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Step Up And Tackle Poverty

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ur world is turning upside
down. Poverty is the devastat-
ing type of problem that we
should lose sleep over and motivate us
to action, yet while it unfolds before us
we stand still and silent.
Americans are going to bed hungry.
Food stamps are so common today;
at least half of all Americans between
the ages of 20 and 65 will be forced to
redeem them during their lives.
Of those with children, more than 80
percent will report that they are forced
to rely on low-cost, less-nutritious food
to feed their families, and more than
half will report that they simply cannot
afford to serve their families a balanced
meal. Most striking, one in four will
admit that their children are not eating
enough because they simply cannot
afford the food.
It feels like no one really cares about
poverty. Jewish institutions talk about
it some, but not enough. Perhaps we
do not have the luxury of ignoring the
problem anymore, as we watch the
demise of the middle class and witness
people losing their jobs every day. We
can act surprised as to how we have
reached this point, but I am afraid that
we do not have to look far.
We have become a nation of material-
ists. We like our creature comforts and
feel we are entitled. Rather than move

from a home that is clearly
too big for our family to a
smaller home, we "need" a
home that is even bigger. We
worry about our clothes and
cars rather than pay enough
attention to the public school
system. Our focus on materi-
alism has become idolatry.
Judaism is hardly silent
about all this. Opposition to
intemperate greed and the
need to worry about the poor
are two supporting poles of
Jewish theology. When did
we, fundamentally decent people, decide
that what we own is more important
than who we are?
Judaism is a religion that teaches us
that "community" matters, that every-
one has the capacity for discernment,
that we are supposed to be a nation of
priests. This notion of community not
only asks us to be engaged in the com-
munity but to take responsibility for the
community.
Fighting poverty trumps new build-
ings; fighting poverty trumps one more
vacation trip to Europe or Asia; fighting
poverty trumps watching basketball
games. At least it should!
When we put, even for a second, our
own desire for wealth above the ben-
eficial wherewithal of the community,
we are hurting not just ourselves but all
those around us today and those who

will live after us, who will
look at the way we lived and
not know that we knew it
was wrong. Our poor values
of this moment will have legs
and impact far beyond today.
If we do not find the will
and the ethics to write a new
story, a new narrative, our
future will be damaged.
The Jewish Council for
Public Affairs (JCPA) carved
out a place for itself as a war-
rior against poverty that is
striving for a world without
the idolatry of money as its god. We
must stand that test, fight that fight, and
win that war. And fighting poverty is
right here, right now Even in this hard
time, we must make a commitment to
more tzedakah.
JCPA is committed to educating and
mobilizing as many people as pos-
sible. More than 12 million U.S. kids go
hungry each day. More than 8 million
children do not have health insurance.
There will likely be more than 43 mil-
lion Americans living in poverty by the
end of 2009.
But don't just read the numbers and
shake your head. Get up and do some-
thing about it — one kid, one legislator,
one hungry mouth at a time. L

Rabbi Steve Gutow is president of the
Jewish Council for Public Affairs.

Don't Get Burned from page C2

percent, which is 30 basis points, or 0.3
percent, better than that of the S&P 500).
Verification is another cornerstone of
a wise investment policy. Every invest-
ment in a pooled endowment portfolio
should undergo an exhaustive screening
process, which includes such critical
elements as a meaningful degree of
transparency backed up by third-
party verification; financial statements
audited by a nationally recognized
accounting firm; and a track record that
can be rationalized through rigorous,
quantitative analysis (i.e., the "too good
to be true" test).
We have learned from experience that
applying these strategies and methods
produces results and earns the trust not
only of our contributors but also of our
peers, who increasingly have turned to
us to make their investments.
Under the auspices of the United
Jewish Communities (UJC) National

Jewish Federation Investment Program,
11 federations have combined their
investments, with three pools oper-
ated by the Boston, Chicago and Miami
federations. As one of these pools, in
addition to managing the assets of other
federations, we also manage the endow-
ment assets of a number of synagogues,
day schools and other communal insti-
tutions.
Combined, the three investment
pools in the UJC program account for
slightly more than $1 billion, but that's
less than 10 percent of total investable
assets across the 157 Jewish federa-
tions in North America. The experience
of college and university investment
programs suggests that one or two $5
billion to $10 billion endowments are
likely to enjoy far better long-term
performance than 157 separate endow-
ments, most of which are below $50
million.

The moral of the story, I believe, is to
agglomerate smaller funds into larger
ones whenever feasible. The days when
charities with investments totaling less
than $50 million are able to do the job
right are over.
By pooling assets, procuring top-
drawer professional management,
partnering with committed laypeople,
engaging highly qualified advisers and
rigorously applying fundamental invest-
ment principles, smaller philanthropic
organizations can manage risk effective-
ly, maximize long-term investment suc-
cess, and thereby deserve and maintain
the trust of their donors.
That's essential if charities are to be
effective in helping those in need at a
time when society needs us most. ❑

Steven B. Nasatir is president of the
Jewish United Fund/Jewish Federation of
Metropolitan Chicago.

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April 2 • 2009

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