When Elie Klein was 13, he knew that giving back meaningfully and making a mark on the community was part of becoming a Jewish adult; this translated to donating about a tenth of his gift money to charity, he told eJP. But today’s “mitzvah project model” is more effective as an educational tool, he said, “because it highlights personalization and promotes advocacy and action.”

Now the North American director of development at ADI, an organization that cares for and empowers Israelis with disabilities, Klein listed some of the ADI-based projects that b’nai mitzvah have participated in: twinning with an ADI resident of a similar age, running bake sales, bike-a-thons and other small-scale fundraising projects to help the organization secure equipment, therapies and opportunities for those who benefit from ADI’s services, adding that these experiences will enable young leaders to “choose their own adventures.”

As Jewish youth learn the cantillation for their Torah portions, worry about the notes of the haftarah and navigate the social pressures of the parties, they are also giving back to their communities as part of their b’nai mitzvah training, raising funds and awareness for favorite causes or new initiatives, learning new skills and developing their passions.

The mitzvah project has even been in the pop culture spotlight recently: “You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah,” which debuted on Netflix in August and is still a subject of conversation in the Jewish community, featured a throughline of protagonist Stacy’s search for a mitzvah project that spoke to her. The film portrays the mitzvah project as a one-off event, more like a single good deed. Stacy considers making friendship bracelets for dogs or volunteering at a retirement home (where her crush just happens to regularly visit his grandmother). But Rabbi Rebecca, Stacy’s quirky, tough-love-wielding Hebrew school teacher, tells her that “the sooner you do your mitzvah, the sooner you’ll find things falling into place.”

“Mitzvah projects are the norm in hundreds of Reform, Conservative, Reconstructionist, and Renewal communities, but very few synagogues dictate the exact nature of the mitzvah project,” Rabbi Daniel Brenner, vice president of education at Moving Traditions, told eJP. He explained that the “project” designation encouraged students to do something beyond writing a check to charity, and gave it additional visibility by making it a part of the d’var torah or b’nai mitzvah speech.

Rabbi Jason Miller, who has been officiating private and customized bar and bat mitzvah ceremonies for more than two decades, told eJewishPhilanthropy that the mitzvah project can be a space to be creative and discover new passions. When in-person volunteering was not possible during the pandemic for health reasons, Miller said, two students whose b’nai mitzvah were a month apart joined forces on their mitzvah project: they volunteered to cook food for parents staying at a Ronald McDonald House in Ann Arbor, Mich., whose children were in treatment at a nearby hospital.

“The problem was that neither of these boys had ever cooked before,” Miller said. “They were determined, though, and spent hours learning how to cook by watching YouTube videos and then made breakfast on several occasions for dozens of parents at the Ronald McDonald House. These two boys loved the mitzvah project so much and they both love to cook now. They just never realized it was a passion.”

Elana Beame, who spearheads the mitzvah project program at Tzedek America, recalled a student in Southern California who was extremely passionate about food waste. “He learned how grocery stores and markets will throw away produce no longer at selling standards. This produce was still completely edible. He took the initiative to go to his local grocery stores, markets and farms and started rescuing the produce that would be thrown away and instead donated them to local food banks,” Beame said. “He used rescued produce to create table centerpieces at his celebration, which were then donated to a food bank immediately following the party.”

This week, Tzedek America founder Avram Mandell spoke with a student who has the Torah portion of Bo, which talks about the plague of darkness. “We talked about vulnerable populations and the connection to feeling vulnerable during the plague of darkness, and she connected darkness to depression and no one wants to feel that kind of sadness,” Mandell said, adding that this framework “made her feel more inspired to work with the vulnerable population she chose.”

Todd Shotz, founder of b’nai mitzvah prep company Hebrew Helpers and the Mitzvah Learning Fund, which provides grants for Jewish learning opportunities, said that his organization’s students are encouraged to pick an ongoing project, to “use this moment as a launching pad for a life dedicated to tikkun olam.”

“Our mentors frame it as the student putting their new role as a fully responsible member of the community into action,” he told eJP. Hebrew Helpers also asks its students — now more than 1,200 b’nai mitzvah trained — to go beyond fundraising and actively volunteer for their chosen cause if possible. “It is always engaging to a student if the charitable cause is centered around an interest or passion of theirs,” Shotz said, recalling students who knitted baby blankets for the local children’s hospital; made and gathered dresses for Dress For Success; and made dog toys and raised money for the Israel Guide Dog Center.

