The Jewish Week printed a letter to the editor on 9/24/2014 written by JCF Executive Vice President & CEO Sue Dickman highlighting the significant support for Israel that our fund holders have generously granted out. The letter is a response to an article written about recent philanthropic trends in light of the recent conflict in Israel.
Here is the text of the letter:
Giving Increase For Israel And Others
In “Questions Over Outpouring of Gaza War Philanthropy” (Sept. 12), staff writer Hannah Dreyfus wonders whether the surge in giving to Israel during Operation
Protective Edge came at the cost of giving to other causes. Here at Jewish
Communal Fund (JCF), the largest and most active Jewish donor-advised fund in
the country, we have not found that to be the case. In fact, giving to other
causes increased 24 percent as compared to the same period the previous year. We
imagine that as our donors went online to make their grants to Israel-focused
campaigns, it was easy enough to make additional grants to their favorite
charities.
Donor advised funds are especially important during times of crisis, as they
enable fund holders to give generously and immediately. Since July, JCF fund
holders have made 526 grants totaling $2,484,090 to Israel-focused charities,
through federations, local synagogues and other organizations. Gifts ranged
from $36 to $100,000. In addition, JCF made a $100,000 emergency grant to the Israel Trauma
Coalition (ITC) from its institutional endowment, the Special Gifts Fund to
provide psychological counseling to those suffering from
crippling anxiety
and fear.
Susan F. Dickman
Executive Vice President and CEO, Jewish Communal Fund