The Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles is the largest manager of charitable assets and the leader in planned giving solutions for Greater Los Angeles Jewish philanthropists. Since 1954, it has been helping donors develop effective tax and estate planning strategies, build legacies and facilitate their philanthropy through charitable funds established at The Foundation. Currently, The Foundation manages 1,200-plus donor funds and $690 million in assets.

The Foundation and its donors provide grants to programs and institutions throughout the local Jewish community and the Greater Los Angeles community, as well as to causes nationally and in Israel.

No. The Foundation does not solicit annual campaign gifts from its donors on behalf of any organization.

Yes. The Foundation strictly guards the privacy of all donors and their sensitive personal and financial information. All communications, documents and discussions are held in the highest confidence.

The Foundation’s highly skilled Investment Committee–a group of professional money managers who oversee portfolios totaling more than $20 billion for investment management firms, brokerage houses, banks and corporations–is responsible for managing your money. The Investment Committee regularly reviews the financial markets and economic environment to decide upon the best asset mix. It also uses investment management firms whose proven expertise, within specific asset styles, offers an opportunity for outstanding performance in rising markets, while limiting losses in difficult ones. The Investment Committee has provided donors with an option when it comes to investing money from their Donor Advised Fund. Called the Donor Advised Fund Investment Program, it allows donors who have such a fund with a minimum balance of $50,000 to make recommendations in up to four mutual funds managed by Fidelity Investments as long as they are within the guidelines established by The Foundation’s Investment Committee.

The Foundation is an integral part of the local Jewish community and the Los Angeles community at large and as such, offers you comprehensive guidance through its network of collaborative relationships. The Foundation, with its commitment to personal service, can offer strategic guidance and consulting on best philanthropic practices through its staff’s expertise as well as the Family Foundation Center, a service not offered by national commercial brokerage firms.

Yes. We’ve helped many people set up real alternatives to private foundations. The Foundation has programs that are more tax advantageous and without any of the distribution requirements, excise taxes and other headaches associated with starting your own foundation. You can also use assets like real estate and closely-held stock which are problematic to use in funding a private foundation. If you establish a Family Support Organization, we take care of all bookkeeping, compliance issues and other record-keeping, so you and your foundation board can keep focused on the joy of philanthropy and fulfilling your charitable passions.

Having a fund at The Foundation will spare you the paperwork, research, administration and staff costs involved in managing an independently-run private foundation. Additionally, with broad expertise in charitable giving practices, The Foundation is able to strategically guide you in meeting your philanthropic, as well as tax and estate planning objectives. Please visit the Types of Funds section for more information about the range of funds we offer.

Our donors use their funds at The Foundation to make charitable distributions to a wide variety of nonprofit organizations in both the Jewish community and the community at large. The Foundation itself awards grants on a competitive basis through its Community Grants Program to nonprofit organizations and agencies primarily in the Greater Los Angeles Jewish community, as well as in the community at large and in Israel. In 2008, The Foundation and its 1,200-plus donors distributed $65 million in grants to hundreds of organizations with programs that span the range of philanthropic giving.

No. The Foundation is committed to the concept of tikkun olam – repairing the world. As such, we and our donors support causes in both the Jewish community and the community at large. These include Jewish, as well as non-denominational organizations such as colleges and universities, health organizations, environmental causes and social service groups, among others.

Yes. The Foundation’s Family Foundation Center is a one-stop consulting and information center designed to help Jewish family foundations–and people planning to establish one – maximize the impact of their philanthropic giving. Through a series of educational events and information sharing practices, participants in the Family Foundation Center can learn more about strategically planning their philanthropy and collaborating with other philanthropists on areas of mutual concern.