Federation Impact Winter 2022

FEDERATION

IMPACT

You give our Jewish community a better future

WINTER 2022

jewishcincinnati.org

YOU CREATE A VIBRANT JEWISH COMMUNITY FOR JACOB —Story on p. 2

“Jewish Cincinnati is so important to me; it helps create the identity I was missing as a kid.”

—Jacob Stadiem

JACOB VALUES COMMUNITY HE NEVER HAD AS CHILD

As a child in small-town North Carolina, Jacob Stadiem grew up with only a tiny Jewish community. Out of his school of 1,600, only four students were Jewish.

“I felt like an outcast in my own town,” he said.

For Jacob, going to Jewish camp, and then coming to Cincinnati as a young adult, anchored him in his Jewish identity. “Being Jewish, to me, honestly, is camp.

That’s why Jewish Cincinnati is so important to me; it helped create the identity I was missing as a kid.”

“What sets our Jewish Federation and our community apart from others is the percentage of people that get involved here. You’ll hear over and over about how many people are involved,” he says.

Jacob and his wife welcomed their new baby just in time for Hanukkah.

Jacob is already giving back. He returned to Jewish summer camp as a counselor, and led a trip to Israel.

Currently, he’s engaged in the Federation’s Young Adult Division (YAD) with his wife, who is not Jewish.

The community has been “just as welcoming to her as to myself—with open arms.”

The Power of Dialogue THANKS TO YOU: 27 Diverse Leaders Learn How to Combat Divisiveness, Antisemitism, and Hate

“In my practice as a mediator, I’ve realized one of the most challenging effects of contempt and hate is hopelessness.

But programs like Leaders in Light are an antidote to that hopelessness.”

—Sherri Goren Slovin, co-facilitator, Leaders in Light Institute

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We are living in a time of extremist rhetoric and conspiracy theories that make civility and governance a challenge.

But programs you support through the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati, like the Leaders in Light Institute, teach civility and democracy with brilliance and care.

This first-of-its-kind pilot project of the Federation’s Jewish Community Relations Council offers a way forward, teaching reasonable discourse and the promotion of the core ideals of democracy. These changemakers cross a diverse spectrum of Cincinnati. They are exploring the real challenges of extremism, antisemitism, racism, and inclusive democracy.

Who is invited to this leadership academy? Twenty-seven of the best and the brightest new leaders in Cincinnati. Not just politicians, but educational, religious, media, nonprofit, arts, and business leaders. Having started in September 2021, they are currently engaging in nine monthly sessions of transformative learning. Seed funding will then help the leaders implement these tools and approaches in their community.

YOUR GIFT

In a Crisis, Your Help is Crucial Her husband’s death was only the start

While we all plan for emergencies, sometimes a crisis can hit you too hard. The pandemic brought Deirdre (identifying details changed for privacy) a tidal wave of tragic events. Most painful, after 26 years together, Deirdre’s husband was killed in an automobile accident. His love, his paycheck, their future—all was lost.

lifted Deirdre’s family out of crisis

“We are all only one paycheck away from crisis,” Deirdre said.

In addition, the pandemic meant their 16-year-old son, Sam, had to attend school virtually. Sam has Down syndrome, so Deirdre had to quit her part-time job to be home with him. Making matters still more difficult, Deirdre recently underwent knee replacement surgery.

“We are all only one paycheck away from crisis.”

Grief-stricken and with insufficient income, Deirdre became so behind on her bills that she was on the verge of losing their home.

—Deirdre

her. “To lose the house on top of everything else?” she said. “I couldn’t do that to Sam.”

Fortunately, her rabbi helped her find Jewish Family Service (JFS), funded by you through the Jewish Federation. Debbie, a JFS care manager, advised and supported her.

RISE UP, DO GOOD

But it was seeing Sam every day that incentivized

The Israeli government recently voted to bring an additional 3,000 Ethiopian Jews to Israel in 2022. Your gift to the Federation funds the Jewish Agency for Israel, which supports these brave immigrants in starting new lives.

Debbie helped Deirdre forestall the foreclosure; JFS even paid Deidre’s mortgage once. She taught Deirdre, at age 53, how to budget. Deirdre and Sam are now out of crisis, thanks to your gift.

Through the Federation, you support Ohio Jewish Communities, a statewide government advocacy, public affairs, and community relations voice for Ohio’s eight Jewish Federations.

In 2020-2021 Cincinnati received more than $1.7 million in funding advocated for by OJC, which supported partner agencies and programs like JVS Career Services, Cincinnati Hillel, and the Jewish Cincinnati Bicentennial.

All Cincy Journeys travel grants amounts have increased. Administered by the Jewish Federation and funded by the Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati, these grants provide great opportunities for Cincinnati kids, teens, and young adults to partake in camp and travel.

The Cincinnati Jewish Interest Free Loan program, administered by the Federation, provides interest-free loans to Jewish borrowers in the Cincinnati area. Learn more at jewishcincinnati.org/CJIFL.

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You Are the Backbone of Our Campaign Dear friend, Since January 1, we have seen the Federation’s 2022 Annual Campaign grow by $506,000. Thanks to your generosity, we are the envy of Federations across the country. Every year, our community comes together, working to raise money. And at the heart of this work are our smart, enthusiastic, and generous volunteers.

You—our volunteers, from our Annual Campaign chairs to those making phone calls on Super Sunday—are the secret sauce of our success. It is amazing, and I am so impressed seeing this up close for the first time.

For example, Mark and Marcy Kanter have been active members of the Cincinnati Jewish community for decades. Most recently, they cochaired the October 2021 Major Gifts Dinner thrown by the Jewish Federation in honor of their major donors. The Kanters saw it as just another step in their community involvement.

For Mark, watching his parents participate in and support the Cincinnati Jewish community helped him see the importance of giving back. “Neither my parents, nor Marcy’s, ever sat us down and told us the value of supporting the Jewish community,” said Mark.

“They just did it, and we watched them do it, and now it’s something that we consider an important part of ourselves. And like our parents, we led our children by 4|

“Like our parents, we led our children by example,” said Mark Kanter, pictured here at the Western Wall with his wife, Marcy, and two children, Sammy and Annie.

example. Annie and Sammy saw us donating our time and money, and they got involved themselves.”

Annie is an active member of the Cincinnati Jewish community, and Sammy is studying to become a rabbi.

“To me,” said Mark, “giving has a very plain and simple reason—we take care of our community because that’s what we do as Jews.”

Thank you to each of you—volunteers, lay leaders, and donors—for all that you do for our community.

Tamara Harkavy Chief Development Officer Jewish Federation of Cincinnati