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30 June 8 2006

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Birthright founded the Birthright Israel
Foundation. About 14 months later,
Birthright officials say the foundation
has made some significant strides for-
ward — and still has a long way to go.
This is "not a time to pat ourselves
on the shoulder;' Steinhardt said.
The foundation changed the way
Birthright raised money. In its first five
years, the program relied on a relatively
small number of donors making large
gifts. Now the foundation has made an
effort to draw in many more donors at
lower levels, in addition to big gifts.
Between January and April of this
year, the number of gifts to Birthright
under $50,000 was four times the
number from the same period the
previous year, adding up to some-
where in the mid-six figures, said the
foundation's president, Jay Golan. "I
see a very strong broadening out of
the support base of this',' he said. "I'm
really pleased. People do seem to be
very enthusiastic about the opportunity
to give to Birthright. Many people just
simply didn't know."
Since the fall, Golan said, the group
has attracted three new donors at the
$1 million level and is anticipating oth-
ers. Further, 12 of the original 14 phi-
lanthropists who backed the group are
still on board (one of the original group
has since died), though not necessarily
at the original level.
In addition, the Israeli government
— which due to budget restraints
during the intifada had slashed its
contribution to a token amount — has
agreed to match outside donations $1
for every $2 up to a maximum of $20
million from the government for next
year
And the Jewish Agency for Israel and
the U.S. federation system each kicked
in $5 million for this year's program.
Birthright is hoping for the same next
year.
This summer, Birthright will be
taking 10,000 young Jewish adults on
its trips and is aiming to do the same
in the fall. Each group of 10,000 costs
about $24 million.
Susie Gelman, chairwoman of the
Birthright Israel Foundation, said,
"Birthright Israel is such a slam dunk
success in the Jewish world. It's impera-
tive on all of us to keep it going?"
Birthright officials say they recognize
that many of those who are applying
— like Lowenthal — could be aged
out if they are turned away. "It's gener-
ally first-come first-served, but there is
some preference given to try to enable
those who won't have another oppor-
tunity',' Gelman said. "The Birthright
Israel Corporation is very mindful of
the fact that, all things being equal,

those nearing the end of their eligibility
are given some preference."
Since Birthright cannot currently
afford to take as many people as it
would like on its trips, officials say,
it also has not been able to organize
a full-fledged alumni follow-up
program, which the group sees as
extremely important. Nevertheless, the
group ran about 150 alumni events in
2005 that attracted about 13,000 peo-
ple, and this number does not include
events run by the alumni themselves.
"It's a dilemma, because where do
you put the emphasis of the funding
— on the trip itself or on follow up?"
said Marlene Post, secretary of the
foundation's board. "Though the trip
in itself is fabulous and opens vistas
for every individual young person that
goes to Israel, it's the follow up that
really gives even greater meaning to
the trip. It reinforces all the content
that one gets on a 10- day trip."
Lowenthal, for her part, hopes to
engage in some follow up of her own
upon her return?' This is a once-
in-a-lifetime opportunity for me to
reconnect with my Judaism, see and
experience the things I learned about
as a child, and share my journey with
family and friends," she said. ❑

Answering
Israel's Critics

The Charge:

This past week, a public employ-
ees' union — the largest union
in Ontario, Canada — joined a
British teachers' union boycott of
Israel. The boycott will last until
Israel ends its "apartheid" policies
and allows Palestinian refugees to
resettle in Israel.

The Answer:

There is no need for a boycott,
pressure or other grassroots
actions to move the Middle East
peace process forward. All issues
— from Palestinian refugees
to military deployments (road-
blocks, etc.) in the West Bank to a
Palestinian state, borders and the
status of Jerusalem — have been
on the table between Palestinians
and Israelis since 1993. All that
is needed is a trusted and willing
Palestinian partner who forswears
violence and terrorism.

— Allan Gale,

Jewish Community Council

of Metropolitan Detroit