Many Jewish programs preparing students for their b’nai mitzvah require that they complete their community service commitment by the date of the synagogue service, as if the project is just another to-do on the b’nai mitzvah checklist, which may not encourage longer-term engagement with the cause in question. And some families do opt out if volunteering is not required.

At Congregation Beth El in Bethesda, Md., Robin Finkelstein, b’nai mitzvah coordinator and hazzan assistant, said her synagogue strongly encourages students to participate in mitzvah projects, but does not require it — of this year’s 26 b’nai mitzvah students only 13 have reported mitzvah projects, “definitely a drop from last year,” she said. This year’s projects included helping new immigrants, cooking meals at an interfaith center, collecting toys for a hospital pediatric unit, raising money for The Trevor Project, supporting an education nonprofit for kids with disabilities and park cleanups.

Making mitzvah matches

From 2000-2013, longtime Jewish educator Sheri Gropper had a thematically appropriate 13-year run helming “Mitzvah Mania” fair, where families would receive a packet of materials, listing various nonprofits grouped by areas of interest with contact information and ideas for helping them. The fair would draw more than 130 families of pre- bar/bat mitzvah students per year, she told eJP.

Today’s technology enables a different approach, but today’s students and their parents still need help to find their mitzvah project match: enter Tzedek America’s Mitzvah Project Central, a password-protected database of partner organizations that have volunteer opportunities available for b’nai mitzvah-aged students. The opportunities are tagged by topic and shown on a map (some of them are marked as opportunities that can be done from anywhere).

“If a student comes to us and is unsure of what social justice topic to focus on, we explore the different options together, or we look at their Torah portion for themes that can be connected to a social justice topic,” Beame said. “Students tend to want to focus on organizations that are in their backyard so they can volunteer in a hands-on way. We encourage the students to look at all of the organizations we partner with, regardless of location, to get inspired and learn more about what different regions focus on.”

Also helping teens find meaningful mitzvah matches, the Atlanta-based Creating Connected Communities (CCC) started as a bat mitzvah project 25 years ago, when Amy (Sacks) Zeide organized a small holiday party for a local shelter.

“The theft of kids’ Christmas presents from a local Atlanta agency inspired Amy to use bat mitzvah gift money to create Amy’s Holiday Party, an annual event that brings local kids together for a fun day of games and music, and to distribute holiday gifts their families might not be able to afford,” Naomi Eisenberger, the executive director of Good People Fund, told eJP. “This annual party is a key activity for CCC teen participants,” she added.

Today, CCC is an independent 501(c)(3) and builds community, provides Jewish teen leadership training and guides young teens, synagogues and other groups in creating meaningful mitzvah projects. A division of the organization, Amy’s Holiday Party, pays tribute to the original project, but now serves thousands of children and families in need year-round, and engages hundreds of teens in hands-on volunteer work.

“As a community, we want giving to become a central part of our young leaders’ identities, and the best way to achieve this is by plugging into what they are already passionate about,” Klein said. “We empower them to use what they love to rally their communities around the cause and help us make a profound impact for disability care and inclusion. In addition to providing the perfect recipe for self-motivation, this method also ensures the greatest possible satisfaction, as teens are excited to be the ones running the show and imparting knowledge and values to the adults in their lives.”

During tough times, the world relies on people and organizations committed to doing good. In fact, that’s true even when the world is doing well. To that end, Naomi Eisenberger and the Good People Fund are dedicated to serving others in the United States, in Israel and throughout the world.

Executive director Naomi Eisenberger, 76, is no stranger to helping others. Indeed, the Good People Fund is inspired by ordinary people with an extraordinary drive to make deep, uplifting impacts in communities in the United States, Israel and elsewhere around the world, trying to find new and creative ways to address seemingly intractable social and economic challenges. It is her second major venture in this field after a career that includes being a high school history teacher, kosher caterer and part of a family retail business.

Eisenberger and the fund keep costs down so they can serve those in need. She reports that her office is the bedroom of her home in a New Jersey suburb, though she notes that “we do have a separate phone line.”

“We are a ‘little known fund, not a foundation,’ ” she says. “We are not your typical nonprofit organization.”

She is quick to add that “what goes in goes out.”

