Life and Legacy program continues with new focus

By Julia Umansky Director of Endowment and EITC

In June 2022, the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley completed Year 5 of the Life and Legacy program offered by the Harold Grinspoon Foundation.

At the end of Year 1, the 10 participating Jewish agencies and synagogues collected 241 commitments from 135 donors, already exceeding the first goal of 180 commitments. At the end of Year 2, the community brought in another 229 commitments estimated at $3.1 million, and all 10 participating organizations received incentive grants for reaching their new commitment goals.

In Years 3 and 4 of the program, organizations shifted their focus to formalizing intended gifts and continued stewardship of their donors. Despite the shift in focus, they brought in another $500,000 in commitments and exceeded the goal to have at least 50% of intended gifts formalized. By the end of Year 4, the Jewish community brought in over 550 commitments in legacy gifts. We grew from $4.6 million dollars pledged in Year 1 to more than double that at the end of Year 5.

Now, with the end of Year 5 behind us, our community has formalized 68% of its leg-