The Sills Family Foundation is a left-of-center private grantmaking foundation. The group focuses much of its grantmaking on liberal criminal justice policies, more permissive immigration policies, environmentalist issues, and other left-of-center priorities. It has expanded its giving to incorporate more members of the Sills family and has created a rapid response fund. ¹

In 2018, the group signed a statement criticizing the Trump administration’s policies on the detention of illegal immigrant families and the separation of children. ²

Background

Nathaniel Sills and his children founded the Sills Family Foundation in 1993. ³ Sills married Ruth Fife, daughter of the founder of Standard Motor Products, and ran the company until his death. ⁴

Sills established the group with a $30 million gift but did not leave any parameters for how to operate it. ⁵

The group began its formal grantmaking process in 2003. ⁶

Issue Areas

Criminal Justice Reform

The Sills Family Foundation originally focused on helping families affected by incarceration. It has since expanded its giving to support groups that reduce the total number of people in prison. ⁷

In 2022, under “helping families impacted by incarceration,” the group gave $50,000 to The Osborne Association and  $25,000 each to Bronx Defenders, Circle, College and Community Fellowship, Drive Change, Echoes of Incarceration, Hour Children, Housing Plus, Lund, Providence House, and Women’s Prison Association. ⁸

Under “programs inside prison”, the group gave $25,000 each to Bard Prison Initiative, Brooklyn Defender Services, Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison, Pernet Family Health Service, Inc., Rehabilitation Through The Arts, and Volunteers of Legal Services. ⁹

Under “preventing incarceration” the group gave $50,000 to Center for Court Innovation/Justice Innovation, Inc., and $25,000 each to Avenues for Justice, Common Justice, Community Connections for Youth, Envision Freedom Fund (Brooklyn Community Bail Fund), Exalt Youth, Liberty Fund, Roca, Inc., Strategies for Youth, Urban Youth Alliance International, and Youth Represent. ¹⁰

Under “advocacy” the group gave $15,000 to the New York Women’s Foundation, and $25,000 each to Center for Justice at Columbia University School of Social Work, Correctional Association of New York, JustLeadership USA, Release Aging People in Prison Campaign, and Voice of the Experienced. ¹¹

The group’s Third Generation committee, which consists of the third generation of family members, gave $12,500 each to the anti-police Baltimore Action Legal Team and the prison abolitionist groups Black and Pink National and Critical Resistance. ¹²

Immigration

The Sills Family Foundation supports liberal expansionist immigration policies. ¹³

In 2018, the group signed a statement released by the Grantmakers Concerned With Immigrants and Refugees which criticized Trump administration policies on detaining illegal immigrant families and separating children from families. The statement also condemned detaining families together indefinitely. ¹⁴

In 2022, the group gave $25,000 each to the American Civil Liberties Union, Brooklyn Community Foundation, and Make the Road New York. ¹⁵

The group gave a “rapid response” grant of $10,000 to Make the Road New York to support migrants who came to New York from Texas and $5,000 to Choose Love to support Ukrainian refugees. ¹⁶

The group’s Second Generation committee gave $15,000 each to Hearts and Homes for Refugees and Make the Road New York, and gave $20,000 each to Partnerships for Trauma Recovery, Refugee and Immigrant Transitions and Safe Passage Project. ¹⁷

Members of the family have given through the group $500 to the Pennsylvania Immigration and Citizenship Coalition, $1,000 to the Jewish Family and Children Services, $2,000 to Refugee and Immigrant Transitions, $2,500 to the Unitarian Universalist Church of Tucson’s No More Deaths program, $2,000 to Grannies Respond, $2,000 to Afghan Refugee Relief, and $2,000 to Partnerships for the Advancement of New Americans. ¹⁸

Environmentalism

In 2022, the Sills Family Foundation gave $25,000 each to Coming Clean, Mercury Policy Project, and the West Harlem Environmental Action, Inc. under the left-of-center identity politics inspired framework of “environmental justice.” ¹⁹

The group’s Second Generation committee, consisting of the second generation of family members, gave $20,000 each to Carbon Cycle Institute, Climate Collaborative, Ecdysis Foundation, Green Wave, GRID Alternatives, and Women’s Earth Alliance for climate change mitigation. ²⁰

The group’s Third Generation committee gave $12,500 to UPROSE. ²¹

BDS

In 2022, an anonymous member of the family gave $500 in support of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement targeting Israel through the Sills Family Foundation. ²²

Abortion Advocacy

In 2022, the Sills Family Foundation gave $10,000 to Planned Parenthood, $2,500 each to the Kentucky Health Justice Network and the Women’s Reproductive Rights Assistance Project. ²³

Other Donations

In 2022, the Sills Family Foundation gave a $10,000 “rapid response” grant to the Brooklyn Public Library to support its protest of laws that removed books deemed age inappropriate and sexually explicit from schools. ²⁴

A family member gave $2,000 to the Brennan Center for Justice through the group. ²⁵

Leadership

The Sills Family Foundation president is Arthur Sills. ²⁶

Peter Sills is the vice president. ²⁷

Deborah Sills Iarussi is the secretary. ²⁸

The Sills Family Foundation is managed by The Philanthropic Initiative, which administers the grants program. ²⁹

Finances

According to the 2021 tax return, the Sills Family Foundation had $810,040 in revenues, $3,222,570 in expenses, and $12,677,262 in assets. ³⁰

Arthur Sills and Peter Sills receive $10,000 in compensation each, while Deborah Sills Iarussi receives $70,000 in compensation. ³¹

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