5007 Providence Road
Charlotte, NC 28226
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Permit No. 1208
The Charlotte
JEWISH
Vol. 21 No. 11
Kislev-Tevet 5760
December 1999
^^Step into the Limelighf ’ at the Federation Gala February 12
Rita Rudner
The Jewish Federation of Greater
Charlotte invites you to “Step into
the Limelight" on Saturday,
Fetmjary 12th at 7:30 PM at the
Marriott City Center for the kickoff
of the 2000 Annual Conrununity
Campaign. The event will focus tte
“limelight” on the outstanding
efforts of the Federation’s recipient
agencies here in Charlotte and
alH'oad, and will raise money the
2000 Annual Community
Canq>aign.
Comedian Rita Rudner will head
line the event along with the band
“Liquid Pleasure.” Ms. Rudner, star
of the recent HBO special entitled
“Rita Rudner: Married without
Children” and of many comedy/
variety soies, was nominated fcH*
Funniest Comedy Actress of the
Year by the American Comedy
Awards f(M* her 1992 performance in
the film Peter's Friends. Her decep
tively soft-spoken delivery shatters
the stereotype of brassy, tough
comediennes with poise and sopMs-
tication.
Sara Schreibman, who chairs the
Gala Steering Committee, sees the
evening as an oppcxtunity for the
community to gath^ to celebrate the
work of the Federation’s constituent
agencies and as a way to further
spread the wcn*d about the communi
ty campaign. “I am thrilled to be
working with a terrific committee
who are all hard at work to make this
event a reality. ‘Step into the
Limelight’ will be a fun-filled
evening in a nightclub setting with
Meg Goldstein,
2000 Campaign Chair
comedy by Rita Rudner, followed
by dancing with the band ‘Liquid
Pleasure.’ But, most importantly, it
will give the Federation another
of^xMtunity to put the ‘limelight’ on
Jews here in Charlotte and around
the world who benefit from the
Annual Community Campaign.”
Ms. Schreibman is also working
closely with the Meg Goldstein, the
2000 Annual Community Campaign
Chair and the 2000 Campaign
Cabinet to orchestrate the event. The
Gala Steering Committee and the
Campaign Cabinet will lead the
recruitment effort fn- the evening.
Again this year the cost fcM* the
evening will be $150 per couple/$75
pCT person.
“We have spent a considerable
amount of time with the staff of the
Marriott to put together a dinner and
dessert reception that would be deli
cious and not cause us to raise the
cost of die ticket,” said Shannon
Crystal who is working with
Barbara Levin to select the menu for
the evening. The ticket price
includes a cocktail reception with
open bar, followed by a three-course
meal and lavish dessert table.
Susan Hennas is in charge of the
event decorations and will imple
ment the “nightclub” theme
throughout the decorating motif.
Stefanie Reiner will coordinate all
event publicity and develop the
invitation and program. Mami
Abramowitz and Sue Littauer are
chairing the Recmitment Conunittee
which includes Adrianna Epstein,
Ellen Framm, Ruth Goldberg, Margi
Goldstein, Bellita Jacobson, Amy
Mullen, Jill Newman, and Jodi
Speizman. Meg Goldstein serves as
Sara Schreibman, Gala Steering
Committee Chair
an ex-oflficio member of the com
mittee.
This extraordinary event provides
a unique opportunity for the com
munity to show sui^rt fOT the
Federation’s constituent agencies
and to leam about hov the 2000
Annual Campaign has a lasting
impact on the lives of Jews here and
around the world.
For reservation infcnmation con
tact Cary Bernstein at 944-6762 or
email her at cbemstein@shalom-
charlotte.org. O
Jewish Federations, Institutions Ranked Among Top Philanthropies
By Julia Goldman
NEW YORK (JTA) — A strong
economy revved up philanthropic
giving last year — and Jewish phil
anthropies ^^^e among the benefi
ciaries.
Some 27 Jewish organizations
made it into the Philanthrc^y 400,
the annual listing of Arnica’s most
popular charities, which is con4>iled
by The Chronicle cf Philanthropy, a
biweekly newspaper of the nonprofit
world.
Inchidedare IS local Jewish com
munity federations, two Jewish
defmse organizations, two American
universities and three ‘^fri^ids” of
Israeli universities.
At No. 44, the top Jewsh (Man-
thn^y on the list is the UJA-
Federation of New York, which last
year ranked one notch higher at 43.
This year the powerhouse social
service and fund-raising organization
iMXHight in just over $ 156.9 million in
private support, and a total income of
just under $202.6 million, acc(»xiing
to its entry in the Chronicle.
This year’s list, which covers
funds raised in 1998, reflects “the
best year many fiitKi raisers have
seen,” accc»ding to the Chronicle.
The journal attributes the success to
the stock maricet’s strong pofor-
mance overall and the beginning
effects of what is expected to be the
largest intngenerationa] transfer of
wealth in Amoican hisUxy.
