Despite the economic climate, two major Universities (Brandeis and YU) have announced record levels of contributions for the past year. It is interesting that both recognize the value of gifts from their alumni and cultivating their graduates. The value is immense with an estimated 60% plus of gifts at many major universities coming from their alumni community. But, alumni giving is much more than the dollar gifts. From Tactical Philanthropy: "Schools that have a large percentage of donating alumni, especially among younger alums, are encouraging a mindset that spans beyond money. A donation from a younger alumnus is a powerful statement that his or her experience really meant something to them. In addition to foreshadowing future giving (likely at a more substantial amount), the same alumni … Continue Reading
Hadassah, Tipping Into Decline?
Hadassah just concluded their 94th national convention in Los Angeles. And at the closing dinner Tuesday night, a prominent Medical Center board member warned the organization was on "the tipping point" into decline. Two pertinent facts were stated by Stewart Greenebaum during his remarks: in the past year Hadassah's membership has declined by 6% and dollar donations have decreased by 20%. So, it appears that like every other organization with USD revenue and NIS expenses, Hadassah is facing the reality of the current exchange rate due to their vast array of needs in Israel. But unlike many U.S. organizations, including some of the largest Federation's in the U.S. who are showing fundraising revenue increases for 2007, Hadassah appears to be tracking backwards. I wonder how 2008 is … Continue Reading
PresenTense Makes News
A great deal has been going on this summer at the PresenTense Institute here in Jerusalem. We put our first post up on the current doings in Arnona just yesterday (the Diaspora Mezuzot Project) and have a few other posts coming later this week. In the meantime, from today's Jerusalem Post, here is a really great story on the Institute and their two founders, Ariel and Aharon. A Zionist kick in the pants Aharon Horwitz and Ariel Beery are both 28, and they are confident that their plan to change the world is quite practical. They have staked their fortunes and the past two years on a straightforward goal: to restore to Zionism the kind of history-shaping cultural energy that the movement's early architects envisioned. And so the two founded PresenTense, a Jerusalem-based hub for a social … Continue Reading
Birthright Day 11
Ten days changed their lives. Now what? One year ago this month, at the age of 26, I visited Israel for the first time. I did not go with my family, as I had long imagined, but in the company of 34 complete strangers. We arrived at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport a motley crew of Americans: Uri was a ba'al teshuva from California who liked to pontificate on the subtleties of Jewish observance, while Jaime was a sun-kissed sorority girl who knew no other Jews on her University of New Hampshire campus. Aaron, a bespectacled Los Angeles hipster, never had a bar mitzvah, while Russia-born Mike was once shomer negiah. As for me, I grew up in an observant Conservative home, which meant we celebrated two days of Rosh Hashanah, fasted on Yom Kippur and, more often than not, made a Passover pilgrimage to … Continue Reading
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