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Find the perfect Youth Sports Grants in Massachusetts on Instrumentl. 200+ Youth Sports Grants in Massachusetts in the United States
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Yawkey Foundation
The story of Tom and Jean Yawkey and their impact on the lives of children and families goes back over eight decades to the commitments they made to the people of Massachusetts, New England, and Georgetown County, South Carolina. The Yawkeys’ love for these communities, and their quiet sense of responsibility for those in need, is captured in the careful steps they took to ensure that their legacy would live on through the work of the Yawkey Foundation. The Yawkeys were perhaps best known for their longtime ownership of the Boston Red Sox. More quietly, but with just as much passion and commitment, Tom and Jean Yawkey were also engaged in an unwavering dedication to those most in need.
Today, the Yawkey Foundation remains as committed as ever to continuing to honor Tom and Jean Yawkey and their commitment to those in need. Having awarded more than $620 million to-date in charitable grants to organizations focused on Health Care, Education, Human Services, Youth and Amateur Athletics, Arts and Culture, and Conservation and Wildlife, the Yawkey Foundation is committed to preserving and sustaining the charitable values of the Yawkeys by investing in impactful nonprofits providing resources, opportunity, and dignity to the vulnerable and underserved.
Program and Small Capital Grants
Program and Small Capital Grants support high-impact, strategic, and responsive nonprofit organizations in delivering their core missions through discrete and timebound projects. Program & Small Capital Grants help address an immediate need that is critical to the organization’s work.
Program and Small Capital Grants may fund a discrete timebound program need, one small project, or a piece of equipment aligned with a nonprofit’s purpose. These grants are extremely competitive, and the Yawkey Foundation will receive many more compelling Initial Proposals than it will be able to fund. Initial Proposals should demonstrate an awareness of and alignment with the Yawkey Foundation’s mission and Areas of Giving. Additionally, the most competitive Initial Proposals will reflect a nonprofit’s strong leadership and proven impact in providing direct services and programs for unmet needs in underserved regions aligned with the Yawkey Foundation’s geographic priority areas, including Gateway Cities in Eastern Massachusetts.
Nonprofits may submit only one Initial Proposal to the Yawkey Foundation during a calendar year, irrespective of the Type of Grant. Organizations that have not been previously funded by the Foundation in recent years are encouraged to submit Initial Proposals for Program & Small Capital Grants to familiarize the Foundation with its work before submitting an Initial Proposal for Strategic Investment or Transformational Capital.
Areas of Giving: Human Services; Youth & Amateur Athletics; Education; Conservation & Wildlife; Arts & Culture; and Health Care.
Youth & Amateur Athletics Support
Tom and Jean Yawkey loved baseball. Tom grew up around the game, played while at Yale University, and understood its value in bringing players, fans and communities together. He purchased the Boston Red Sox in 1933 and as much as being the team owner, he also took great joy in participating in batting practice at Fenway Park and sitting alongside fans in the bleachers to watch a game. Tom and Jean Yawkey were committed to supporting youth athletics so that all young people had the opportunity to play and enjoy the game of baseball. The Yawkeys recognized that team sports, particularly baseball and softball, build important skills that would benefit players off the field – such as cooperation, respect, sharing, and discipline.
This tradition of supporting quality youth recreation programs, particularly baseball and softball programs, continues today through the work of the Yawkey Foundation. In many instances, funding from the Yawkey Foundation supports the very things Tom and Jean Yawkey provided many years ago – quality fields, new equipment, and programs providing ample opportunities for teamwork, sportsmanship and play.
Please be advised that the Yawkey Foundation is currently focusing its Youth & Amateur Athletics category Program & Small Capital on baseball and softball. The Foundation does not support any athletic programs specific to individual towns, districts, or counties.
Better Beaches Grant Program
Since 2008, Save the Harbor/Save the Bay has partnered with the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) to award small grants to local organizations and artists to activate the region’s public beaches through free events and programs on DCR beaches in Nahant, Lynn, Revere, Winthrop, East Boston, South Boston, Dorchester, Quincy, and Hull.
The goal of the Better Beaches Grant Program is to give decision-making power directly to community members over community spaces. We do this by allocating state funds to organizations and individuals to host free events and programs on public beaches. It creates opportunities for people who may not already be visiting the beach, or who face barriers to accessing the beach, to enjoy these shared waterfront spaces.
Whether you are part of an organization, collective, or are a creative individual with a vision for a more diverse and activated waterfront, the Better Beaches Grant Program may be for you! Grant applicants can come from any community, so long as their proposed event takes place on one of our region’s public DCR beaches from Nahant down to Hull.
For the 2026 beach season, we will be allocating over $300,000 in small grants ranging from $2,500 – $8,500 per grantee.
What we fund?
The Better Beaches Grant Program supports a diverse range of public events and programs that celebrate and engage communities on Boston Harbor beaches.
Grant funds must go toward events and programs that:
Better Beaches grant funds can support a wide variety of events, including: youth and family fun days, cultural festivals, science and learning programs, music and dance events, kayaking, swimming, fishing, book groups and literacy programs, community resources, art classes and markets, self-care and wellness events, fitness and sports classes, and more. Get creative! Projects may be one-time events, a series, or recurring gatherings.
Showing 27 of 200+ results.
Sign up to see the full listHow common are grants in this category?
Common — grants in this category appear regularly across funding sources.
Over the past year, when are grant deadlines typically due for Youth Sports grants in Massachusetts?
Most grants are due in the first quarter.
What's the typical grant amount funded for Youth Sports Grants in Massachusetts?
Grants are most commonly $25,000.
What's the typical amount funded for Massachusetts?
Grants are most commonly $101,164.
What's the total number of grants in Youth Sports Grants in Massachusetts year over year?
In 2024, funders in Massachusetts awarded a total of 44,980 grants.
Among all the Youth Sports Grants in Massachusetts given out in Massachusetts, the most popular focus areas that receive funding are Education, Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Foundations, and Human Services.
1. Education
2. Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Foundations
3. Human Services
How is funding for Youth Sports Grants in Massachusetts changing over time?
Funding has increased by -61.90%.
How does grant funding vary by county?
Suffolk County, Middlesex County, and Norfolk County receive the most funding.
| County | Total Grant Funding in 2024 |
|---|---|
| Suffolk County | $2,583,720,955 |
| Middlesex County | $615,323,982 |
| Norfolk County | $176,406,206 |
| Essex County | $155,124,532 |
| Worcester County | $126,296,816 |