Jewish Federation receives $6 million grant to redevelop campus

It was about 10 years ago that philanthropist Joel Morganroth knocked on the doors of the Jewish Federation of Sarasota-Manatee to find out how he could help the organization.

Now, a recent donation by Joel Morganroth and his wife Gail Morganroth brings their total investment in the Jewish Federation to about $6 million. 

The gift will allow the federation to pursue an ongoing initiative — the redevelopment of the front portion of its campus — to which the Morganroths also donated more than a million dollars when the Campus Capital Campaign in support of the goal began in 2019.

“It's incredibly inspiring,” said Jewish Federation CEO Shepard Englander. “They came to us and said, ‘How can we help?’ and have helped develop this vision, have helped strengthen the organization, and now have come back and made our dreams possible.”

The plans include the redevelopment of the front 16 acres of the 32-acre campus and will include a conference and events center, The Ora, the Chaifetz Holocaust Memorial and Education Center, and a summer camp, Camp Yonnie.

“This is going to be a canvas that our community and the broader community and organizations across the region can use to come up with their own exciting and stimulating events and programs and courses, and whatever is needed,” said Englander.

With the Morganroth’s gift, the campaign has raised more than $27.5 million, over $9 million of which was raised in 2023.  

In the next months, a portion of the gift will be used to launch a dollar-for-dollar matching challenge that will close out the campaign. 

Courtesy image

“When Gail and I decide on a major gift, we consider it as an investment,” said Joel Morganroth in a media release. "We must believe in the mission and the impact our gift would have but also be confident that the organization is financially transparent, uses best governance practices, and is sustainable.”

Englander said a demographic study by the Jewish Federation in 2019 showed the community to be one of the fastest-growing Jewish communities in America. However, he noted that unlike some cities, Sarasota, does not have a specifically Jewish neighborhood.

“You have families and children spread over every corner of all the counties, and so it’s difficult for a lot of Jewish families and children to meet each other,” he said. “Day camp, for example, will allow us to bring people together to build lifelong friendships, share ideas and pass on traditions.”

The Ora, a premier conference and events center, will open to the public in April 2024 and will allow many different organizations to host events, while the federation will also use the center for programs, including its film series, speakers and adult education. 

The federation will also be opening the Chaifetz Holocaust Memorial and Education Center in April 2024, with school field trips beginning in November 2024. 

Englander calls the center a “unique, informal, immersive outdoor museum” for people of all ages, which will offer an understanding of “how a society could descend from becoming a democracy, to becoming a totalitarian state with genocide as its main mission, and what we can learn to safeguard our own freedoms and democracy.”

The federation will involve local schools with which they currently partner, to provide curriculum support and teacher training for Holocaust education.

The community will also be establishing a day camp, Camp Yonnie, in June 2024, relaunching a summer camp the organization had operated in the past which he said was “extremely popular, both with families in the Jewish community and with our friends and neighbors outside the Jewish community.”

“We see enormous growth in our region, especially of families, and there's a shortage of day camps,” he said, noting the camp will appeal to kids with all types of interests, mixing outdoor activities, the sharing of Jewish music and traditions, and exploring nature.