Our Mission

Honoring the values of tzedakah and tikkun olam, the Tidewater Jewish Foundation is dedicated to creating permanent resources to meet the challenges and needs of the Jewish community. The Foundation educates individuals, families and its affiliates on the rewards of philanthropy and facilitates the philanthropic process through planned giving and endowments.

Our Story

The Tidewater Jewish Foundation was created in 1984 to establish deep roots of philanthropy that would bear fruit for future generations. Its formation made it possible for individuals to fulfill their philanthropic intent and to enrich their lives through tzedakah. The origins of the Foundation, however, go back much farther to 1969 when a grass-roots campaign to collect letters of intent and help strengthen the community’s future began.

By 1980, the Endowment Fund reached the million-dollar mark. Donor-Advised and Memorial Funds were established by members of the community as a means to enjoy spiritual and emotional rewards and to create a mechanism for the distribution of funds in a tax-favored manner.

The Foundation was incorporated in 1992 and recognized as a public charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. TJF fund holders have since distributed $200 million in charitable dollars.