Investing in Our People: Trinity Philanthropies in 2023

Updated February 5, 2024

Over the past year, Trinity Church Wall Street has continued to increase our philanthropic support for work that advances equity and justice. We have nearly quadrupled our annual giving since 2019—from $16 million to $61 million—and in 2023 we distributed $37.7 million in grants to 205 organizations that advance our efforts to build organizational capacity, care for our community, and bring people together.

Care 

As the aftershocks of the COVID-19 pandemic reverberate, we have prioritized our investment in young people, both in our city and in other areas of the world. In New York, Trinity grants helped house 185 young people and surround them with the appropriate care. We also supported 1,500 young people with community violence interruption services to help keep them safe and provided 1,200 young people with political education to grow their leadership abilities. Across the Anglican Communion in Africa, construction projects helped educate 302 students in 2023. 

Trinity continues to support New Yorkers impacted by the criminal legal system, prioritizing compassion, and redemption as we seek to heal the world around us. A cohort of grantees we support in partnership with the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation provided housing and supportive services to over 300 women and their families. Grantees like Community Voices Heard and the Fortune Society played leading roles in the Fair Chance for Housing campaign, successfully influencing the New York City Council to enact legislation to ensure that the 750,000 New Yorkers who have a criminal record are not excluded from renting apartments. 

We renewed our commitment to asylum seekers arriving in New York City, following the gospel edict to welcome the stranger with five grants in 2023, bringing Trinity’s financial contribution to this work to close to $3 million. The asylum seeker crisis has led to record-high shelter populations, straining the city’s social safety systems. In response, we joined the New York Shelter for All in Need Equally (SANE) coalition, demanding that all those in New York who need shelter—asylum seekers or native New Yorkers—are treated with dignity and compassion. 

Capacity Building 

Trinity Church is committed to investing in training and capacity building. Our Leadership Development initiative welcomed its second class of Trinity Leadership Fellows, and the Mission Real Estate Development initiative hosted 47 Anglican leaders across Africa for a workshop in Dodoma, Tanzania.  

We continued to offer capacity-building opportunities to our grantees, working with the Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF) to help them manage financial challenges, and with F.Y. Eye to design campaigns that helped them better reach prospective clients and advocate for systemic solutions. In addition to those proactive offerings, we provided over $600,000 to support existing grantees with projects related to strategic planning, communications, technology, workplace equity, and employee wellness.  

We also supported our grantees in training others: Pride in the Pews successfully launched its cohort program to strengthen the conflict transformation skills of clergy in Black churches, with a special focus on allies of LGBTQ Christians. In a similar vein, the Restorative Justice-Intimate Partner Violence collaborative supported by our Racial Justice initiative trained over 50 staff members from various organizations on restorative practices. 

Convening  

Trinity used its unique ability to convene to engage in a variety of thought leadership programs aimed at helping our grantees connect and connect the dots. In the spring, the Racial Justice initiative convened all of its grantees for the first time since 2019 for an afternoon of healing and reflection grounded in restorative justice practices. In the fall, the Housing and Homelessness initiative took on the impact of homelessness on mental health (alongside Trinity’s Neighborhood Support division) and the potential impact of technology on housing. We also teamed up with Robin Hood and the Carroll and Milton Petrie Foundation to shine a spotlight on CUNY students struggling to make ends meet.  

We also know that people in the nonprofit sector themselves continue to struggle with burnout. That is why we hosted two grantee retreats at the Trinity Retreat Center, inviting individuals to experience rest and renewal over a few days in West Cornwall, CT. Our Who Keeps the Keeper program took this a step further, arming an inaugural cohort of 24 with tools and techniques for self-care. 

As our strategic initiatives reach the five-year mark, it is rewarding to see the impact of our grants, our grantee support, and how all our voices build upon each other. We are deeply grateful to all the people who make this happen, from dioceses in Kenya to nonprofits anchored in our neighborhood. Thank you for your work and your partnership.