The Foundation Is Here for Our Community

There is a Yiddish proverb that says, “You can’t control the wind, but you can adjust your sails.”

The Jewish people have a 3,000 plus year history of adjusting our sails and having to respond and adapt to outside events. One great example of this is the founding of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation over 80 years ago by a visionary group of leaders, led by Stanley C. Meyers (z”l), in response to Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass, which foreshadowed the Holocaust.

Since then, Federation has been at the forefront of meeting the ever-changing needs of our community in a proactive and planful manner. We have learned that having a strong and thriving Jewish community depends upon the long-term financial stability of our Federation and the partner agencies we care about so much. That is why we created The Foundation more than 50 years ago, under the leadership of Harry Smith (z”l) and other volunteers who had the foresight to think about the importance of a Jewish community endowment, even as Miami’s Jewish community was relatively young and developing.

Our assets have grown to more than $400 million over the years, representing more than 700 families and organizations. The Foundation is grateful to have earned the trust of donors, professional advisors and organizational leaders like you. Thank you for partnering with us in your charitable giving and endowment management.

Although we find ourselves, yet again, in a time of uncertainty where we will need to “adjust our sails,” the Greater Miami Jewish Federation remains strong thanks to you and the legacy of those who came before us.

In ordinary times, The Foundation makes a sizable allocation to the Annual Federation/UJA Campaign and infrastructure. This past year, that allocation totaled $4.4 million from Campaign Endowment Funds, Donor Designated Funds and the Jewish Community Trust Fund. This, in addition to the Annual Campaign, helps provide Federation with the resources to care for those in need, meet unexpected challenges and plan for the future, now and forever. In times of economic crisis like the one we saw in 2008, The Foundation made additional grants totaling $3.3 million over the course of three years to Federation to help keep our community whole.

This time will be no different. We are in this together. Thank you for your continued trust and partnership. We know there are many worthy charitable organizations in Miami and we do not take it for granted that you chose us. We hope you will enjoy learning more about how The Foundation and Federation are responding to the needs of our community during this time of crisis.

If you or someone you know is in need of assistance, please visit www.JewishMiami.org/covid19/. The Federation’s Coronavirus Community Resource page provides up-to-date information and useful resources. There is also information available if you are in a position to provide help to others.

We were here in the past, we are here in the present and we will be here in the future as we look forward to a stronger tomorrow — today!

Steven M. Foldes Chair of The Foundation

Scott Kaplan The Foundation Director