The mission of Temple Emanu-El is very important to us. For years we have both served on Temple and affiliated boards in various capacities and have been very involved in tikkun olam activities. We particularly appreciate the opportunities that the Temple has provided us to educate our sons, Adam and Jason, in the values of our faith.

Kim and I vividly remember seventeen years ago coming with our oldest son, Adam, to meet with Jann in the Endowment Office to establish a named fund to not only honor his achievement as a Bar Mitzvah, but to support the mission of the Temple. We viewed this as a valuable educational opportunity: that by making a perpetual gift to the Endowment Fund, Adam would always be reminded of the impact he made in helping others. To this day, he receives a report on the growth of his fund and how it has helped enhance our congregation.

Now with both of our boys grown, we began contemplating what kind of legacy we, ourselves, would like to leave. Through our involvement in Temple leadership, we realized the importance of unrestricted gifts. The Dues Endowment Fund structured by the Endowment Board was very appealing to us. It is set up so that future generations of Temple leadership will receive our Annual Membership Commitment in perpetuity to use as they see fit to further the mission of the Temple.

We view this recent gift of endowing our dues as a wonderful way to give back – and it continues to show our sons how assisting others through our financial gifts and our tikkun olam activities can add meaning and purpose to our lives.