Eisenberger was turned on to the world of tzedakah and charitable giving very much by accident. “Around 1991, I was becoming shul president of Congregation B’nai Israel in Milburn, New Jersey. Just before a family vacation, I was meeting with our rabbi, Steve Bayar, and was looking at the books on his shelf. I told him I needed something else to read. He handed me Gym Shoes and Irises: Personalized Tzedakah [Book 1, published in 1981] and Book 2 [published in 1987].”

Eisenberger is referring to two of the many books written by Danny Siegel, founder of the Ziv Tzedakah Fund who travels the country and the world speaking about the value of giving.

Siegel founded his fund in 1981 after making several trips to Israel and serving as a shaliach mitzvah—one who brings money for distribution to those in need. On subsequent trips, he asked friends and relatives for a dollar or two to give as charity.

He went in search of “good people” he called “Mitzvah Heroes.” These heroes were actually regular Israelis quietly working to make the world a better place through their actions.

Prior to the meeting in Bayar’s study, Eisenberger hadn’t heard of Siegel. She read both books on her vacation and was hooked. “I am totally enthralled,” she told Bayar upon her return. And she had an idea. “I am being installed in June. Let’s bring Danny Siegel as a scholar and use him to found our shul’s chesed committee.”

‘Inspired by life experiences’

Eisenberger and Siegel immediately hit it off during his weekend at the synagogue. In addition to his talks in the synagogue, Siegel spoke at a small Saturday-evening gathering in her home. The idea for a “Hearts and Hands” committee was born.

“He challenged us,” recalls Eisenberger. “If you have extra Torahs in your shul, halachah [Jewish law] is that you can sell it for the purpose of tzedakah.”

Eisenberger was inspired and motivated. “I never back away from a challenge. I convinced the board. We sold TWO Torahs, and this became our endowment so we could allocate funds in Israel, in the United States and locally.”

Eisenbeger kept in touch with Siegel. Soon after, he asked her to do some volunteer work with the Ziv Fund. He and Ziv were badly in need of an administrator. Flattered and interested, she traveled to Rockville, Md., to meet with Siegel. Eisenberger returned to New Jersey with boxes of records, opened an account and served as a volunteer administrator for nearly three years.

Over time, Eisenberger needed paid employment. She eventually convinced Siegel to hire her. Eisenberger served as managing director of the Ziv Tzedakah Fund for more than 10 years.

The fund reportedly gave away more than $14 million in its 32 years of operation—mainly to small, innovative programs and projects in Israel and America that needed assistance—before Siegel and the board decided to close it down in 2008.

Nonetheless, Eisenberger was determined to continue doing mitzvah work: “I said, ‘I’m starting over; this is too important!”

“Having met and worked with Danny, I discovered a whole different philosophy and way to look at the world and life,” reports Eisenberger, who started the Good People Fund in that same year, 2008, to provide financial support and management guidance to small and mid-sized nonprofits committed to tikkun olam, “the repair of the world.”

The fund currently supports programs in 15 states, Israel and countries in Eastern Europe, Africa and India. While the majority of programs are not run by Jewish people, Eisenberger says they are all “based on Judaism” and Jewish principles. And the fund finds them on its own; it does not take proposals.

Another characteristic of all grantees, adds Eisenberger, is that “most have been inspired by their own life experiences.” She playfully notes an additional shared feature: “Very few have studied or know the first thing about nonprofit management; this is an additional reason our work with them is so important.”

It is this latter role that distinguishes Good People from other funders. “Our ability to offer mentorship is a significant and unique part of our work,” she said, “and it makes all the difference in the world!”

Eisenberger has a knack for identifying organizations in their very early stages when they need the greatest support. “I have a well-cultivated gut. After 25 years, I know it when I see it. I am looking for people with drive, passion, visionaries without any sense of ego—all selfless people.

And she has found people doing good and important work in such diverse areas as elder care, fighting hatred, healing broken communities, health and well-being, human needs and self-sufficiency, hunger and food rescue, inclusion and disabilities, kids, poverty and fundamental needs, refugees and women’s empowerment. Eisenberger says she cares deeply each grantee: “They drive me—they inspire me!”

He went in search of “good people” he called “Mitzvah Heroes.” These heroes were actually regular Israelis quietly working to make the world a better place through their actions.

Prior to the meeting in Bayar’s study, Eisenberger hadn’t heard of Siegel. She read both books on her vacation and was hooked. “I am totally enthralled,” she told Bayar upon her return. And she had an idea. “I am being installed in June. Let’s bring Danny Siegel as a scholar and use him to found our shul’s chesed committee.”

