The Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation (Foundation), located on the Jewish Community Center campus south of 132nd and Dodge in Omaha, Nebraska, was established in 1983 and became a separate non-profit corporation in 2004, legally classified by the IRS as a supporting foundation of The Jewish Federation of Omaha, Inc. (Federation).  The Foundation is governed by a Board of Directors, led by President Bob Belgrade and 18 other Jewish community lay leaders.

The mission of the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation is to help assure the stability and continuity of Jewish life and to support communal services in the Omaha area by establishing and accumulating enduring assets for permanent funding resources.

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In 1985 Foundation total assets reached $7.5 million.  By 1988 total assets had grown to $11.5 million, and endowment funds generated $650,000 for the Federation and its agencies.  That year, another $450,000 went to various Jewish and secular charities supported by the Foundation’s 40 donor-advised funds.  During the period that Marty Ricks was Executive Director (1998 to 2012), total managed assets grew from $28 million to $62 million and the number of donor-advised funds increased from 52 to 90. Howard Epstein, attorney and Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy, joined the Foundation as Executive Director on January 1, 2013 and served until his retirement in July, 2022.  He was the fourth executive director in the Foundation’s 37 year history, preceded by Martin C. Ricks, the late Sheldon Bernstein, and the late Jerold Rosen.  Under Howard Epstein’s leadership, the Foundation continued to grow.  At of the end of the most recent fiscal year, June 30, 2021, the Foundation’s assets under management totaled $107.5 million, including $32.7 million in donor-advised funds.  In fiscal 2020-2021, the Foundation made $6.3 million in charitable distributions.  $1.9 million was distributed from the Foundation’s endowment and custodial funds, 86% of which went to support the Federation and its agencies.  An additional $4.3 million was distributed from Foundation donor-advised funds, 5% of which supported local Federation agencies and 29% of which supported the Federation’s Annual Campaign and Campus Renovation.   

The Foundation is responsible for development, investment, accounting, administration and donor contact for 134 donor-advised funds; 119 teen donor-advised funds; 347 endowment, custodial or discretionary funds; and five supporting foundations.  

Amy Bernstein Shivvers began work as the Foundation’s fifth Executive Director in July, 2022 following Howard Epstein’s retirement.  Operations Manager Laurie Peatrowsky, Fund & Scholarship Administrator Diane Walker, Endowment Assistant and Staff Writer Linda Pollard, and Program & Stewardship Administrator Stacie Metz round out the Foundation staff, standing ready, willing and able to assist the Foundation’s supporters and donors.

In cooperation with the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, the Foundation coordinates the Life & Legacy program for Omaha’s Jewish Community.  The Foundation works with eight local partner organizations to build a culture of legacy giving throughout Omaha’s Jewish community, with a goal of securing legacy, or after-lifetime gifts, which will assure a solid financial base for future generations of Omaha’s Jewish institutions and Omaha’s Jewish residents.  The eight local partner organizations are:  Jewish Federation of Omaha and its agencies [including Jewish Community Center, Jewish Community Relations Council, Jewish Press, Jewish Social Services (Jewish Family Service, Jewish Senior Outreach, Rose Blumkin Jewish Home), and Nebraska Jewish Historical Society]; Beth El Synagogue; Beth Israel Synagogue; B’nai Israel Synagogue & Living History Museum; Chabad House; Friedel Jewish Academy; Institute for Holocaust Education; and Temple Israel.  Now in its ninth year, Omaha’s Life & Legacy initiative has garnered city-wide support from 339 individuals and couples, who have made a total of 675 legacy commitments with an estimated value of $25.5 million as of September 30, 2023.

All of this could not be possible without the exceptional generosity of the Omaha Jewish community.