Home
News
Opinion
About
Archive
Jewish Insider
Subscribe
Facebook
Twitter
News Opinion Your Daily Phil
Facebook
Twitter
Subscribe
Search

A Conversation with JSwipe Founder on Millenial Philanthropy

November 8, 2019
Share
Facebook
Twitter
Email
Print Friendly, PDF & Email

By Moshe Hecht

David Yarus has closely watched as marketing evolved from its not-so-distant past into the highly-connected, digital industry that it has become today. Now, as the founder of the JSwipe Jewish dating app and the MLLNNL creative agency, he puts his vast knowledge and innovative marketing techniques to work every day to help change the world.

I sat down with David to talk about “The Love Study” that he conducted with JSwipe users, as well as on his thoughts on getting millennials involved in philanthropy.

David started JSwipe 5 years ago, and since then, has been invited to speak at countless Jewish conferences, federations, foundations, and organizations. Though he continues to be impressed by the work that these groups regularly accomplish, he was alarmed at what he took to be a lack of critical dialogue about the millennial Jewish experience. In fact, as he pointed out, there was almost no discussion between the Jewish “establishment” – which he affectionately calls “Big Jewish” – and their millenials who, as a whole, are a lot less affiliated than previous generations.  

The token, brief conversations that do occur, he said, don’t address the core of how millenials feel about supporting Jewish organizations and lifestyles. Instead, it seemed as if actually productive conversations were intentionally avoided, as they had the potential to bring up sensitive or uncomfortable topics.

This need for real discussion – which would finally tackle issues that David had been personally dealing with himself – is what inspired the development of “The Love Study”: the first study to effectively give a voice to a generation and create the necessary space for a real dialogue to take place.

“How,” he asked, “Can we create a bridge that continues the essence of what generations past practiced and want for us, but also maintains our truth?”

After 4,000 answers were coded thematically and proportionally, the Love Study revealed something surprising: 70% of millennial respondents financially supported Jewish organizations, with Chabad as the most supported.

Clearly, unlike what many “establishment” Jewish organizations believe, millennial Jews are more than willing to support organizations that speak to them. All that remains now, he argues, is for a conversation to be had.

David believes that, at its core, the conversation needs to be about “co-creation.” In other words, organizations need to figure out how to not only plainly communicate their mission and their purpose, but how to incorporate new, millennial ideas into those goals. They need to ask a simple question: “How can we combine our resources with your creativity to make something great happen?”

So how should your nonprofit communicate those ideas? By answering these three questions:

  1. Where is my money going?
  2. Can I direct where it’s going?
  3. Where can I have the greatest dollar-for-dollar impact?

In such a universally connected world, he points out, donors have a bevy of organizations from every corner of the earth to choose from; when so many causes out there speak to the millennial donor – someone who really does want to make a difference – how can you make sure that your voice and mission can be heard above the rest?

“Talk to them, empower them, trust them, and co-create with them,” David says. As long as you’re showing and documenting your important work in an organic fashion, involve your prospective millennial donors, and they will give.

Enjoy our conversation!

Moshe Hecht is a philanthropy futurist, public speaker and chief innovation officer of Charidy, a crowdfunding platform and consulting company that has helped 4000 organizations raise over a quarter billion dollars. His articles have been published in publications such as Forbes, Nonprofit Quarterly and eJewishPhilanthropy. @moshehecht @wearecharidy#tzedakaspresent

This piece is the latest addition to Tzedaka’s Present: A column on current and future giving trends and opportunities.

Your Daily Phil

July 3, 2025

Your Daily Phil: Israel’s impending mental health ‘tsunami’

News

A view of the damage is seen after a missile launched from Iran on June 15, 2025, struck the Israeli city of Bat Yam, south of Tel Aviv, on June 20, 2025.

Q&A

Brooklyn-based La’Aretz Foundation looks to give $2,500 directly to victims of Bat Yam missile attack

FIRST AID

Israeli mental health experts raise alarm of impending ‘tsunami of war-related psychiatric illness’ after 20 months of conflict

MAJOR GIFTS

Frieze Family Foundation commits $5 million to create ‘Center for Shared Society’ at University of Haifa

HIDDEN FEES

Foundation for Jewish Camp raises $2M to offset added costs to American camps from Israel-Iran war

TRANSITIONS

UJA-Federation of New York’s Eric Goldstein to step down next year

BARUCH DAYAN EMET

S. Daniel Abraham, major Democrat donor and funder of Middle East peace initiatives, dies at 100

CONNECTION INTERFERENCE

‘Mifgash’ programs struggle as trips canceled and Israeli teens barred from traveling overseas

Opinion

MIXED MESSAGES

Corporate silence in a time of war: Global corporations walking the Israel tightrope

WAKE UP CALL

Antisemitism is a warning sign. Are we listening?

SHAKE THINGS UP

Breaking the enrollment paradox: A new approach to Jewish day schools

IN THE AFTERMATH

Supporting the bereaved families left behind

SPACE TO SHARE

When teachers are learners: Making professional growth visible in Jewish education

A COMMUNITY MODEL

Elevating Jewish early childhood education means elevating how we recruit and retain educators 

Navigation
Home
News
Opinion
Archive
About
Social
Facebook
Twitter
Subscribe

Copyright © 2025 · eJewishPhilanthropy · All Rights Reserved

Subscribe now to
Your Daily Phil

The philanthropy news you need to stay up to date, delivered daily in a must-read newsletter.

Subscribe to Our Newsletters to Access

Enter your email to gain access to our exclusive content
Don’t worry, if you are already subscribed you won’t receive our newsletters twice