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COMMUNITY CONTINUITY
from JCA source 2020
by tpg26
JCA’s core role of fundraising is the bedrock of community continuity – providing funding for many of the vital programs delivered by our 23 member organisations, as well as partners and affiliates. In addition, JCA has become a central point for strategic planning and a primary facilitator for our highly interconnected, vibrant community. With the future in mind, JCA has been instrumental in the delivery of initiatives like the Gen 17 and 2016 Census Reports on Jewish community, the Youth 2 Israel (Y2i) program, the Observership Program (placing future leaders on the Boards of local Jewish organisations), and JCA Jumpstart (a major driver of engagement with our younger community members). For detailed information about Community Continuity programs supported by JCA, please visit www.jca.org.au/programs
I hope my children go through a similar journey so that I can breathe easy knowing they'll have an incredibly rich Jewish Identity.
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COMMUNITY IS ALWAYS THERE FOR ME
When Prielle’s parents emigrated from Israel, their dream was to become as embedded as possible in Australian culture. For a young girl in a brand new country this was not such a simple matter. It was only after moving to a public school with enough diversity to not feel out of place that Prielle started to make friends.
Nevertheless, as she recalls, Prielle always gravitated to the Jewish kids. “Then, in Year 7 at Rose Bay Secondary School, BJE (NSW Board of Jewish Education) found me.”
“With the promise of challah every Friday and regular trips to connect with other students at Max Brenner, there was a space for me to feel Jewish, talk about my Judaism and celebrate my love of challah!” says Prielle.
Through BJE, she participated in a Year 10 Israel program and was given the opportunity to rediscover her homeland. “Visiting family, you don’t really get to see Israel,” she said. “On my program, with my peers, I saw it in a whole new light.”
BJE continued to create opportunities. When the Israeli soldier and prisoner, Gilad Shalit, visited Sydney in 2013, Prielle represented the community as a keynote speaker at an event held in his honour. BJE also ensured she was able to study Hebrew for her HSC even though it wasn’t offered by her school.
After school, AUJS stepped into her life and Prielle spent six months on their Aviv gap year program. “It was the best time of my life,” she said. “It cemented my love not only for Israel but for our Sydney Jewish community.” Inspired to make a contribution, Prielle became more active in AUJS, becoming President of AUJS UNSW. She joined a small group on their Young Leadership Program to Israel, the United Kingdom and United States where they met with politicians, entrepreneurs, philanthropists and representatives of The
Schusterman Foundation. The program was politically challenging, designed to equip the young leaders with skills to address issues when challenged on campus.
While completing her university studies, Prielle also graduated from the Jeremy Spinak Leadership Program through the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies.
“Throughout my entire life here in Sydney – on my Jewish journey – I didn’t know how and why all these good things were available to me,” said Prielle. “And then I applied for a job at JCA, joining the team as marketing coordinator, and everything made sense. I realised that in the background, JCA was my teacher, my friend, my travel agent, my mentor – my sense of belonging through so many stages of my life.”
Prielle admits to being “absolutely passionate and a bit crazy” about the Jewish community. “I have so much confidence in our future,” she said. “I know that our communal organisations are focused on building up and engaging young people like me,” she added. Her view is that, “As a community, we have to take note of how young people are practising their Judaism, what they’re doing with their lives and acknowledge how they’d like to engage in the future.” Arriving in Australia from Israel as a five-yearold with no English skills, it’s not surprising Prielle Betito felt a little lost. As a Sephardi at her predominantly Ashkenazi Orthodox school, she didn’t quite fit in. As a young teenager, she felt herself caught between two cultures – too Israeli to be Australian and too Australian to be Israeli. And then, community found her. Prielle Bet i to
JUMPSTART IS ALL ABOUT THE FUTURE
Jonathan Barouch and Ben Levi Co-Chairs, Jumpstart Committee
In november last year, the Intercontinental Hotel in Double Bay was overflowing with inspiration, innovation and community spirit. More than 500 people attended Jumpstart’s fifth annual Shark Tank event – an opportunity for social entrepreneurs to pitch for a share of $60,000 and turn their dreams into reality. It was a night to celebrate the incredible members of our community who are on a mission to change the world for the better!
Shark Tank is just one of the initiatives of Jumpstart – JCA’s ‘start-up’ created five years ago to engage with a young audience and change their perception of JCA, the Jewish community and the role every young person has in ensuring its continued vibrancy.
Funding to date has been provided by The Giving Forum and individuals in the community who recognise that our future is dependent on the participation of successive generations of new JCA donors.
With a volunteer committee of motivated and passionate young professionals, Jumpstart has continued to grow and create opportunities for young socially minded entrepreneurs to realise their dreams and potential. As a team, they are making a huge impact in our community – engaging, educating, inspiring philanthropy, fostering future leaders, and raising significant funds.
