Over the past year, the trend at Jewish organizations can be summed up in a single word: more. An array of new programming and engagement initiatives have sprung up in response to rising antisemitism and Israel’s war efforts – and area donors, both large and small, have opened their wallets wider to fund it all.

“What we’ve seen is that people want to affirm their Jewish identity in their lives and also in their giving; they want to give Jewishly,” observed Gail Schulman, chief executive officer of Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Greater Boston (JF&CS). This has meant that donors who prioritize, say, food insecurity or children’s causes have directed their recent giving to Jewish organizations that work on those issues.
“Overall, giving in our community is way, way up,” agreed Jennifer Weinstock, Combined Jewish Philanthropies’ executive vice president of philanthropy. “We saw donors giving for the first time ever to our emergency fund. We saw new gifts. We saw bigger gifts, and we also saw the annual campaigns go up.”

Last year, CJP asked donors to consider making larger gifts to both its annual campaign and its emergency fund – and Weinstock said both efforts were among the most successful in her three decades of Jewish fundraising.

“We asked people to up [their donations] by 10 percent,” she said. “Hundreds and hundreds of people did that, allowing us to raise an additional few million dollars.” More than 6,700 people gave to the emergency fund, and more than 8,000 gave to the annual campaign.

The current annual campaign goal is $45 million, up $2 million from the previous year. Weinstock noted that giving included not only big-ticket donations from deep-pocketed philanthropists and foundations, but also “a $2 donation from a 9-year-old – and we had a fifth-grader who did a bake sale at their school to raise money.”

Likewise, both Israel and antisemitism at home are proving potent motivators for CJP donors. “We did not anticipate the length of this war, the toll it would take on American Jews, and then the downstream effects on antisemitism, especially on college campuses,” Weinstock said.

While Israel mobilization was a philanthropic priority “on Oct. 8, 9 and 10” of last year, Weinstock said the focus has broadened to address pressing issues at home, including Jewish institutions’ need for greater security measures; combating antisemitism; and expanding programming in response to greater communal engagement.

“Synagogues tell us they’re full for the first time; there’s a waiting list for programs,” Weinstock said. For CJP, “the question is how we have enough resources to make sure we can service all the people who are now raising their hands and saying, ‘I want in.’”

JF&CS is another organization that has seen an across-the-board uptick in need, engagement and donations. In the week following the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack, calls to the agency “literally doubled,” Schulman said. Throughout that fall, the agency coordinated temporary resettlement and myriad emergency services for dozens of visiting Israelis stranded in the U.S., as well as for Americans trapped overseas.

As the acute crisis subsided and longer-term impacts emerged, JF&CS, which has a $30 million budget and serves about 15,000 people annually, launched new support groups and expanded mental health services. Schulman noted the mental health crisis, while exacerbated by antisemitism and war anxiety, has been skyrocketing for at least five years, especially among youth.

A year ago, “we were holding our breath, wondering if we could find the funding for all of it,” Schulman said. Like other Jewish organizations throughout the region, the agency benefited from an uptick in largesse motivated by crisis-moment Jewish solidarity. Immediately after Oct. 7, foundations reached out to JF&CS, increasing giving by six-figure sums to meet the evident need.

“Foundation giving tends to come from an analytical perspective,” Schulman noted, “whereas the individual giving comes from the heart.”

Local institutions flourish

Philanthropists big and small have long focused on charitable giving that aligns with their values and supports causes they believe are impactful. In an era of increased antisemitism, more dollars are flowing to institutions like Jewish Community Centers and day schools that reinforce Jewish community and ensure its future.

“After Oct. 7, people wanted to give to Israel – so they donated to Epstein Hillel School because it helped ensure that our next generation of Israel supporters would be strong, articulate and confident,” said Lori Kreevoy, director of development and community engagement at EHS.

The Jewish day school, which serves kindergarten through eighth grade, had already seen its enrollment double to more than 120 during the pandemic. That was partly due to its in-person education at a time when local public schools shifted to remote learning and increasingly relied on apps. But it was also due to the feelings of comfort and solidarity that Jewish families felt when they put their children in a Jewish school amid rising antisemitism.

“As a Jewish day school, we were defined in the community,” Kreevoy said. “We have loyal donors who believe deeply in our mission of fostering Jewish leaders.” Especially given the rough waters that young Jews face once they head to secular high schools and colleges – which have lately been roiled with anti-Israel and anti-Zionist protests – Kreevoy noted schools like Epstein Hillel are perceived as offering an important bulwark against hostile social trends.

“I think our donors feel that this education helps by empowering our students to make a difference in the world,” she said. “Kids who come out of our school – they know who they are, and they’re able to advocate on behalf of themselves as Jewish students, as well as for Israel.”

At the Jewish Community Center of the North Shore (JCCNS), longtime Executive Director Marty Schneer agreed donors are eager to fund institutions that strengthen community at a time of uncertainty. “We have found that people come out and support programs in greater numbers than in the past,” he said.

Over the past six months, Schneer noted, the JCC, whose budget is already north of $8 million, has raised $2.3 million toward its $2.5 million goal for it capital campaign. These funds will go toward beefing up facility security, including installing a new entrance. “How quickly we’ve been able to get to this number has exceeded expectations,” he said.

Acknowledging the ideological polarization that exists within America’s dynamic and diverse Jewish community, Schneer noted JCCs are less controversial than some other Jewish charities. “We provide a place for people to come together, to be informed and just to be with other Jews,” he said.

Programming across the board has expanded in recent years due to rising demand; since Oct. 7, the JCC has increased its offerings related to Israel, including bringing in speakers to educate the community on different perspectives around the war and Israeli politics and society.

To this end, JCCNS has partnered with other North Shore Jewish institutions, as well as with non-Jewish community organizations. “That’s been a shift,” Schneer said, noting that while the national JCC movement has stepped up funding for Israel and antisemitism initiatives, mainstream community institutions have realized that “we can’t just leave this to the ADLs of the world. This is an all-hands-on-deck moment.”

Recognizing that widespread sentiment, CJP’s Weinstock has altered her outreach approach when soliciting donors. Rather than upping the ask by, say, $100 each year, “my advice [to institutions] now is, ‘Ask for what you need based on what you think your capacity is, instead of that more traditional soft approach.’ By giving clear numbers, it’s easier for donors to make those decisions.

“You know, someone going from zero to one million in a short time – that’s really possible right now, in a way that I wouldn’t have said that it was just two years ago. Donors understand that it’s an investment in our Jewish future – and that we need to step up right now.”