Philanthropy & Family Finance

Maximizing philanthropic impact: Why capacity building and unrestricted giving matter most

Graham Hoffman

Philanthropy is increasingly a hands-on endeavor. Donors, particularly in making sizeable philanthropic investments, want to understand the impact of their donations on the causes they support. This approach has influenced the philanthropic landscape, resulting in many nonprofits soliciting program-designated or restricted donations rather than unrestricted support in an attempt… Read more »

Fast facts about the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona

Did you know … that the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona is a 501c3 charitable organization? Did you know … that the Federation, in turn, supports six local community agencies that also are nonprofits?  They are the University of Arizona Hillel Foundation, Handmaker Jewish Services for the Aging, Jewish… Read more »

Hundreds meet in Kyiv for teen conference

Participants at theJ DC’s 6th annual Active Jewish Teens (AJT) Conference in Kyiv, Ukraine,, Nov. 7-10. (Anton Yaschenko)

More than 400 Jewish teens from around the world gathered for the sixth annual Active Jewish Teens Conference in Kyiv, Ukraine, Nov. 7-10, organized by the JDC, the global Jewish humanitarian organization also known as the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee. A bar/bat mitzvah ceremony for five teens, a conference… Read more »

Through JFCS, national fund boosts safety net for local Holocaust survivors

Tucson Holocaust survivors (L-R) Sidney Finkel, Wolfgang Hellpap, Walter Feiger, and Pawel Lichter (Photo: John Pregulman)

Jewish Family & Children’s Services of Southern Arizona recently partnered with a national initiative that provides emergency funding to local Holocaust survivors. Assistance from the Seed the Dream Foundation and KAVOD-Ensuring Dignity for Holocaust Survivors now is available for any Holocaust survivor through the new KAVOD Survivors of the… Read more »

JFSA women open Zehngut nominations

Erika Spivack

The Women’s Philanthropy Advisory Council of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona is seeking nominations for the 14th annual Bryna Zehngut Mitzvot Award, recognizing an outstanding Jewish teenage girl. The award honors Zehn-gut, a community leader who died in 2005. Nominees should be high school juniors or seniors who… Read more »

Hadassah event to celebrate 2019 Woman of the Year

Hadassah Southern Arizona will announce its Woman of the Year for 2019 and install its 2020 officers at a wine and chocolate philanthropy event on Sunday, Dec. 8 at 1:30 p.m. at the Ruth and Irving Olson Center for Jewish Life, 180 W. Magee Road, Suite 140. The Enchanted… Read more »

Broadening our scope: Trends in millennial giving

Graham Hoffman

We may find it convenient to believe that because young adults in our community are not exhibiting the same historically Jewish behaviors as their parents, they do not feel a strong connection to Jewish life. Nevertheless, consistently, when polled, millennial Jews report having strong, positive feelings about being Jewish.… Read more »

New wave: The changing face of Jewish philanthropy

Graham Hoffman

We live at a turning point in the history of Jewish philanthropy. Over the next few decades, more than $30 trillion will be passed down from the baby boomer generation to their children. As these considerable assets change hands, so too will the power to shape the philanthropic sector.… Read more »

Tucson Federation develops and funds creative, relevant community programs

Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona volunteer Louise Good, right, is a classroom reading tutor at Homer Davis Elementary School. (Danielle Larcom)

Editor’s Note: This is the third in a series of four articles on how the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona allocates funds. The first, in the Oct. 12 issue, focused on youth and family education programs at synagogues. The second, in the Nov. 23 issue, focused on national and… Read more »

Hebrew Free Loan of Tucson expands with employee assistance program

The Hebrew Free Loan Association of Tucson helps community members thrive. (Courtesy Hebrew Free Loan Association of Tucson)

The Hebrew Free Loan Association of Tucson has been around since 1947. Although it provides an invaluable service — granting interest-free financial assistance to those in need — its longtime president, Phil Bregman, has often called the association “the best kept secret in town.” But in the past nine… Read more »

TIHAN seeks help for locals living with HIV

Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Jewish Community Relations Council volunteers (L-R) Judy Gomez, Jim Rich, Jill Rich, Leslie Shire, and Rod Rodin (back) work with other local faith communities to support TIHAN’s Poz Café program.

T ucson Interfaith HIV/AIDS Network‘s Poz Café program provides a monthly gathering for people living with HIV. Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona funds a lunch annually and, along with local synagogues, provides volunteers to shop for food, cook and serve meals. More than 25,000 meals have been served and… Read more »

Community takes Homer Davis school to heart

Volunteers from Roche Tissue Diagnostics (Ventana Medical Systems, Inc), including Jennifer Miller Grant (foreground) and Ianna Brugal, pack food boxes for Homer Davis Elementary School on Dec. 15, 2017. The food boxes are part of ‘Making a Difference Every Day: The Homer Davis Project,’ coordinated by the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona’s Jewish Community Relations Council. (JFSA)

In Tucson, 21 percent of children live below the poverty level. It makes a difference when children study on empty stomachs. It makes a difference when they have no food to eat when they get home. It makes a difference in their ability to grow, learn and succeed. “Making… Read more »

In Tucson and beyond, b’nai mitzvah kids already are Jewish philanthropists

Pictured, Brenda Landau, right, with seventh graders at the Or Chadash annual meeting on May 9, 2016. Landau and her son Matt Landau are the Noah Cohen Memorial Philanthropy Program advisors.

SAN FRANCISCO (JTA) — Lyla Maymon and Jane Shvartzman went to interview officials last year at the Larkin Street Youth, a San Francisco organization fighting homelessness among young people, to see if their programs were worthy of a philanthropic grant. Maymon and Shvartzman asked all the right questions, like… Read more »

New estate sale business to benefit Greater Tucson Fire Foundation

(L-R) Patty Vallance, Jennifer Cassius and Anita Feder (Courtesy Family Friends, LLC)

Jennifer Cassius, Anita Feder and Patty Vallance recently formed Family Friends, LLC, an estate sales company. Family Friends aims to help families with the distribution and disposition of personal property, whether due to downsizing, a transition to alternative living arrangements or the loss of a loved one, “with an… Read more »

Inspiring kids’ philanthropy in the 21st century

Tracy Salkowitz

When I was little, kids used to walk around the neighborhood asking for funds for everything from the PTA to the girl scouts.  We used to have tzedakah or charity boxes (pushkes) in our homes where we would drop coins to plant trees in Israel or to support Hadassah… Read more »

Weaving community: How the JFSA works

Stuart Mellan

“Weaving … is the essential art of creating the unified out of two opposites. If the meeting of opposites does not take place, nothing is created, for each element is defined by its opposite and takes its meaning from it.” — Dario Valcarenghi as quoted in “The Art of… Read more »

IRS provides tax information on giving to charity

PHOENIX — The Internal Revenue Service reminds individuals and businesses making year-end gifts to charity that several important tax law provisions have taken effect in recent years. Some of the changes taxpayers should keep in mind include: Rules for charitable contributions of clothing and household items Household items include… Read more »

Taking a breath and hitting the pause button

Tracy Salkowitz

I’ve often told people how honored I am to have my job. “You’re kidding,” they say. “Don’t you just talk about death?” In point of fact, we rarely talk about death. We talk about life! We at the Jewish Community Foundation of Southern Arizona are the “pause doctors,” if… Read more »

Creating a philanthropic legacy from generation to generation

Tracy Salkowitz

In memory of Ray Lederman, who always made whoever he was speaking to feel as if they were the most important person in the world. Many of us, when considering the legacy we want to leave, think about our family and our community. We hope to raise children who… Read more »