By Dena Schulman-Green

President, Women’s Philanthropy

 

As we near the end of this two-year leadership cycle, there is much to celebrate! Women’s Philanthropy has continued to build on the foundation we put in place a year and a half ago with the goal of creating a big tent for all.

Thanks to Dana Schwartz and Nancy Cohen, our Lions of Judah and our Pomegranates are thriving. We are delighted to celebrate the unprecedented number of women who have joined these groups at a special event on April 29 with special guest, Lisa Friedman Clark, who will discuss overcoming personal hurdles and living with intention. Thanks to Emily Sandberg and L. Faith Miller, our Sabra Society Co-Chairs, this new group is growing by leaps and bounds!

Fifty women enjoyed a wonderful evening of Middle Eastern dinner demos by our own Revi Bellin and heard from our inspiring Jewish Agency for Israel Representative, Nir Buchler. We are thrilled to have so many new women participate in our programming and serve on our event committees. Special thanks to Elaine Braffman, our Israel and Overseas Chair, who helped us welcome Women of the Wall, as well as Michal Barkai Brody, the founder of Alma, a pre-military leadership academy for women in Israel. Elaine will also help us welcome a delegation from our Israeli sister city, Afula, in March.

Women’s Philanthropy continues to partner with programs and agencies such as Food for Kids New Haven, the Women of Vision Society and the Jewish Agency for Israel.

This spring, we’ll enjoy a private screening of “Wonder Woman,” and we will also focus on important topics such as intersectionality as a new form of anti-Semitism.

We hope you’ll join us for our ever-popular summer reads program, which this year will feature a special twist! We are continuing to build our leadership team, who will take office this August for a two-year term. Our goal is to ensure not only that what we have built remains strong, but that Women’s Philanthropy will continue to evolve and bring us to the next level of success.

We are very proud to announce that Stacey Trachten will be joining us as Lion of Judah Endowment Chair, as we partner with Jewish Federations of North America to kick off LOJE25, a special two-year campaign to celebrate and expand endowment. We also welcome Sami Merit as our next Pomegranate Chair.

As we fill established positions and create new ones, we would love to hear from you. If you have a skill, talent, or business you’d like to share, give us a call! Please lend your voice, make friends, do good, and support your community. Come into the tent- there’s room for all, and EVERYONE COUNTS! Contact Jen Bayer at (203) 387-2424, x320.