Standing on Solid Ground
By Emily Raij
The S’firot Foundation was officially incorporated in September 2022, funded by the proceeds of the sale of Kinneret Apartments, the two low-income senior housing buildings in downtown Orlando that were constructed in 1968 and 1978. While the foundation is relatively new, its Jewish values remain true to the original vision of Kinneret’s founders: to meet the needs of older adults across Central Florida.
Fairstead, the buildings’ new owner and a private developer and manager of low-income housing, completed substantial renovations of the 280 apartments while preserving their affordability for seniors who have a maximum yearly income of $32,100.
J Life readers may remember from the Winter 2024 issue that the Kinneret Council on Aging (KCOA) is continuing to provide programs and services to seniors living in the buildings and throughout Central Florida.
“It will also hopefully bring our community’s agencies together
to create a space for conversation and collaboration.”
All seven of the S’firot Foundation’s board members sat on either the Kinneret or KCOA boards for at least five years and were on other Jewish service organization or synagogue boards. Rhonda Pearlman is S’firot’s president, Scott Zimmerman is treasurer, Lynn Fenster is secretary, and Jacob Hara, JoAnne Kane, Don Levin, and Ali Polejes are board members.
“When you look at the history of the people that sit on the S’firot board and their family, I think we’ve done a good job of maintaining the legacy,” says Rhonda, who joined the Kinneret board in 1988. “But they are all proactive and fiscally responsible. It’s a great opportunity to have that knowledge but to be able to say we are looking at S’firot as a start-up.”
a moniker with special meaning
Even the foundation’s name conveys a reverence for Jewish knowledge. S’firot, also spelled sefirot, refers to the 10 traits emanating from God found in Kabbalah, the tradition of Jewish mysticism.
“Mark Silverberg, Kinneret president emeritus, researched the name,” says Rhonda. “S’firot describes 10 branches covering the spectrum of life. In the intertwining of these components, the tree of life covers 100 percent of who we are and who our community is.”
The tree of life is a fitting symbol for the far-reaching work that S’firot Foundation is pursuing.
According to a recent community update, “S’firot Foundation plans to use the earnings on its approximately $60 million in assets generated by the sale [of Kinneret Apartments] to provide targeted support for the well-being and wellness of older adults, primarily Jewish, and their caregivers in Central Florida.”
That support will come in the form of grants to various organizations, starting in Orange, Seminole, and Osceola counties. While S’firot will not accept unsolicited proposals, it is currently working with Impact:NPO, a needs assessment firm, and has formed an advisory board.
“We are being diligent and methodical about building an organization that will have sustainability and good business practices and that will honor the basic tenets of Judaism, tzedakah, and honoring your elders.”
Assessing community needs
The goal is to conduct interviews, form focus groups, and create a survey to help identify all the organizations that serve Jewish older adults and pinpoint where these seniors live and what their needs are. The needs assessment will allow S’firot to create a strategic plan to guide the foundation’s work in the first five years, including establishing a small number of pilot grants.
“It will also hopefully bring our community’s agencies together to create a space for conversation and collaboration,” says Rhonda.
S’firot has also enlisted a national search firm to recruit an executive director, and it recently held two board retreats. The first retreat focused on the Jewish and philanthropic idea of tzedakah, or charitable giving, while the second covered mentorship and grant-making essentials with a consultant from the Jewish Funders Network.
Rhonda says, “We are being diligent and methodical about building an organization that will have sustainability and good business practices and that will honor the basic tenets of Judaism, tzedakah, and honoring your elders – to be able to place the funds that were entrusted to us by the community in 1967 to make an impact.”