Endowment Fund Donors Show the Way to Build Community

The following is a reprint of an article published in the July 8, 2026 issue of the Jewish Community Voice, titled, "Endowment Fund Donors Show the Way to Build Community":

Hundreds of philanthropic donors utilize the Jewish Community Foundation, Inc. (JCF) to manage long-lasting endowment funds. Spoiler alert: This summer, we invite you to join them in creating your own, named endowment fund and take advantage of a special incentive when doing so. Read on!

Donors establish endowment funds to provide consistent, annual payouts from the fund to sustain their beloved charitable causes. During a donor’s lifetime, contributions of cash, appreciated stock, IRA qualified charitable distributions, or other assets can grow the fund. Additionally, as we often promote via the Harold Grinspoon Foundation’s Life & Legacy initiative, an after-lifetime gift can be endowed, via a gift in a will or as a beneficiary designation from an IRA, life insurance policy, or other similar arrangement. The key is working with the JCF to get it started.

Perhaps these six examples of JCF endowment funds will inspire you to initiate your own:

• Charles & Mathilde Middleberg Holocaust Education Fund: Both Holocaust Survivors who spoke about their experiences to school children and other groups, Charles (z”l, pictured above) and Mathilde (z”l) were passionate about making sure the Holocaust would never happen again. Their four children created this endowment in 2025 to memorialize their parents and ensure that Holocaust education through the Raab Goodwin Center could continue in South Jersey for many years to come.

• Morrow Family Endowment Funds (2): In 2023, Melissa Morrow founded the Morrow Foundation Project SARAH Endowment Fund to support JFCS clients who are domestic abuse victims. Simultaneously, her sister, Abbegayle, opened the Morrow Family JCC Camps at Medford Endowment Fund, to assist families in need in paying camp tuition. Adding extra significance, both Melissa and Abbegayle have involved their families in their respective funds, a fantastic example of multiple generations uniting in tikkun olam (repairing the world).

• Ruth Rudolph Memorial Adath Emanu-El Endowment Fund: Shortly after his wife Ruth (z”l), died in 2017, Ivan Rudolph (z”l), who passed away in January of this year, created this fund to support the operations of the synagogue they both loved dearly. As Life & Legacy participants, the Rudolphs wanted to perpetuate Adath’s programs and services for future generations to enjoy as they did during their lifetimes.

• Vicki & Brian Zell Endowment for Leadership and Learning: As longtime, active Jewish community leaders themselves, the Zells want to ensure that others in the SNJ Jewish community can learn and grow as leaders, too. They appreciate the role that the Federation Leadership Institute (FLI) plays in developing future leaders, so in 2024 they decided to endow annual funding for FLI programming. The future is brighter thanks to the Zells’ foresight and generosity.

• Julius & Rosetta Zinman Annual Campaign Endowment Fund: Long-time supporters of the Jewish Federation of Southern New Jersey’s Annual Campaign (now known as JFund), the Zinmans (z”l) left a legacy gift in their will in the 1990s to perpetuate their Annual Campaign gift. Since the fund launched, the total annual payouts have well exceeded the original value of the fund, underscoring the importance of an endowment fund for long-term sustainability.

Now, the special incentive for your consideration: Thanks to matching donations from the Alan Wechsler Endowment Education Fund and from my wife Allison and me, if you start a new endowment fund by September 30, your contribution of $5,000 or more will be matched by $500. We hope to start up to 50 new funds--will one of them be yours?

Whether new or old, large or small, endowment funds go a long way to enhance our community. To discuss creating a fund or leaving a legacy gift, please contact me at dsnyder@jfedsnj.org or (856) 673-2571.