< Our Impact
These include site visits to specific nonprofits, our Access to Insight series focusing on specific societal issues and the role of philanthropy, curated reading lists, and custom research for donors.
Monarch School Site Visit In January 2025, JCF and the giv4 homelessness in san diego initiative hosted a site visit for fundholders to the Monarch School. Located in the Barrio Logan neighborhood in San Diego, Monarch was the first K-12 school in the United States for homeless students. It provides a sense of belonging for thousands of unhoused youth and their families.
About Monarch School: Since 1987, Monarch School Project has built trauma-informed and strength-based community that empowers the youth they serve to overcome the challenges impacting their lives. Monarch provides comprehensive academic, social, and emotional support to youth, alumni, and their families. Their tailored programs and wrap-around services empower youth to succeed and define their own path to achievement.
Staff Volunteer Day at Ronald McDonald House of San Diego JCF staff recently participated in a volunteer day at the Ronald McDonald House of San Diego, located next to Rady Children’s Hospital. The team first did a tour of the facility and new housing project for families with children staying at local hospitals. They are currently building 46 new rooms to increase the amount of space they have available for families to stay in. After the tour, JCF staff stayed busy preparing and serving lunch and dessert to approx. 200 people. They also put together over 250 snack bags for any person or family to take with them. It was a great experience for the JCF team to work together and serve these families first-hand.
About Ronald McDonald House: Ronald McDonald House Charities of San Diego provides a “home-away-from-home” for families with children being treated for serious, often life-threatening conditions at local hospitals. They rely on community support. It is the only service of its kind that is open to families caring for children at any San Diego area hospital.
JWF Reception and Day at the Movies The Jewish Women’s Foundation (JWF) hosted a reception and double-feature movie day at the 2025 San Diego International Jewish Film Festival. JWF Chair Judi Gottschalk and JWF Council Member Sharon Wax sponsored a delicious breakfast before the movies and JWF provided tickets for its members to watch the films – End of Love Season and Four Hours a Day. Jane Fantel, who also serves on the JWF Council, spoke during the well-attended reception, and a good time was had by all.
Exclusive Tour of Local Nonprofit – Lions Tigers & Bears JCF fundholders and staff recently participated in a site visit to Lions Tigers & Bears Animal Sanctuary in Alpine, CA. Guests learned more about the incredible work they are doing rescuing animals and raising awareness of the exotic animal industry. Watch Video Here
About Lions Tigers & Bears: Lions Tigers & Bears is dedicated to providing a safe haven to abused and abandoned exotic animals and to inspiring an educational forum to end the exotic animal trade. As a state and federally licensed 501(c)(3) nonprofit, they are a NO BREED sanctuary that allows the animals in their care to live out their lives with dignity in a caring and safe environment.
Challenged Athletes Foundation Site Visit In August 2024, JCF fundholders visited Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF) for an exclusive behind the scenes tour. We met with 5X Paralympian Rudy Garcia-Tolson and heard how CAF has supported 50% of Team USA Paralympians. Fundholders were able to use the adaptive sports equipment that Paralympic basketball, rugby, and cycling athletes use. A truly immersive experience.
Challenged Athletes Foundation representatives who spoke to JCF included the founders Jeffrey Essakow and Bob Babbitt. They have funded over 48,000 grant requests from individuals with physical disabilities in all 50 states and 70 countries across 105 different sports. Some fundholders were so moved and inspired that they recommended grants to CAF following the site visit.
2024 Life & Legacy Conference JCF Staff and a cohort of San Diego Jewish professionals attended the 2024 Life & Legacy Leadership Conference in Springfield, MA, hosted by the Harold Grinspoon Foundation. The 3-day conference provides networking and learning opportunities with the common goal of building endowments for the long-term vitality of our Jewish community.
Over 180 participants from 40 different communities were in attendance. Highlights included a Yom HaShoah observance and keynote by Dan Elbaum from The Jewish Agency for Israel, workshops on a variety of topics, small group discussions, and a panel titled “What Makes a Successful Legacy Effort?” Life & Legacy, now an international initiative, is modeled on San Diego’s Create a Jewish Legacy program.
Exclusive Tour of Sharp Prebys Innovation and Education Center JCF fundholders received an exclusive site visit to the remarkable new Sharp Prebys Innovation and Education Center, including a tour of the state-of-the-art Brown Simulation Center and meetings with experts in neonatal and mental health care. The tour included learning about lifesaving ER resuscitation technology, neonatal best practices, mental health and the big picture, the Brown Simulation Center (San Diego’s premier training center).
Jewish Women’s Foundation (JWF) Visits Local Grantee JWF members recently visited the San Diego Community Kollel to experience one of the Moving Traditions’ sessions as participants themselves. Currently facilitating the second cohort of participants, this grantee has one more year of JWF support.
Chava and Adam Simon adapted Moving Traditions’ Rosh Chodesh program to be applicable to the Orthodox community. Initially fiscally sponsored by Beth Jacob Congregation, this program has been the catalyst to create a new organization, called the San Diego Community Kollel. The new organization recently secured and renovated space to house this program as well as other community learning programs. Participants are excited about being in this safe, supportive, and Jewish space.
giv4 Homelessness Volunteers for Local Survey A team of JCF and giv4 homelessness volunteers participated along San Diego River in the annual Point in Time survey of people experiencing homelessness locally.
Legacy Reception at San Diego International Jewish Film Festival In appreciation and recognition of the Create a Jewish Legacy Society Members and the entire community invested in the future of Jewish life, the Jewish Community Foundation sponsored the film Israel Swings For Gold at San Diego Jewish Film Festival. After the film, attendees got to hear from Team Israel’s, Ryan Lavarnway. He is a retired Major League Baseball catcher and baseball Olympian, who discovered his own Jewish identity as an adult. Ryan passionately shared his journey emphasizing the pursuit of personal passions and the powering building community.
About the Film: The story is set in 2021, when Israel’s baseball team competed in the Olympics for the first time. With no media allowed in the Olympic Village, the players record their own experiences. Mostly newly-minted Israelis, they log unexpected battles against global anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism. These filmmakers directed the award-winning documentary “Heading Home: The Tale of Team Israel,” previously shown at our festival.