Bequests provide tax benefits for
donors, including a way to (Hotect
A Work in Progress. Paul Rousso’s sidewalk art, as it appeared during
creation. This public art display appeared at the comer of Trade and
Tryon Streets in celebration of last month's Jewish Cultural Arts Festival.
assets from what is known as the
“death tax" on the estates of the
wealthy, the Chronicle explains.
Citing a Boston College study, it says
that charities stand to gain $6 trillion
to $25 trillion in bequests over the
next 50 years.
Rankings on the 400 list are based
on income from fnivate support,
which refers to funds raised from
individuals, foutKiati(ms and cc»po-
rations. A separate entry gives the
charity’s total income, which
includes investment income and
odier qjpreciated propoty as well as
deferred giving arrangements and
certain government grants.
To be included on the list, organi
zations must raise at least $22 million
from private sources.
Organizations can get a boost from
one or nKxe m^or or individual gifts,
which account fcx' the soaring
income of some already strong char
ities, such as the Jewi^ Communal
Fund, a diaritable fund, loosely con
nected with the UJA-Fed«3tion of
New York, that {xovides individuals
and families with an alternative to
establishing their own private foun
dations.
The fund ranks No. 55 on the cur
rent list, with income from private
sources of more than $137 million of
a total income of more than $168
million, which represents more than
$30 million more than was raised in
1997, when the fimd came in at No.
69.
“If someone has a particulariy
good year,” the fund benefits, said
Susan Dickman, the communal
fund’s executive vice president.
The Chronicle compiles its
firom data gathered, in most cases,
from informational tax returns and
from a survey and annual reports.
Nonprofit organizations employ
different means of expressing their
annual incomes: Changes in the way
Hadassah - the Women’s Zionist
Organization of America, reported its
income in 1998 propelled it to No.
133 from No. 169 the year before.
The organization — which raises
funds for health care work in Isn^l
arxi health, Jewish and Zionist edu-
caticm in the U.S. — in 1998 includ
ed endowments, contributing to a
$22 million increase — to $74 mil
lion — in private support
Rankings may also vary from year
to year also because fund-raising
campaigns do not conre^xxKl to the
calendar year or because they covo-
multiple years.
This phenomenon explains in part
why “fii«Kis of’ ocganizati(ms e;^-
rienced a drop in both rank aiKl
irxxMne. The American Society for
Technion — Israel Institute of
Techncdogy — went From No. 132
to No. 224, with a decrease of about
$20 million in both privjtte and total
income.
But the group just completed a
three-year campaign ahead of sched
ule, which at $210 million exceeded
its goal of raising between $175 mil
lion and $180 million.
American Friends of the Hebrew
University — which this year ranked
No. 264 — raised $36 million in pri
vate irxx)me in 1998, down fiom
Inside this issue...
Tlw Ntgotisting SorauTO in the Next Eleven MoDtfas p. 3
BjfPr RmSlem
fTTiamnHnf JevMi Home Elects New President p. 11
Shcis Jto» ifcwr
Federation Pages
•page
4
Wonven’s Events
page
5
Jewish Family Services
pages
8
CAJE
■page
10
Temple Israel
page
12
Lubavitch of North Carolina ...
•page
13
Temple Beth El
... page
14
Youth Visions
... page
15
The Jewi.^h Traveler
page
16
Speizman Jewish Library . ..
■
17
Jewish Community Center .
pagcv
lH-19
Mazel Tov .
page
23
Charlutte Jewish Dav Sthool
page
:4
Dining Out
page
25
more than $51 million in 1997.
Adam Kahan, the executiw dtrrc-
tor of the American Friends of
Hebrew University, said that because
his group does not run an annual
campaign, “scrnie years we close a
major gift; oChcr years we don’t.”
Because total irKXjme also includes
inc(xne from investments, he added,
that figure can fluctuate from year to
year.
Jewish organizations appearing on
the 1999 list but absent in 1998 are
the Jewish Federation of Greats
Washington (No. 334), the Jewish
Theological Seminary (No. 347),
P.E.F. Israel Endowment Funds (No.
351) and the American Jewish
C(xnmittee (No. 359).
At least one fedoation official
believes the rankings on the
Chronicle’s list do not tell the com
plete story.
A different kind of study could be
done of “the vitality of the Jewish
community,” said Ted Farher the
executive vice president of the
Washington Federation, which in
1998 raised close to $28 million in
fMivate support out of a total itKX)me
of more than $32 million..
Here in Charlotte, more than $2
million was raised — 20% above its
previous high of $1.7 million -- in
support of Federation and its recipent
agencies, attesting to the vitality and
potential of our local community.
With the growth in our area, and the
new campaign about to begin, it’s
time we consider our future and the
future of Jews in need throughout the
world. O
Sii
Campaign Surpasses
$23 Million Mark!
See Pages 6 & 7
MAKE YOUR
PLEDGE TODAYI