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OUR FUNDRAISING WORK CONTINUES
By Stuart Simmons, Executive Director
For more than a year, members of our congregation have been writing thoughtful messages in this column, hoping to kindle your interest in learning more about and possibly making a contribution to our Endowment Fund. The Fund has been established to provide for the growth and perpetuity of our synagogue.
Unlike other monies you contribute which pay for programs and operational costs, an Endowment gift is invested and only the interest generated by these invested funds is used. This assures that these contributions will always be around to provide us with a future source of income.
The members of this congregation are generous people who always demonstrate a readiness and willingness to support worthwhile causes and deserving institutions. Colleges and museums, hospitals and the performing arts, the State of Israel and Jews the world over, have all been beneficiaries of this generosity. The congregation too, has benefited immeasurably, which is readily apparent as you enter our magnificent synagogue campus.
The response by you, our members, to the campaign to build this spiritual home, was truly stunning. When we began, most of us did not think of ourselves as philanthropists. Often when we compared what we were able to contribute to the size of the task before us, it became easy to be overwhelmed. But gifts at each contributor's comfort level or capacity, whether $10, $100, $1000, $10,000, $100,000 or $1 million, made it happen.
We've built the buildings and now have the unique opportunity to sustain the ideals, which brought us to this moment. When we embarked on the construction of our synagogue campus, we were out of space downtown and our facility was outdated and inadequate. But these were not the only reasons we built.
We did this because we know that it is only the synagogue that replenishes Jewish commitment, continuity and identity in each new generation. While every institution and cause asks a lot from Jews, the synagogue's job, in partnership with parents and grandparents, is to create new Jews who will know the meaning of tzedakah and tikkun olam. We now have the physical resources to do our job but our fund raising work continues.
This is the time for growing our Endowment because we cannot depend on dues and fees alone to fully fund our schools, programs and increased operating costs in the future. The Endowment will create opportunities for us to educate the next generation. It will open new doors and create new experiences and help assure that our congregation will grow and flourish. It will do this and much more with your participation and your gift.
Stuart Simmons
Executive Director
Congregation Beth Israel
If you are interested in a confidential appointment to explore ways in which you may wish to make an endowment gift, please contact Stuart Simmons, Executive Director, at 858-535-1111 ext. 3113.
Merle Brodie, a member of our congregation and our Endowment Committee, serves as Director of Philanthropy at the Jewish Community Foundation. If you are interested in learning more about tax saving strategies through charitable giving, please call Merle at 858-279-2740.Return to articles about endowment go to top
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