New York City AIDS Memorial Inc
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
The New York City AIDS Memorial honors the more than 100,000 New Yorkers who have died of AIDS and acknowledges the contributions of caregivers and activists who mobilized to provide care for the ill, fight discrimination, lobby for medical research, and alter the drug approval process. The Memorial aims to inspire visitors to remember and reflect as well as empower current and future activists, health professionals, and people living with HIV in the continuing mission to eradicate the disease through the maintenance of our permanent, architecturally significant Memorial as well as through educational and cultural programming.
- Income
- $740,316
- Spending
- $580,787
- Spent on programs
- 75%
- Reserves
- Over 10 years of spending
- Largest source of income
- investment income, 44%
- Employees
- 1
- Highest pay
- $173,949, executive dir.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending October 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Strong: 90 out of 100. Higher than 75% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $250k to $1m).
Reserves
35 of 35Spendable reserves would cover more than ten years of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 1% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 22% of income.
Income trend
5 of 15Income fell 17% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1575% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 16 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending October 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 95 out of 100. Higher than 90% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $250k to $1m).
Independent board
25 of 2518 of 19 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
0 of 5Reports no independent review process for its chief executive's pay.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending October 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (1)
- $438,007 spent. Programs - Fiscal Year Ended October 31, 2025World AIDS Day 2024December 1 & 2, 2024For World AIDS Day 2024, the Memorial presented two days of free, public observance in collaboration with Housing Works and AREA, including our annual reading of names and a candlelight vigil. Community partners also joined us for a press conference and public rally addressing the ongoing HIV epidemic and the urgent need to protect access to care.Programming also featured the 33rd Annual Out of the Darkness Candlelight Vigil, food service by Queer Soup Night, and a performance by the Red Ribbon Revue. Together, these programs combined remembrance with civic action, affirming the Memorials role as both a site of reflection and a platform for advocacy, community visibility, and resistance.Broadway RevisitedMarch 3, 2025The New York City AIDS Memorial presented Broadway Revisited, an unforgettable benefit cabaret at Joes Pub, celebrating the past, present, and future of Broadways legendary music and performances. This special event, directed by Tony, Olivier, Emmy, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Award Winner Rob Ashford, featured a dazzling musical review of Broadways hidden gems, current moments, and future classics. Performed by a roster of incredibly talented artists, including Christine Ebersole, J. Harrison Ghee, Debra Monk, and Duncan Sheik, Broadway Revisited was hosted by actor, director, producer, political activist, and socially-minded storyteller Tony GoldwynCommunity AIDS Memorial Quiltmaking WorkshopMarch 28 & 29, 2025Continuing the legacy of the AIDS Memorial Quilt, the Memorial hosted a series of quiltmaking workshops in March 2025 at the School of Visual Arts led by contemporary artists. This program complemented the exhibitions Witness and To Live, To Die, at SVA, organized, in part, by the New York City AIDS Memorial. Participants created panels honoring many artists, including Tseng Kwong Chi, Ching Ho Cheng, and Martin Wong, alongside many other lost loved ones and reflecting on present-day experiences of survival and solidarity. The two-day workshops invited intergenerational dialogue and hands-on collective remembrance, extending the tradition of craft as a vehicle for healing and activism, and brought Gert McMullin, the mother of the Quilt from the National AIDS Memorial in San Francisco, to help lead and share.Molissa Fenley: BardoMay 4, 2025In May 2025, we presented a reinterpretation of Bardo, a dance work by Molissa Fenley, at the LGBT Center. This work was first conceived as an homage to artist Keith Haring (19581990), was presented on what would have been Harings 67th birthday, and 35 years to the day after its original premiere at Harings memorial service at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Being seen for the first time in 30 years, the troupe performed Bardo twice back-to-back, representing the passage of time between the works origins and the current remount, as well as the time between now and Harings passing. This presentation included the original musical accompaniment by Somei Satoh.Matthew Leifheit: The Gay Chorus: No Time At AllJune 1 - July 15, 2025Commissioned for Pride Month in June 2025, Matthew Leifheits sound installation filled the Memorials structure with digitized archival recordings of gay mens choruses from 19851995. At the time of the installation, Leifheit had preserved 46 hours and 22 minutes of performance footage, drawn from 53 VHS tapes digitized during 2023 and 2024 in archives spanning New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, Denver, and Washington, DC. Given the inherently limited archival lifespan of VHS recordings, much of the audio exhibits distortions and degradations resulting from the passage of time and the deterioration of magnetic tape. The hour-long recital looped daily, creating a reflective auditory experience that surrounded visitors with voices from the past. By reanimating this music in the Memorials space, Leifheit honored a generation of singers whose lives and artistry were shaped by the AIDS crisis. This work received a glowing feature in The New York Times on June 12, 2025.Film Screening: Cashing OutJune 13, 2026In June 2025, the New York City AIDS Memorial and National AIDS Memorial presented a free screening of the new short documentary Cashing Out at the LGBT Community Center, followed by a Q&A moderated by filmmaker Sian-Pierre Regis and featuring documentary subject Scott Page and director Matt Nadel. Cashing Out was a fan favorite at festivals like DOC NYC, Provincetown, and Out on Film, winning both jury and audience awards. The film has been shortlisted for the 2026 Academy Awards and was publicly released this autumn by The New Yorker.Legends of DragJune 14, 2025In summer 2025, the Memorial hosted Legends of Drag, a celebration of drags history and enduring vitality. Featuring performances, storytelling, and portraits, the program honored pioneering queens who survived the epidemic and continue to shape queer culture today. By centering the artistry and resilience of drag elders, the event highlighted the intergenerational transmission of history, memory, and joy. For the first time, our performers shared the spotlight with the brilliant voices of The Red Ribbon Revue, a musical showcase featuring HIV-positive performers from across generations, created by Sam Bolen and Brian Mummert. Since its debut on World AIDS Day 2019, the Revue has stood as a joyful, unflinching celebration of life, identity, and the power of visibility.Kinfolk: Portals of RemembranceJune 1, 2025 - April 30, 2026Launching in June 2025, this exhibition reimagines the New York City AIDS Memorial as a dynamic site of memory and empowerment. Presented with pioneering digital platform Kinfolk Tech, Portals of Remembrance features three monuments created by four renowned contemporary artists. This collaboration aims to honor and illuminate the stories of underrepresented figures within the HIV/AIDS movement through three v
Source: Form 990 for the year ending October 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated November 6, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending October 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since April 2013.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated November 4, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.