The One Where IKAR Gets a Transformational Gift | Rosh Hashanah 1 5786

As we shared on the morning of Rosh Hashanah, Marta Kauffman, our beloved Board Vice Chair, has made a capital campaign gift of $25 million to IKAR.

This stunning act of generosity has come at a pivotal moment in our campaign. Thanks to this gift, we are now very close to realizing our vision for our home– a center for Jewish life that is infused with creativity, belonging, and sacred purpose. A space rooted in love, justice, and defiant hope… and a powerful, tangible countertestimony to the divisive and dispiriting tides of our time.

Our friend, the visionary Rabbi Uri Herscher, once said of IKAR: “You have written the most beautiful love letter—now you need an envelope to deliver it to the world.” Marta’s transformational gift – together with the generosity of so many of you – will allow us to build that envelope, ensuring that the spirit and values of our remarkable community will endure for generations. We are deeply moved that Marta will dedicate the campus to the memory of her beloved parents, Dorothy and Herman, who cared deeply about the Jewish people and the Jewish future.

Marta built her career bringing laughter and joy to millions through storytelling. Her stories are always rooted in love, in friendship, in the possibility and hilarity of ordinary life. The IKAR Center will be imbued with that same humanity and generosity of spirit.

In a time of such pain and uncertainty, building our home is a sacred act of resistance: putting a stake in the ground for joy, for community, and for Jewish life that is vibrant, loving, hopeful, and just. We’re gearing up now for the community phase of our campaign which we will begin in earnest next year and we hope to have each and every one of you involved. In the meantime please visit our website to learn more: https://ikar.org/the-ikar-center/.

With profound thanks and abundant joy– Rabbi Sharon Brous & Melissa Balaban