By Laura Alpert, Council Member, Jewish Women’s Foundation of NJ

If we don’t care for service personnel and their families, we will not maintain an all-volunteer force…  We must build a safety net around those who serve.” —Brigadier General Ivan Denton, National Guard Bureau, May 12, 2015.    

And so began our day at a conference in Washington, D.C. marking the first anniversary of the Philanthropy — Joining Forces Impact Pledge. That morning the Jewish Women’s Foundation of New Jersey (JWF) was formally recognized as one of six new Impact Pledge grant members before 200 event attendees. Representing JWF, Jane Kessler, Amy Schechner, Lesley Frost, and I could not have been more pleased. JWF is one of only two organizations in New Jersey to join the Philanthropy — Impact Pledge, along with Health Care Foundation of New Jersey, and it is the only member in the state to focus on women veterans. JWF is an advisory council of the Jewish Foundation of Greater MetroWest NJ.

You might be wondering how JWF become involved in the Pledge…

It grew out of a $25,000 pilot grant initiative approved by JWF in October 2014. The grant’s purpose is to focus on a single area of need for New Jersey’s women and girls, identify potential community partners, and leverage resources.

After selecting three potential topics —women veterans, incarcerated women and ex-offenders, and female asylees—the 18-member JWF sub-committee decided to target New Jersey’s 32,968 women veterans.

“I am so proud that JWF members elected to support the Impact Pledge, an initiative of the White House and philanthropic leaders across the country who have made a commitment to America’s veterans and military families,” said Jane Kessler. We join an impressive list of more than 30 foundations and corporate funders including Robin Hood Foundation, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Lockheed Martin Corporation, New York State Health Foundation, J.P. Morgan Chase & Company, and Robert F. McCormick Foundation.

“To be welcomed and recognized by the organizers as I walked in was a surprise, but one that put me at ease immediately,” noted Lesley Frost. “Other attendees, especially women, initiated conversations with an obvious interest in learning about us, as well as sharing with us their efforts to support veterans.”

These conversations revealed that our focus on women veterans set us apart. “We, at JWF, are definitely on the right track by publicizing female veterans’ needs and getting groups together to find a holistic approach to supporting female veterans’ concerns,” said Amy Schechner.  

For me, key phrases from the conference that continue to resonate are: transition, person-to-person interaction, we will win or lose on the local level, and anonymity is the enemy.

JWF’s next steps:

► An invitation-only agency roundtable entitled Serving Women Who Have Served: NJ’s Women’s Veterans (July 14, 2015)

► A November conference on New Jersey’s female veterans’ issues 

A final word: JWF is a think tank of accomplished women and a hands-on, participatory philanthropy. Its members pool their expertise, creativity, and philanthropic dollars to develop powerful initiatives and support the efforts of local organizations to empower New Jersey’s under-served women and girls.

We invite you to join us. Contact JWF’s Director Susan Friedman at sfriedman@jfedgmw.org or call (973) 929-3005. JWF is an advisory council of the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater MetroWest NJ (JCF), the largest community foundation in NJ. Together with the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest NJ and our partner agencies, JCF is proud to support JWF and help donors live generously, connect with heritage, and build a vibrant Jewish community.