Wycliffe “Wyc” Grousbeck is a Massachusetts entrepreneur who was born in Worcester in 1961 and was a partner at the venture capital firm Highland Capital Partners for several years. However, locals in the Boston area might know him better as the man who founded the group that bought the Boston Celtics in 2002 for $360 million. Grousbeck has also created his own philanthropic foundation called the Grousbeck Trust, a low-profile funder with no website and only limited public information available.
Here's what we know so far about Grousbeck’s philanthropy and his commitment to the city of Boston.
A family-run foundation
Grousbeck and his wife, Emilia Fazzalari, are the only trustees of the foundation, which has no other directors or staff members. The couple direct all of the foundation’s giving and share in trustee duties. They are known to make themselves available to grantseekers who understand how they approach philanthropy.
A preference for Boston groups
Grousbeck is a big supporter of local Boston organizations. They include Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Wonderfund, School the World and the Institute of Contemporary Art Boston. Outside Boston, the foundation also supports nonprofits in other Massachusetts communities such as Somerville, Braintree, Vineyard Haven and Cambridge.
Other recent grants have gone to groups with a broader reach, such as the Foundation Fighting Blindness (based in Columbia, Mississippi), HealthRight International (based in New York City) and Malala Fund (based in Washington, DC).
A wide variety of interests
Grousbeck’s grantmaking tends to follow his personal interests and affiliations, yet many different types of local groups receive funding from his foundation. In the past, Grousbeck has supported a school for the blind that his son attended as well as the Boston Ballet, the Boys and Girls Club of Boston and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Grousbeck has served as chair of the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, a frequent recipient of foundation support. Organizations that serve the blind and other people with disabilities tend to receive steady Grousbeck support, such as the Perkins School for the Blind in Watertown, Massachusetts.
Unsolicited requests welcome
An important thing to know about Grousbeck’s foundation is that it accepts unsolicited requests. There is no specific application form to complete. Instead, grantseekers should send in typewritten information and proof of nonprofit status to the foundation by mail. There are no deadlines to apply for a grant; however, not all unsolicited requests will receive acknowledgement from the foundation. Wycliffe Grousbeck is also available by phone for grantseeker questions.
Read more about this funder in IP’s full profile of the Grousbeck Trust in our Boston and New England Funding Guide.