WEST HARTFORD – The Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Hartford is spear-heading a community-wide legacy giving initiative with 14 Jewish organizations – as well as The Foundation itself – participating. 

The initiative is part of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation’s (HGF) Life & Legacy program, a nationwide Jewish legacy giving initiative that aims to promote after-lifetime giving to benefit Jewish day schools, synagogues, social service organizations and other Jewish organizations. To date, HGF has secured more than 28,000 after-lifetime commitments with an estimated value of over one billion dollars for Jewish organizations across North America. 

The Hartford area Jewish organizations participating in the four-year initiative will receive coaching, training and incentive grants to ensure that legacy giving becomes further integrated in the philanthropic culture of the community.  

In addition to The Foundation, the 14 other Hartford area organizations participating in the initiative are:

Voices of Hope (Farmington) 

Congregation Kol Haverim (Glastonbury)

Charter Oak Cultural Center (Hartford)

Farmington Valley Jewish Congregation-Emek Shalom (Glastonbury)

Temple Beth Hillel (South Windsor)

Congregation Beth Israel (West Hartford)

Hebrew Senior Care (West Hartford)

Jewish Family Services (West Hartford)

Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford (West Hartford)

Mandell JCC (West Hartford)

New England Jewish Academy (West Hartford)

Solomon Schechter Day School (West Hartford)

The Emanuel Synagogue (West Hartford)

Young Israel of West Hartford (West Hartford)

“The pandemic has shown that organizations with endowments are faring better than those without them,” says Jacob Schreiber, president and CEO of the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Hartford. “It’s inspiring to see so many Jewish organizations having the foresight to work on securing their – and our community’s collective – future, even as they continue raising annual dollars to maintain their current programs and services.”

The Foundation will receive a 1:2 matching grant from HGF of approximately $100,000 each year to provide participating local organizations with unrestricted incentive grants, for meeting legacy commitment benchmarks. The Foundation will fund the rest of the cost of the program.

“The Harold Grinspoon Foundation is excited to help the Jewish Community Foundation further establish a culture of legacy giving in the Greater Hartford Jewish community,” says Arlene D. Schiff, national director of the Life & Legacy program. “This legacy initiative will make the most of the generational transfer of wealth and provide generous members of the Greater Hartford Jewish community with the opportunity to express their passion, purpose and commitment to their most valued Jewish organizations.”

Life & Legacy is investing $30 million dollars over a 10-year period to preserve vibrant Jewish life for future generations by ensuring the long-term financial health of Jewish community organizations in cities across North America.

“Providing Jewish communities with proven tools and training to help them secure their long-term financial goals is vital,” says HGF founder Harold Grinspoon, the founder of HGF. “Through the Life & Legacy program, I am hopeful that we will be able to help sustain vibrant communities that allow future generations to enjoy our rich Jewish culture and heritage.”

For more information about the Life & Legacy program in Greater Hartford, contact Elana MacGilpin at emacgilpin@jcfhartford.org.