Fannie E. Rippel Foundation

Funding History

The Fannie E. Rippel Foundation was incorporated in 1953. Since then it has distributed over $124 million to support a variety of health-related programs. Like all organizations, the Foundation has experienced a number of life cycle changes. Rather than list all of the grants that have been made through the years, this summary provides a glimpse at how the Foundation transitioned from its formative years, through times of significant growth, and into its current phase of organizational renewal. The Foundation’s funding priorities and sample grants are aligned with the organizational cycle and relevant timeframe in the attached chart.

1950's

Organizational Cycle

Formation: Translate the founder’s intent to specific grants.

Funding Areas

Providing care for aged women and to improve local hospital services.

Illustrative Grants

Operating support and maintenance for the Society for the Relief of Respectable Aged Women.
$1M for the construction of a new hospital facility at Clara Mass.
Fund a Hospital Survey to assess needs in Newark.

1960's

Organizational Cycle

Framing: A vision for the Foundation within the context of intellectual and scientific curiosity

Funding Areas

Fostering a pioneering spirit with regard to new approaches to medical research and treatment

Illustrative Grants

Widening research techniques and treatment options for cancer with a grant to the New England Deaconess Hospital.
Support for the International Institute for Medical Electronics and Biological Engineering.

1970's and 1980's

Organizational Cycle

Growth: Increase the impact of potential funding and research

Funding Areas

Broadening possibilities through projects involving systems thinking and/or exploring alternative treatments

Illustrative Grants

Supporting the 1st National Congress on Optimum Population and Environment, convening scientists that are enhancing human survival by addressing the environmental crisis.
Two grants for the National Academy of Sciences to: improve the efficiency of hospital systems and study the relationship between diet and cancer.
Funding NYU’s Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine to develop devices to detect and stimulate acupuncture points.
Equipping a new Biochemical Sciences Building for the Princeton Cancer Center.
Operating costs for a Digital Coronary Artery Imaging System at the American Hospital in Paris.
Sponsoring the creation of a clearinghouse for duplicate cancer research at the Intersearch Institute.

1990 to 2005

Organizational Cycle

Sustaining: Including the introduction of structured processes within the Foundation… beginning its shift from a family-managed Foundation to an independent, professional organization.

Funding Areas

Renewed focus on cancer research, humanitarian programs (including mind, body, and spirit), rural health, and women’s health

Illustrative Grants

$1.5M for the creation of a new research and patient care facility at the Cancer Institute of NJ.
Funding for a palliative care study at Memorial Sloan Kettering.
Support for the HealthCare Chaplaincy in response to the need for pastoral services at NYC hospitals.
Facilitating the creation of a novel women’s health program with policy advocacy at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Assisting the University of Rochester with a two-year study on rural health network quality
Grant to “Prostate Net” to develop a Barbershop Initiative that promotes early intervention and prevention of prostate cancer in high-risk groups.

Since 2006

Organizational Cycle

Renewal: A period for reflection and strategic planning, to meet our founder’s intent given today’s environment. <See Our Mission>

Funding Areas

Enhanced focus on our founder’s intent by seeding innovations in health.
<See Funding Priorities>

Illustrative Grants