Combined Jewish Philanthropies (Boston, MA)

The Combined Jewish Philanthropies (CJP) of Boston, Massachusetts is the oldest federated Jewish philanthropy in the United States. The current incarnation of CJP was formed in 1960, when two separate federated philanthropies - the Combined Jewish Appeal and Associated Jewish Philanthropies - merged to create a single organization dedicated to serving the needs of Boston's Jewish community. As a result of this merger, CJP was able to focus its priorities and engage the community in providing resources for Jewish organizations in Boston and beyond.

CJP's records contain the history of several other organizations, from the forerunners of the current Federation to the Jewish institutions supported by CJP. Their beginnings can be traced to the founding of the United Hebrew Benevolent Association (UHBA) in 1864 at the Pleasant Street Synagogue (now Temple Israel). Initiated by Nathan Strauss and 26 other men of the Congregation Adath Israel and Ohabei Shalom, the Association's purpose was "to dispense the charities of the Israelitish persuasion with a greater degree of system and effectiveness than has heretofore prevailed" ( Pioneers in Service, 7).

By the 1890s, the UHBA and similar charitable organizations saw their resources grow smaller with the wave of immigrants in the late 1800s and a national economic depression. To alleviate these concerns, the Federation of Jewish Charities of Boston was established on April 25, 1895, the first of its kind in the United States. In addition to the UHBA, four additional organizations - the Hebrew Ladies Sewing Society, the Leopold Morse Home for the Aged and Infirm Hebrews and Orphanage, the Free Employment Bureau, and the Charitable Burial Association - signed an agreement that enabled them to share its resources under the new organization name. Jacob Hecht was elected as President and Rabbi Solomon Schindler of Temple Israel was named director.

Each of these organizations handled different issues present in the community. The Leopold Morse Home, established in 1889, was located near Mattapan Square and dedicated to serving both the Jewish elderly and orphans, ending the practice of placing Jewish children in non-Jewish foster homes. The Hebrew Ladies Sewing Society (1869) was an auxiliary of the UHBA. This organization assisted immigrants by distributing blankets and clothing. In 1879, Lina Hecht, founder of Hecht House, revived the organization, which also provided Chanukah parties for poorer Boston Jews and a Calico Ball for wealthier community members. The Free Employment Bureau (1892) was supported by the auspices of the Baron De Hirsch Society and was located at 100 Chauncy Street. This organization was operated by Jacob Hecht, Abraham Ratshesky and Abraham P. Spitz. Lastly, the Charitable Burial Association (1891) ensured a proper burial to poor or unknown immigrants.

In 1906, it was once again necessary to combine and conserve resources, compelling several to form the Federation of Jewish Organizations of Massachusetts. This Federation later incorporated as the Federated Jewish Charities on January 8, 1908, with three new organizations added to the original five: Helping Hand for Destitute Jewish Children, Mount Sinai Dispensary (Beth Israel Hospital) and the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society. In addition, the Federation's services now expanded to individuals living outside the city. In 1916, the Federation restructured as a social services organization under its director, Morris Waldman. This restructuring allowed the Federation to expand its services to Eastern European Jews, and provided support for Jewish education - the first Federation in the nation to endorse Jewish education as a community goal.

By the 1930s, the Federation had undergone yet another name change, now known as the Associated Jewish Philanthropies (1930), which it would remain until its merger with Combined Jewish Appeal. Meanwhile, in response to the rising wave of refugees from Nazi occupied Europe, the United Jewish Campaign was organized in 1937. There were now two campaigns in the Jewish community - the Associated Jewish Philanthropies in the fall for local needs, and the United Jewish Campaign in the spring for international needs - which caused exhaustion and frustration for both fundraisers and donors. As a result, the two campaigns were consolidated into the Combined Jewish Appeal in 1940.

In 1944, two organizations were created to address specific needs of the community and were operated in tandem to the Federation. These were the Jewish Community Relations Council, established to increase the community's awareness of social issues and their impact, and the Jewish Centers of Greater Boston, which came out of a youth survey conducted by the Federation. As the Federation continued to grow and expand, more organizations fell under their auspices, including Hebrew Teacher's College, the Bureau of Jewish Education, the Jewish Community Relations Council, the Young Men's Hebrew Association and Hecht House, as well as countless synagogues, schools and smaller institutions.

By 1960, the Associated Jewish Philanthropies and Combined Jewish Appeal had merged into the Combined Jewish Philanthropies, and the Boston Jewish population had moved from the city to the suburbs of Newton and Brookline. A Long-Range Planning Study, conducted in 1963 and overseen by Irving Rabb, identified the current needs and forecasted the future needs of a rapidly changing community. In 1976, CJP president Leonard Kaplan recognized that the Federation had to respond to the considerable suburban Jewish population, and began to build community centers in the Western suburbs. Although met with some resistance, the Gosman Campus and Leventhal-Sidman Jewish Community Center opened in Newton in 1983. Kaplan was succeeded by Barry Shrage in 1987.

1 Information for this administrative sketch and chronology is from the following resources: "CJP History and Milestones." CJP. August 12, 2010 ( http://www.cjp.org/page.aspx?id=50202 ) Sarna, Jonathan D. and Ellen Smith. The Jews of Boston . Boston: Combined Jewish Philanthropies, 1995 Solomon, Barbara Miller. Pioneers in Service: The History of the Associated Jewish Philanthropies of Boston . Boston: Associated Jewish Philanthropies, 1956 Materials from the collection