Jewish Pride Fund

The San Francisco Bay Area is home to the fifth-largest Jewish community in the United States, and to a huge and diverse lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer population, including an estimated 36,000 LGBTQ Jews. Stepping out to be LGBTQ Jewish leader in the local landscape comes with a certain set of challenges to navigate and Federation would like to act as a support network for those in our community seeking to pursue the skills, thought-leadership, and comradery necessary to pursue these leadership opportunities.

Jewish Pride Fund

Our newest program we have developed to meet this goal is the Jewish Pride Fund. The Jewish Pride Fund was launched in 2018 with Danielle Meshorer, our Manager of Venture Philanthropy and Giving Circles, working together with Sam Goldman, former Chair of the LGBT Alliance, to form a giving circle with a mission to support the intersecting needs, values, and interests of the LGBTQ and Jewish communities in the Bay Area, nationally, and in Israel.

The vision of the Jewish Pride Fund is to create a world where Jewish LGBTQ voices are heard across Jewish, secular, and religious society. We believe that if we empower LGBTQ individuals and families that identify with the Jewish community, we contribute to the rising power and agency of the LGBTQ community as a whole. We believe that members of the Jewish LGBTQ community have a unique role to play in civil rights, social justice, and religious inclusion.

The Jewish Pride Fund meets 4 times approximately over four months to consider grant applications aligned with their mission and vision. Grant applications are by invitation only and emerge from an organic process of research by members of the Fund. The Jewish Pride Fund is looking to grow in membership, so if you are interested in joining, please be in touch with Danielle Mershorer for more information.