In 2019, donations from the 19-39 year-old cohort were up 38% over the previous year and more than 1,000 people attended Jumpstart events, including those in the age group who attended JCA’s 2018 annual fundraiser at the Hordern Pavilion.
Two new initiatives introduced in 2019 were Jumpstart Juniors and the JCA Observership Alumni group.
JUMPSTART JUNIORS Jumpstart Juniors engages Jewish families with young children to encourage philanthropy at an early age and to introduce them to some of the important foundational programs in the Jewish community. The program runs like a mini version of a 10x10 with interactive presentations from three community programs. The parents and their children then discuss the programs – which include JewishCare’s Big Brother Big Sister and Shalom’s PJ Library – and choose which program they’d like to support with their donation tokens. The impact of their giving was amplified by matching funds from JCA and The Giving Forum.
OBSERVERSHIP ALUMNI Last year’s inaugural Observership Alumni event attracted over 50 former participants from the JCA stream of the Observership Program – an initiative that places young future leaders on the Boards of JCA member organisations to help them develop their professional skills and encourage their ongoing participation. The Alumni event featured a panel discussion with luminaries from the business and not-for-profit sectors on the topic ‘To My Younger Self’. The panel included David Gonski AC, Robert McLean, Elizabeth Dibbs and Suzie Riddell who shared insights, life lessons, and advice that they wish they would have known when they were the age of the alumni, starting their journeys as Board directors and community leaders.
JUMPSTART INNOVATION HUB For young entrepreneurs, the Jumpstart Innovation Hub continues to provide a co-working space for the Jewish community where those involved in startups and socially minded enterprises can exchange ideas and benefit from each other’s expertise.
JUMPSTART INNOVATION SPEAKER SERIES
As an extension of the Hub, Jumpstart also runs its popular Jumpstart Innovation Speaker Series – an opportunity for those just starting out to benefit from the pitfalls and triumphs of young entrepreneurs who have gone on to realise commercial success.
SHARK TANK EVENT The year culminated with the sold-out Shark Tank Event. Melissa Levi won the $30,000 first prize for Age Well with Mel, an online repository of information and resources for families dealing with the many issues involved in caring for and managing ageing family members.
Second prize of $15,000 went to Danny Hui for Sameview, a software platform that allows teams of professionals to collaborate with each other and with families who, like Danny, have children with a disability who require specialised care.
Third prize of $5,000 went to YouthHEAR, a community youth group dedicated to commemoration of the Holocaust among younger generations. In a night of surprises, the Shark Tank prize pool – which included a $10,000 People’s Choice Award from the All In Giving Circle – was topped up by additional $5,000 awards from JCA The Choice Foundation for the winners in the aged care and disability sectors.
JUMPSTART VOLUNTEER Other Jumpstart initiatives include Jumpstart Volunteer which will be enhancing its engagement platform in 2020 to match volunteering opportunities in Jewish community organisations with individuals who want to make a difference by contributing their time and professional skills. Jumpstart Volunteeer continues to explore new opportunities to engage with the Millennials and Young Major Donor cohorts in the community.
As an investment in the future, Jumpstart is all about enabling the connections between younger members and enriching their experience of a vibrant local Jewish community.
2109-20 ALLOCATION $ 350,000
Key Impact Stats $115 million distributed most effectively over past ten years through support of JCA Allocations Committee More than 100 community and business leaders volunteer on JCA Committees 155 future leaders placed on
NFP Boards through Observership Program
2109-20 ALLOCATION $ 50,000
Key Impact Stats 500 attendees at Shark Tank 2019 $75,000 distributed to social entrepreneurs at Shark Tank 38% increase in Jumpstart giving in 2019 vs 2018 22% increase in giving from young major donors
COMMUNITY CONTINUITY
COMMUNITY PLANNING AND ENRICHMENT For the community to adapt and thrive well into the future, there is a need to anticipate future requirements and be able to respond, collaborate and innovate. This program provides this capability by supporting the most effective distribution of funds to the community, by undertaking original community-wide research projects and analysis of census data, and by continuing to deliver a range of new services to the community over the years.
Program Provider JCA
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JUMPSTART: ENGAGING YOUNG ADULTS IN OUR COMMUNITY A new way to engage people between the ages of 19-39 in our community, using innovative initiatives to create a connection in our next generation. Jumpstart initiatives include the Innovation Hub co-working space and Innovation Speaker Series, the Jumpstart annual Shark Tank pitch event, Jumpstart Volunteer, engagement with Millennials and Young Major Donors and Jumpstart Junior which brings community philanthropy to young families and their children. Other Jumpstart programs include 10x10 and the Observership Alumni Group.
Program Provider JCA
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Sup porting our community
Abacus Property Group
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