Alef: The NEXT Conversation

Why I Give

By Robby Kaufman

I donate to a few Jewish causes that I care about deeply. I can give you the 30-second elevator pitch on why you should stop what you’re doing and open up your wallets to these organizations, but this is not my goal.

While I had a Bar Mitzvah and attended Hebrew school growing up, I never had a desire to involve myself Jewishly until I went on my Taglit-Birthright Israel trip in college. I can go on and on about how incredible, motivational, inspirational, etc., the trip was, but I want to talk about one outcome of my Taglit experience – the trip made me understand why many Jewish organizations exist and how donations from generous individuals literally enable them to exist.

When I returned from the trip as a freshman at UC-Berkeley, I became involved with two particular Jewish agencies: Hillel and AIPAC. I learned a lot from these organizations and they helped me develop into the person I am today. Without Berkeley Hillel, for example, I would not have had a rich Jewish college experience or met some of my best friends today. I think these two organizations have important missions and are successful in achieving their goals. At some point, I realized that I wanted to help these organizations because I am a true supporter of their goals and purposes and that they are vital to the Jewish community.

Although I have limited knowledge of the philanthropic world, I have become a strong believer in developing a culture of giving. A Jewish nonprofit organization that is seeking to be around in the future needs to grow and develop a donor base. This may be common sense, but the harsh reality is that large donors that make up a significant portion of an organization’s budget will likely not be contributing in a generation or two. Most Jewish organizations lack significant endowment structures that are designed to sustain them indefinitely.

Instead, younger donors – such as myself – may very well be the donors that enable these organizations to succeed in the future. So when I write my $18 check and motivate my peers to do the same, my goal is to instill a sense of importance to donating to causes that we find important. These $18 checks may not be terribly meaningful by themselves, but my hope is that each individual who is donating at a young age will gain an understanding of the importance, necessity, and value of philanthropy. I am also hoping that these donors will step up to the plate when the time comes many years down the road when an organization they care about needs them more than they do today.

Read more posts from Issue #11: Money, Greed, & Guilt.

Photo by Mr. Kris, licensed under Creative Commons.

Tags: birthright israel, jewish, Money, philanthropy

Posted by Sarah, Friday, April 16th, 2010, 2:34 pm, Money Greed and Guilt.