Charitable grants will provide food to the hungry, send children affected by COVID-19 to summer camp and create a therapy center.

(Courtesy of JCF) Jewish Communal Fund (JCF) of New York, the largest and most active Jewish donor advised fund in the country, approved nearly $700,000 in charitable grants to Jewish charities through its endowment, the JCF Special Gifts Fund.

This funding will be earmarked to meet increased food needs for low-income New Yorkers; provide Jewish summer camp scholarships for children significantly impacted by COVID-19; create a therapy center for preschoolers with special needs; and provide funding for capital improvements to local day camps.

The JCF Special Gifts Fund Committee selected the grantee charities with the assistance of UJA-Federation of New York.

“Jewish Communal Fund is privileged to be able to support the most vulnerable populations in our community,” said Daniel Blaser, chair of Jewish Communal Fund’s Charitable Distribution/Special Gifts Fund Committee.

Since 1999, the Board of Trustees of the Jewish Communal Fund has granted more than $20 million to support programs that promote the welfare and security of the Jewish community at home and abroad.

The latest JCF Special Gifts Fund Grantees include:

• $250,000 to the Sephardic Jewish Community Center to create a therapy center

Thanks to JCF’s support, The Sephardic Community Center in Brooklyn will be able to build a 1,500-square-foot therapy center, where preschool-age children can receive physical, occupational and speech therapy. The Jewish Communal Fund Therapy Center will feature therapy swings, a rock-climbing wall, climbing structures, monkey bars, balance beam, therapy balls and other sensory equipment to enhance experiential learning for preschoolers of all abilities.

• $211,000 to UJA-Federation of New York to provide Jewish day camp scholarships for campers attending camps housed on the Henry Kaufmann Campgrounds for Summer 2021.

JCF’s support will enable children—many of whom have experienced the loss of a parent or are living in or near poverty as a result of a parent’s job loss—the ability to go to Jewish summer camp. Day camp scholarships will be divided among 13 Jewish community centers that run day camps at the Henry Kaufmann Campgrounds in Long Island, Staten Island, and Rockland County.

• $130,000 to the Shorefront JCC for its digital food pantry

Food insecurity is on the rise in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic; demand at UJA-funded food pantries is up 40% as compared to last year. JCF’s support will help the Shorefront JCC Digital Pantry provide more nutritious food for its clients, many of whom are Russian-speaking seniors, and enable greater choice in selecting food.

• $100,000 to UJA-Federation of New York to provide a matching grant to four camps in UJA’s network to secure funding for capital improvements

JCF’s donation will help Camp Zeke, Eden Village Camp, Berkshire Hills Eisenberg Camp and Surprise Lake Camp fund capital improvements that will expand enrollment while following COVID-related social distancing guidelines. JCF’s grant can help these camps secure matching funds from the Jewish Community Response and Impact Fund (JCRIF) through the Foundation for Jewish Camp.

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