‘Inspired by life experiences’

Eisenberger and Siegel immediately hit it off during his weekend at the synagogue. In addition to his talks in the synagogue, Siegel spoke at a small Saturday-evening gathering in her home. The idea for a “Hearts and Hands” committee was born.

“He challenged us,” recalls Eisenberger. “If you have extra Torahs in your shul, halachah [Jewish law] is that you can sell it for the purpose of tzedakah.”

Eisenberger was inspired and motivated. “I never back away from a challenge. I convinced the board. We sold TWO Torahs, and this became our endowment so we could allocate funds in Israel, in the United States and locally.”

Eisenbeger kept in touch with Siegel. Soon after, he asked her to do some volunteer work with the Ziv Fund. He and Ziv were badly in need of an administrator. Flattered and interested, she traveled to Rockville, Md., to meet with Siegel. Eisenberger returned to New Jersey with boxes of records, opened an account and served as a volunteer administrator for nearly three years.

Over time, Eisenberger needed paid employment. She eventually convinced Siegel to hire her. Eisenberger served as managing director of the Ziv Tzedakah Fund for more than 10 years.

The fund reportedly gave away more than $14 million in its 32 years of operation—mainly to small, innovative programs and projects in Israel and America that needed assistance—before Siegel and the board decided to close it down in 2008.

Nonetheless, Eisenberger was determined to continue doing mitzvah work: “I said, ‘I’m starting over; this is too important!”

“Having met and worked with Danny, I discovered a whole different philosophy and way to look at the world and life,” reports Eisenberger, who started the Good People Fund in that same year, 2008, to provide financial support and management guidance to small and mid-sized nonprofits committed to tikkun olam, “the repair of the world.”

The fund currently supports programs in 15 states, Israel and countries in Eastern Europe, Africa and India. While the majority of programs are not run by Jewish people, Eisenberger says they are all “based on Judaism” and Jewish principles. And the fund finds them on its own; it does not take proposals.

Another characteristic of all grantees, adds Eisenberger, is that “most have been inspired by their own life experiences.” She playfully notes an additional shared feature: “Very few have studied or know the first thing about nonprofit management; this is an additional reason our work with them is so important.”

It is this latter role that distinguishes Good People from other funders. “Our ability to offer mentorship is a significant and unique part of our work,” she said, “and it makes all the difference in the world!”

Eisenberger has a knack for identifying organizations in their very early stages when they need the greatest support. “I have a well-cultivated gut. After 25 years, I know it when I see it. I am looking for people with drive, passion, visionaries without any sense of ego—all selfless people.

And she has found people doing good and important work in such diverse areas as elder care, fighting hatred, healing broken communities, health and well-being, human needs and self-sufficiency, hunger and food rescue, inclusion and disabilities, kids, poverty and fundamental needs, refugees and women’s empowerment. Eisenberger says she cares deeply each grantee: “They drive me—they inspire me!”

He went in search of “good people” he called “Mitzvah Heroes.” These heroes were actually regular Israelis quietly working to make the world a better place through their actions.

Prior to the meeting in Bayar’s study, Eisenberger hadn’t heard of Siegel. She read both books on her vacation and was hooked. “I am totally enthralled,” she told Bayar upon her return. And she had an idea. “I am being installed in June. Let’s bring Danny Siegel as a scholar and use him to found our shul’s chesed committee.”

‘Inspired by life experiences’

Eisenberger and Siegel immediately hit it off during his weekend at the synagogue. In addition to his talks in the synagogue, Siegel spoke at a small Saturday-evening gathering in her home. The idea for a “Hearts and Hands” committee was born.

“He challenged us,” recalls Eisenberger. “If you have extra Torahs in your shul, halachah [Jewish law] is that you can sell it for the purpose of tzedakah.”

Eisenberger was inspired and motivated. “I never back away from a challenge. I convinced the board. We sold TWO Torahs, and this became our endowment so we could allocate funds in Israel, in the United States and locally.”

Eisenbeger kept in touch with Siegel. Soon after, he asked her to do some volunteer work with the Ziv Fund. He and Ziv were badly in need of an administrator. Flattered and interested, she traveled to Rockville, Md., to meet with Siegel. Eisenberger returned to New Jersey with boxes of records, opened an account and served as a volunteer administrator for nearly three years.

Over time, Eisenberger needed paid employment. She eventually convinced Siegel to hire her. Eisenberger served as managing director of the Ziv Tzedakah Fund for more than 10 years.

