Safe Horizon

Helping Hands News