Jewish Communal Fund (JCF), the largest and most active Jewish donor advised fund in the country, approved grants totaling $737,400 to local Jewish charities in the New York area through its endowment, the JCF Special Gifts Fund. Since 1999, the Board of Trustees of the Jewish Communal Fund has granted more than $12 million to support programs that promote the welfare and security of the Jewish community at home and abroad. These charities are selected with the assistance of UJA-Federation of New York.

This year’s Special Gift Fund Grantees include:

• $150,000 to UJA-Federation of New York for the expansion of the Witness Theater Holocaust education project, a unique intergenerational program that brings Holocaust survivors and teenagers to develop a theatrical presentation of the survivors’ Holocaust experiences. JCF’s grant will help to continue this valuable program at four schools in Manhattan and Brooklyn, as well as bring this powerful educational experience to Westchester.
• $55,400 to the Shorefront Jewish Community Council Food Pantry, to help them transition to a client choice model, a more efficient and dignified way to assist their 1,200 clients. The agency plans to also offer nutrition classes and cooking demonstrations to help clients learn how to cook healthy meals for their families with the food they receive from the pantry.
• $102,000 to the Central Queens YM & YWHA Food Pantry in support of the renovation of the food pantry that was damaged by a debilitating fire. JCF’s generous grant will also help the pantry transition to a client-choice model and acquire additional refrigerators and freezers so that it can store more meat, dairy and fresh produce. The new building will be handicapped-accessible and will feature a classroom space to provide nutrition education classes.
• $120,000 to the Kings Bay YM-YWHA, located in Sheepshead Bay, to expand its existing auditorium. JCF’s grant will enable the Kings Bay Y, the hub of activity for 7,000 residents, to transform its auditorium into a larger, more efficient space with portable stage, upgraded lighting and a quality sound system.
• $200,000 (over three years) to the JCC of Manhattan’s Day Camp to provide scholarships to low-income campers who would not otherwise have been able to afford this opportunity. The scholarships will enable these children to attend Camp Settoga in its beautiful, new, and larger location in Pomona, New York.
• $110,000 to UJA-Federation of New York and the Jewish Community Relations Council of NY for the Faculty Engagement Initiative, a project to create a three-pronged Faculty Engagement Initiative to grow pro-Israel sentiment on college campuses within the United States.