Our 108th year.
When all give, all gain.
Welcoming East Boston, at every life stage — from infants taking their first steps to elders staying anchored as the neighborhood changes around them.
1,100+ neighbors,
across about 700 families.
Sustained by 65+ active partners. Welcomed at every life stage.
Connection isn’t a nice-to-have.
It’s the foundation.
How do we continue to pursue joy and social wellbeing in a time when our community is challenged from all sides? At East Boston Social Centers, we know connection isn’t a nice-to-have, it is essential. It is the foundation on which thriving communities are built.
Our work is making sure every neighbor — those who built this community and those just arriving — has a place that says you belong here.
East Boston is changing faster than almost anywhere in Boston — pressed by rapid development on one hand and immigration enforcement on the other — and we are here to make sure long-time residents and newer neighbors alike are not left behind. FY25 was a year of deepening: not just delivering programs, but building the trust networks that hold East Boston together.
None of this would be possible without your support. Together, we will continue building a more connected, joyful East Boston, for this generation and the next. When all give, all gain.
From our board co-chairs
Fabricio Paes & Ronaldo Rauseo-Ricupero
Read the letter
Dear Community,
East Boston is a neighborhood of diversity and resilience. This diversity is our strength, but it also means our community faces complex, intersecting needs. From young children who need quality early education, to families making ends meet, to elders who have given so much to this neighborhood, everyone deserves support.
This motto has guided East Boston Social Centers since 1918, and we live into it more fully than ever. Our community members are not just passive beneficiaries of services, but active contributors and partners in our shared success — teens as paid Associates, Parent Partners across eight languages, neighbors teaching neighbors digital skills.
During FY25, we began our 2025–2028 Strategic Plan, which now guides our work — deepening our reach across the five life stages we serve and growing what we offer.
Thank you — to our donors, our 65+ active partners who hold this work with us, our staff team, and the community itself for trusting us with its children, its elders, and its future.
Voices from across the neighborhood.
Three moments, out of hundreds, that show what shows up when neighbors keep showing up for each other.
“She didn’t skip a beat.”
When Joelle joined Early Learning at 10 months, her family was worried about milestones. The teachers built the curriculum around her needs, harness and all.
Given Joelle’s condition, I was worried about her not meeting milestones. She needed a pelvic harness 24/7, but the teachers designed the curriculum around her needs. She didn’t skip a beat and met all her milestones.Trina · mom of Joelle (10 months)
A future engineer’s first step.
95% of Pillars middle-schoolers identify as Hispanic or Latino. 81% are girls, in a STEM field where only 25–30% of professionals are women. Pillars is where representation starts.
I want to be a robotic engineer for NASA when I grow up, and the career exploration program here helps me understand what steps I need to take to reach my dream and my goals.Camila Correa · Pillars of STEAM, 8th grade
A lifeline for staying anchored.
For 234 East Boston elders, EBSC is the place that says “you still belong here” as the neighborhood changes around them. 100% report feeling less lonely.
My kids are all grown up and have moved away, so I spend a lot of time alone. But when I’m here, I get to interact and socialize with so many people. Now I am here four days a week.Tina · 91 years old, here 4 days a week
Neighborhood’s changing. We’re connective tissue.
- Central Square Main68 Central Square
- Marion Street127 Marion · Eagle Hill
- Sumner Street425 Sumner · Jeffries Point
- Bennington St1222 Bennington · Orient Heights
East Boston has long been a gateway for newcomers and a stronghold for families who’ve been here for generations. Today, the pressures of rapid development and immigration enforcement are converging, and EBSC is here as the connective tissue holding the neighborhood together.
The numbers tell the story of that pressure: incomes rising at the top, families squeezed at the bottom, and rents climbing across every tract.
A neighborhood transforming
faster than anywhere else in Boston.
By the numbers · 13 East Boston census tracts
Sources: ACS 2020–2024 & 2014–2018 · MassGIS 2020 EJ Populations
One welcome, at every life stage.
Five life stages we serve, from infancy through active adulthood, held together by 65+ community partners and a shared belief that when all give, all gain.
Whole-child early education
Bilingual childcare, low or no-cost for many families through state subsidies. 90% of Pre-K children met or exceeded kindergarten-readiness standards across all ten developmental domains.
Bright Minds
An oasis for children after school. Project-based learning, Khan Academy math pilots, and Museum of Science field trips, built around a monthly theme that brings kids back.
Two pathways into adulthood
Hands-on STEAM career exploration for middle-schoolers. Paid Associate roles in Early Learning classrooms for high-schoolers — for many, their first job ever.
Belonging at every age
From Qi Gong and bingo to Digital Equity workshops and the Senior Picnic. A daily anchor for elders staying connected as the neighborhood changes.
The work that holds it together
Partner organizing with 65+ East Boston organizations, direct family engagement in eight languages, and emergency relief when neighbors need it most.
Community Joy
A new program built around shared joy and belonging, widening the circle to welcome even more of our neighbors. Launching in FY26.
JoyUs 2025 — a celebration of community.
EBSC’s annual gathering at the Tall Ship in East Boston — broadening from a fundraiser audience into a celebration for every neighbor.
And to every volunteer, partner, and neighbor who gave their time, talent, and presence to JoyUs and beyond: thank you for showing up for East Boston, year after year.
Beginning in 2026, neighbors, families, and partners will gather as Eastie Social to power East Boston’s next century.
78¢ of every dollar goes to programs and facilities.
FY25 revenue grew 10% year-over-year.
Total Revenue
+10% over FY24 — another year of growth. (ERC payroll-tax refunds excluded.)
Grants & Contributions
Raised in FY25, with grants, corporate, and individual giving all up — diversifying the base.
Operating Surplus
Net assets from operations in FY25 — operating healthily, not just at break-even.
Where every dollar comes from
FY25 revenue by source · $10.1M total
- $7.2M Government contracts 72%
- $1.8M Foundation & corporate grants 18%
- $723K Program revenue 7%
- $335K Individuals & Events 3%
Where every dollar goes
FY25 expenses by program · $10M total
- $3.97M Early Learning 39.7%
- $1.53M Out-of-School Time 15.3%
- $1.51M Administration 15.1%
- $1.26M Community Programs 12.6%
- $734K Facilities 7.3%
- $616K Fundraising 6.2%
- $228K Thriving Teens 2.3%
- $140K Active Adults 1.4%
Putting the plan to work.
Year-one priorities from our 2025–2028 Strategic Plan.Connecting Across the Community
Bringing neighbors together across generations and lines of difference — the heart of how we hold East Boston together as it changes.
Community Programs
Continuing investment in our family ecosystem — partner organizing through Every Child Shines, family engagement, and direct support.
Listening & Engaging
Hearing what East Boston needs — policy advocacy, parent partners, our community survey, and programming responsive to what we hear.
For complete audited statements, see page 18 of the full annual report (PDF). Audited by AAFCPAs, January 2026.
Every name is part of East Boston’s story.
Hundreds of individual donors, dozens of foundations, 65+ active partners, and the government and corporate funders who showed up for East Boston in FY25.
“When all give, all gain.”
When all give, all gain.
Two ways to keep East Boston joyfully connected.
Donate
Every gift goes directly to families and neighbors, at every stage of life — from infants taking their first steps to elders staying anchored.
Power year 109 → Get involvedJoin
Yoga, coffee hours, paint nights, Action Teams, volunteering — there’s a door open for every neighbor.
Find your way in →