By Heidi Gantwerk
SAN DIEGO — At Jewish Federation of San Diego, we are dedicated to ensuring every member of our community can proudly and safely participate in Jewish life. Despite the extraordinary challenges of the past year, your support has enabled significant progress in securing our local Jewish institutions and combating the troubling rise in antisemitism.
As we conclude our Annual Campaign, we ask for your help to continue creating a secure and resilient community where Jewish life can thrive for generations. Your donations have supported impactful initiatives this year, including:
Community and Institutional Trainings: Led by our Community Security Director, we hosted several training sessions where hundreds of community members learned about situational awareness, countering active threats, and emergency medical response. Our Jewish Community Security Institute’s second cohort of institutional leaders also received training in cybersecurity, operations reviews, and the latest target hardening technology. Each participating institution received $10,000 to bolster their security protocols upon completion of the program.
Grant Assistance and Funding: We helped many local Jewish institutions secure State and Federal security grants through Threat and Vulnerability Assessments and grant writing support. We also provided our own grants to organizations like Chabad of Carmel Valley and San Diego Hebrew Day School to enhance their security plans. And in response to heightened security needs post-October 7, we provided funding Hillel of San Diego to enhance security measures and ensure the safety of Jewish students on our college campuses.
Combating Antisemitism: We co-hosted San Diego’s first Antisemitism Symposium alongside the American Jewish Committee (AJC), and funded local organizations like the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and The Butterfly Project to train local teachers on antisemitism. We also launched the Antisemitism Roundtable, which allows Jewish organizations that actively address antisemitism to share information and strengthen our communal response to antisemitic incidents.
Every act of support strengthens our collective resilience. As we close this year’s campaign, please stand with us once more. Your donation will help continue these vital initiatives, ensuring every member of Jewish San Diego can engage in our community safely and confidently.
Confirm your commitment before June 30 and DOUBLE the impact of your philanthropy! Thanks to one of our generous donors, all new gifts of up to $1,000 will be matched dollar for dollar.
Together, we can transform these challenging times into a testament of our strength and unity.
Thank you for your unwavering commitment to our shared mission.
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Heidi Gantwerk is President and CEO of the Jewish Federation of San Diego