They say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. I would like to think that’s the case with our family. Over the years, we have donated to a host of causes, from Beth Sholom to Strelitz to Jewish Family Service (for whom I worked 31 years ago), and to organizations outside the Jewish community.
When we give a donation or serve on a board, we don’t usually consider who is watching, but when you have two children and now five grandchildren, you realize they are watching when you see them do the same. I am so proud of Danny and Shikma (as well as Molly and Joe in NOVA) for how they practice tzedakah – and now their kids, who are following in their footsteps.
Early in her time in Hampton Roads, Shikma joined CHKD’s Ambassadors and began to instill philanthropy by setting up a portable table for her children, Niv and Shai, to sell lemonade for CHKD. “You can pay with Venmo!” they yell out to bike riders who say they have no cash. When their cousins Lucy, Nora, and Harris visit, they join them on the street. Niv and Shai have also purchased canned goods and delivered them to the JFS food closet.
A major proponent for kindness, when I see our boys and girls practicing what is important to me, I feel like I have done (some of) my work as their Grandma or Gigi, as they call me.
But it’s also why I jumped at the opportunity to help promote Community Impact Day. I even recruited Habitat for Humanity of South Hampton Roads to be among those in the Mitzvah Mall, accepting $1 gifts from toddlers to teens and perhaps encouraging the adults in their lives to throw in more.
The money raised will be valuable to the recipients, but it’s the sheer act of learning and giving that will resonate with the children. One dollar becomes $10 someday, and if they work hard and follow the lead of the adults in their lives, they will eventually make legacy gifts to the Jewish community, which Joel and I have done.
So, circle this one on your calendar. It’s the Sunday before Thanksgiving, an ideal time to show some gratitude for your family’s good fortune by sharing it with others and setting a good example for the next generations.