10 | MAY 5 • 2022

student corner
Understanding Jewish Philanthropy
T

his year, I was fortunate
to be included in a
very rewarding Jewish
program. As part of the Morris
J. & Betty Kaplun Foundation
Youth Board,
I recently pre-
sented $5,000 in
grant money to
two incredible
nonprofits. The
board, composed
of passionate
students from
around the country, spent
several months learning the
grant-making process and
eventually applied that knowl-
edge to fund some amazing
organizations.
First, we learned about
consensus; we often broke
into smaller groups, in which
we could each share our own
perspectives and opinions,
then reconvened to report our
findings and make decisions
together. Using consensus, the
board chose two main Jewish
values to help us determine
which organizations to fund:
justice (tzedek) and lovingkind-
ness (gemilut chasadim).

Next, we began the
grant-making process by writ-
ing our mission statement:
“Guided by the Jewish values
of lovingkindness and justice,
the 2021-22 Morris J. & Betty
Kaplun Foundation Youth
Board seeks to support organi-
zations that promote education
and literacy for youth. The
board’s goal is to help young
people from any background
connect to and learn about
community-based social jus-
tice needs, and gain access to
resources and opportunities to
promote career development.”
We then sent out our RFP
(Request for Proposal). When
we received proposals, we
split into groups to study and
create presentations on each
application.
The next step in our pro-
cess was, in my opinion, the
most gratifying: site visits.
Over the course of a week,
we joined various virtual
calls and connected with the
people behind the proposals.
Diving deeper than our initial
research, we got up close and
personal with our applicants,

asking questions and getting
to hear more about these
projects from the most enthu-
siastic, driven people.
The most exciting part of
this experience, however, was
getting to lead these meetings
ourselves. During meetings,
the board members asked all
the questions and directed the
interview. For teenagers to have
the opportunity to not only
meet with prominent figures in
nationwide organizations but
also to lead those meetings was
truly exceptional.

CHOOSING CHARITIES
Finally, the board decided
on two nonprofits to fund:
the Olga Lengyel Institute
for Holocaust Studies and
Human Rights (TOLI),
which works through sem-
inars to educate teachers
on Holocaust education,
spreading awareness to
teachers’ students, schools,
and communities; and C.B.
Community Schools, which
provides classes on school
subjects and life skills to vul-
nerable students in the child

welfare or juvenile justice
system.
Both of these organiza-
tions are truly outstanding,
and I am so grateful that the
Kaplun Foundation provided
our board with the resources
necessary to connect with and
support these projects.
This program as a whole
was just about the most mean-
ingful and impactful journey
I’ve ever experienced. Not
only did we learn such crucial
skills as conducting research,
creating proposals, directing
meetings and making difficult
decisions, but we all got to
partake in real philanthropy
with the most compassionate
people.
Our journey to granting this
money was such an exciting
and educational process and
one that I will never forget,
and I am so looking forward
to taking this experience
with me and continuing this
rewarding path of Jewish
philanthropy.

Samantha Caminker is a sophomore

at Frankel Jewish Academy.

Samantha
Camiker

PURELY COMMENTARY

The poll also demonstrates
the wide gap between most
Americans (who are largely
supportive of Israel) and the
“elite” media (which is system-
atically critical of Israel).
Israel’s 71% favorability rat-
ing attests to the fact that most
Americans realize the inaccura-
cy and immorality of the State
Department’s claim of moral
equivalence between Israel and
the Palestinians. They identify
Israel as a reliable, democratic
and productive ally, and view

the P
.A. as a member of the
rogue entities of the world,
associated with terrorism, in
general, and enemies and rivals
of the United States, in partic-
ular.
Irrespective of the New York
Times’ attitude toward Israel,
most Americans empathize
with Israel culturally, histori-
cally, ideologically and strategi-
cally. They identify the Jewish
state with key precepts that
have shaped American cul-
ture, civic and judicial systems

since the Early Pilgrims and
the Founding Fathers, such as
faith, the Mosaic legacy, civil
liberties, patriotism, optimism,
defiance of odds and a can-do
mentality.
Moreover, they consider
Israel a unique force and dollar
multiplier for the U.S. econ-
omy and defense in the face
of mutual threats (e.g., Iran’s
Shi’ite ayatollahs, Sunni Islamic
terrorism) and in the pursuit of
a U.S. commercial and military
technological edge over China,
Russia and Europe.

Israel’s 71% favorabili-
ty demonstrates that most
Americans subscribe to the
following assessment made
by Adm. James Stavridis, for-
mer Supreme Commander
of NATO: “Our best military
partner in the region, by far,
is Israel. … It truly is a case of
two nations that are unargu-
ably stronger together.”

Yoram Ettinger is a former ambassa-

dor and head of Second Thought: A

U.S.-Israel Initiative. This article was

first published by The Ettinger Report.

ISRAEL RETAINS HIGH FAVORABILITY continued from page 4