The fund reportedly gave away more than $14 million in its 32 years of operation—mainly to small, innovative programs and projects in Israel and America that needed assistance—before Siegel and the board decided to close it down in 2008.

Nonetheless, Eisenberger was determined to continue doing mitzvah work: “I said, ‘I’m starting over; this is too important!”

“Having met and worked with Danny, I discovered a whole different philosophy and way to look at the world and life,” reports Eisenberger, who started the Good People Fund in that same year, 2008, to provide financial support and management guidance to small and mid-sized nonprofits committed to tikkun olam, “the repair of the world.”

The fund currently supports programs in 15 states, Israel and countries in Eastern Europe, Africa and India. While the majority of programs are not run by Jewish people, Eisenberger says they are all “based on Judaism” and Jewish principles. And the fund finds them on its own; it does not take proposals.

Another characteristic of all grantees, adds Eisenberger, is that “most have been inspired by their own life experiences.” She playfully notes an additional shared feature: “Very few have studied or know the first thing about nonprofit management; this is an additional reason our work with them is so important.”

It is this latter role that distinguishes Good People from other funders. “Our ability to offer mentorship is a significant and unique part of our work,” she said, “and it makes all the difference in the world!”

Eisenberger has a knack for identifying organizations in their very early stages when they need the greatest support. “I have a well-cultivated gut. After 25 years, I know it when I see it. I am looking for people with drive, passion, visionaries without any sense of ego—all selfless people.

And she has found people doing good and important work in such diverse areas as elder care, fighting hatred, healing broken communities, health and well-being, human needs and self-sufficiency, hunger and food rescue, inclusion and disabilities, kids, poverty and fundamental needs, refugees and women’s empowerment. Eisenberger says she cares deeply each grantee: “They drive me—they inspire me!”

‘The inner strength of people’

The warm feelings and admiration are mutual.

Yoni Yefet Reich, the co-founder of Amutat Beit Zayin in Israel, met Eisenberger more than a decade ago in Israel. “From my first interaction, I immediately recognized that she was a different type of funder representing a different kind of collective. She clearly understood the issues at hand and was an ‘out-of-the-box’ strategist.”

He and his team wanted to develop Kaima Farms—a socially responsible education network that many others deemed untenable. Fast-forward and today, Be’erotayim is one of five Kaima farms where youth are responsible for planting, nurturing and harvesting crops and for running a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) venture. Other farm communities include Kaima Nahalal, focused on helping young girls, including many who have experienced sexual trauma and have not succeeded in more traditional educational settings.

Reich says “we count ourselves fortunate to receive not only funding, but friendship and professional guidance that have helped us develop from a single youth-run, CSA operating farm into a network of four in Israel and one in Tanzania. Our unfolding story would simply not be possible without the involvement of the fund, and, of course, Naomi.”

We all went through a lot in 2021 — what I’m calling the modern-day Ten Plagues, (even though, truth be told there are more than ten.) While we were surrounded by death, devastation, and existential threats, some women were out there fighting for change. Lionesses! I’ve collected some of my favorite warrior women and divided them into 9 categories:

1. Truth-tellers
2. Protectors
3. Justice-seekers
4. Creators
5. Barrier-breakers
6. Revolutionaries
7. Covid-fighters
8. Givers
9. Miracle Makers

These are some of their stories…

(8) Givers

Dolly Parton

Dolly Parton is not only a Guinness-book record-breaking star with seven decades of achievements. She is also a great philanthropist. She famously supports literacy among vulnerable kids, and the LGBTQ community. This year she really came through during the pandemic supporting the development of vaccines.

P!nk

Anyone who has followed me knows that Pink is my goto feminist artist. A celebrity who does not shy away from political activism, she embodies fighter in her entire being. Plus, her song “Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken” has gotten me through much of the trump era. She gets special place on this list, however, for what she did for the Norwegian Beach Handball team. When the team was fined for not adhering to sexually objectifying uniforms, Pink offered to proudly pay the fine for them. Sisterhood!! I love Pink.

Naomi Eisenberger

Naomi Eisenberger runs the Good People Fund, which is exactly what it sounds like. She and her group of good people seek out the other good people of the world, and work to ensure that they have funding for their vital ideas.

Barbara Dobkin

Barbara Dobkin is on the forefront of feminist philanthropy, and has been influential in establishing many vital feminist organizations and initiatives, especially in the Jewish world.