The Milwaukee Jewish Federation kicked off its annual Community Campaign 2002 shortly before the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. Like many other charitable organizations, it has observed and contributed to the outpouring of American financial support for the families of those killed, injured or rendered jobless.
Yet, like organizations across the country, the federation has had to assess whether the events of that day, and the downturn in the U.S. economy, will affect local charitable giving.
Jody Kaufman Loewenstein, general campaign chair, said that although she had expected a downturn in funds coming into the community campaign, that has not been the case thus far.
“So far,” she said, “we’ve seen a five percent increase over last year. The outpouring of support [for the campaign] suggests that people think of this as a time in history in which we will be judged as Jews — how we take a stand and hold our values dear. It’s a time for the community to unite to make a statement about the future of the Jewish community in Milwaukee and around the world.
“I think we are a people of crisis and the attack on our ideals has pushed us to rise to the occasion. And the campaign is the methodology for us to show our support for those values and ideals.”
In addition, Loewenstein reported that the Israel NOW campaign, a parallel campaign supporting Milwaukee’s Partnership 2000 program in the Sovev Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) region in Israel, has raised over $110,000.
“That’s all new money,” she said proudly. “The response has been amazing. Since the Sept. 11 attacks, I think American Jews are seeing more clearly the relationship with Israel and they can better internalize its needs. The funds being raised by the Israel NOW campaign will be used to improve the security of schools in the region and to bolster emergency services at the regional hospital.”
‘Tough get going’
During a recent visit to Milwaukee to address major MJF donors, philanthropist Charles R. Bronfman, the first chairman of the United Jewish Communities, the umbrella of North American Jewish federations, echoed Loewenstein’s remarks. He said he doesn’t expect Sept. 11 to negatively affect philanthropy because “When times get tough, the tough get going.”
At a federation breakfast meeting with young leaders on Oct. 18, Bronfman told The Chronicle, “It is a difficult time to be young or old. The economy was not good before the attacks and has plummeted since. But those who have been laid off from their jobs don’t control big money. At the same time, corporations, which have demonstrated an amazing outpouring for the relief efforts, are not generally the backbone of our [federation] campaigns.”
As for philanthropic giving in general, Bronfman said, “I sense people want to strengthen themselves and their communities, whether through support of federation campaigns or by donations to the Red Cross. People no longer take life in America for granted and want to make sure their own community is strong.”
Having analyzed data compiled by The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University on giving in times of crisis over the past 40 years, Richard H. Meyer, MJF executive vice president said, “With few exceptions, figures suggest that the pattern for giving is good in difficult times, and that both philanthropy and the stock market have rebounded in the following year. As we go forward with the community campaign, these historical trends give us some degree of comfort and hope, despite the uniqueness of the recent events.”
The center reports that donations to the Sept. 11 relief fund from donors making “small gifts are likely to have little impact” on total giving.
The center’s executive director Eugene Tempel said, “Our findings show that both the stock market and giving are resilient. While we are in a unique situation, in the past Americans have shown a remarkable capacity to recover from adversity, both economically and spiritually, as measured by the stock market and giving.”
From the local perspective, Loewenstein added, “Although the economy has continued to weaken, the majority of our donors give from income rather than appreciated assets, so they shouldn’t be affected by the economy.
“That’s positive,” she said, “because unfortunately, the needs of the community haven’t lessened because of the attacks.”
Noting that the federation has boosted its donor base in the past several years, she anticipates a successful campaign and remains optimistic.
Meyer added, “I think over time, people will recognize that things that were important before the terrorist attacks are still or maybe even more important now. Life goes on. The needs are still there and won’t go away.
“In addition, this crisis may help Generation X and other non-givers to understand philanthropy. Some people are, for the first time, thinking beyond themselves and seeing philanthropy as a responsibility to society.”
Kristi Meyers Gallup, the federation’s financial resource development director, agrees and stated, “I believe the events of Sept. 11, as tragic as they are, issued a wake-up call for all Americans to determine what matters to them in their world.”
Gallup, who has studied the psychology of giving patterns, said she finds that philanthropists are becoming more donor-centered, which gives them the opportunity to support something they are passionate about. “They have to believe in the need,” she said. “My job is to match the donors with the needs.”
The Jewish Community Foundation, the federation’s endowment development program, helps to make that happen, explained Caren B. Goldberg, JCF associate executive director. Through donor-advised philanthropic funds “that are used like a ‘charitable bank account,’ donors can determine how they want to distribute their funds. The funds can be designated for any charitable cause, including MJF’s annual community campaign.”
Since the Sept. 11 attacks, Goldberg said that those with donor-advised funds have contributed nearly $20,000 to the relief effort by requesting distributions and making additional donations to the United Jewish Communities, Red Cross, United Way Sept. 11 Fund and others.
“The endowment development program,” Goldberg said, “builds for the community’s future. It goes hand in hand with the campaign, and offers the donors more flexibility in their philanthropy.”
Bronfman’s message to the donors also keyed in on the need for flexibility.
“We’re in a new age of philanthropy in the world and have to change the way we do business,” he said. “I think we may need to use endowment funds as a means to save money for good ideas for the community. And we will need to have people who will want to partner with the community to implement entrepreneurial ideas. This means we will have to force our community to say, ‘Hey we want to try new things.’
“Philanthropy is not a ‘give-back-to-the-community’ proposition. Rather, it is giving to yourself because you are the community. Determine what has to happen to make your philanthropy make a difference. Then fight like hell to get it!”
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