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The Hamptons Billionaires Funding More Than Summer Parties

From Michael Bloomberg to John Paulson, seven Hamptons-linked foundations fund museums, hospitals, conservation groups and major institutions.

The wealth concentrated in the Hamptons doesn’t remain confined to coastal estates and summer galas. Through private foundations, locally based families and seasonal residents quietly sustain the institutions that serve the East End year-round, from the Parrish Art Museum and Sag Harbor Cinema to Southampton Hospital and the South Fork Natural History Museum.

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Beyond the South Fork, their philanthropic footprint includes funding major universities, cancer research, iconic cultural centers and public parks. Here are seven notable private foundations with deep ties to the Hamptons, and a look at where their money actually goes.

Michael Bloomberg’s Bloomberg Philanthropies

Michael Bloomberg put down Hamptons roots in 2011, when the billionaire businessman and former New York City mayor bought Ballyshear, a 35-acre Southampton estate, for $20 million. Raised in Massachusetts, Bloomberg worked his way through Johns Hopkins and Harvard Business School before co-founding the financial data and media empire that made him a household name. These days, philanthropy is Bloomberg’s primary second act. Through Bloomberg Philanthropies, he gave away $4.3 billion in 2025 alone, pushing his lifetime giving past $25.4 billion. As an early signatory of the Giving Pledge, he’s committed nearly his entire fortune to charitable causes. “Making a difference in people’s lives—and seeing it with your own eyes—is perhaps the most satisfying thing you’ll ever do,” he wrote in his pledge letter. “If you want to fully enjoy life—give.” That giving is funneled through the Bloomberg Family Foundation, which held $12.1 billion in net assets and disbursed nearly $1.5 billion in 2024, according to its latest available tax filing. Helmed by CEO Patricia Harris, New York City’s former deputy mayor, the foundation’s scope covers 75 global programs, such as its flagship Public Art Challenge, awarding U.S. cities up to $1 million for public art projects. Bloomberg’s daughters, Emma and Georgina, also play an active role on the board. Out on the South Fork, the foundation’s footprint spans the area’s arts scene. It’s a key benefactor of the Parrish Art Museum in Water Mill, helping fund Rafael Lozano-Hemmer’s 2024 exhibition “Collider,” and previously co-sponsored Robert Longo’s 2021 show “A History of the Present” at Guild Hall in East Hampton. The foundation’s free Bloomberg Connects app also offers custom digital guides for the Parrish, the East Hampton Historical Society, and The Church, a creative hub set inside a restored 19th-century Methodist church in Sag Harbor.

The family’s local presence extends past museum walls. Georgina Bloomberg, an accomplished equestrian who serves as secretary of the Hampton Classic board, has spent over a decade sponsoring the Bridgehampton horse show’s annual Animal Adoption Day, helping rescue groups rehome dozens of dogs, cats and horses each summer.

Ronald Perelman’s Perelman Family Foundation

For a full decade,........

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