Carrying on Mount Sinai Community Foundation’s
Legacy for the Next Generation
Our Mission.
The Mount Sinai Community Foundation is a collective giving circle whose members come together to support initiatives that improve health, enhance well-being, or otherwise advance medical care in the Jewish and larger communities, honoring the history and legacy of the Mount Sinai Hospital.
Our Vision.
To enhance and deepen the commitment to Jewish values and community through the power of collective, directed giving to fulfill unmet health and wellness needs.
As part of the Giving Circle, MSCF members pool financial contributions and collaborate to decide how to fund innovative local initiatives that improve health, enhance well-being, or otherwise advance medical care in the Twin Cities community.
The Giving Circle provides a unique opportunity for members to determine how their dollars are spent through an engaging and democratic selection process. MSCF invites nonprofits to submit grant proposals annually. MSCF voting members then convene to allocate grant funding to as many as eight organizations for up to $10,000 each. To date, MSCF has given more than $1 million to Minnesota organizations.
The work of the Mount Sinai Community Foundation is guided by the following values and principles:
Who We Are.
Collaborative giving
Building community
Informed philanthropy
Leadership development
Tikkun olam—repairing the world
Gemilut hasadim—performing acts of loving-kindness
Tzedakah—helping those in need
Helping people to live healthy lives
In 1951, at a time of heightened anti-Semitism and discrimination, most Twin Cities hospitals excluded Jewish medical students from residency programs and Jewish doctors from employment. In response, Jewish philanthropists and medical professionals joined forces to launch Mount Sinai Hospital (at 22nd Street and Chicago Avenue South), opening opportunities to doctors of all ethnicities and religions to practice medicine.
In short order, Mount Sinai Hospital developed a reputation that was less about who it employed than how it served. It set a standard among all Twin Cities health care organizations for patient care, medical education, and research.
Like many male-dominated organizations of the 1950s, Mount Sinai Hospital had a women’s auxiliary. Growing to more than 2,000 strong—eventually to include men—the Mount Sinai Hospital Auxiliary volunteers hosted successful fund-raisers for facilities and equipment and provided the hospital, its patients, and the community with services for 40 years.
When Mount Sinai Hospital closed in 1991, the Auxiliary’s core members committed to continue their service to the community as Mount Sinai Community Foundation, meeting as a small panel and annually allocating grants from its $350,000 endowment to area nonprofits. But membership dwindled. Wanting to remain vital, members set out to attract and engage the next generation of Jewish philanthropists. Together, they imagined a new approach to giving together, in community.
In 2012, the group approved a plan that restructured the Foundation, transforming it into a giving circle, reinvigorating the organization with an exciting new way to support health and wellness initiatives in the Twin Cities. Instead of a small, nominated board, the Mount Sinai Community Foundation Giving Circle was now open to the entire community, with its members convening annually in a live grant allocation process. A newly appointed Executive Committee set out to grow the organization’s membership, endowment, and grant distribution—increasing awareness and its impact in our community. The following year, the Giving Circle established the Mount Sinai Community Foundation Teen Giving Circle, fulfilling its vision of an intergenerational model of giving and to carry on the legacy.
Our Story.
The MSCF Giving Circle is ideal for those who seek to give collectively, informed by research, in-person presentations, and a thoughtful process to understand the outcomes and measure the impact of their giving.
Our giving circle model enables members to engage more deeply in addressing our communities’ health and wellness needs, often uncovering new and innovative initiatives/organizations that would otherwise be difficult for an individual donor to access.
MSCF offers the following types of membership:
Voting Membership ($200 annual dues): Voting members participate in the annual grant selection process that takes place every spring. They may also choose to serve on a committee.
Lifetime Membership (one-time minimum gift of $5,000): Lifetime members participate in the MSCF grant process that takes place every spring and may also choose to serve on a committee.
Friend of MSCF ($100 minimum per year): Friends of MSCF will stay up-to-date on MSCF activities, but do not participate in the annual grant process or serve on committees.
Teen Giving Circle Member ($36 minimum annual dues): Teen members pool their donations and participate in MSCF’s annual grant process that takes place every spring. They attend the meeting and then convene separately with a facilitator to discuss and vote as a group to determine how they will allocate their funds.
Membership
Grant Applicants
MSCF seeks to fund innovative grant proposals from 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations for one-time grants up to $10,000 that fulfill MSCF’s mission to improve health, enhance well-being, or otherwise advance medical care for Minnesota residents.
Through the generosity of the Frances & Samuel Finkelstein/Janice Finkelstein Mattison Memorial Fund, one of the grantees may receive funding in the area of: cancer research and education; mental health or cancer treatment; medical ethics and quality assurance; or patient advocacy programs.
Applying organizations must be located in one of seven counties of the metro area: Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, and Washington Counties. MSCF gives equal consideration to proposals that impact Jewish and non-Jewish communities.
Questions about the grant process should be directed to our Program Officer, Jenifer Robins. Potential applicants are strongly encouraged to contact Jenifer Robins who will connect you with the MSCF Grant Allocation Chair, to discuss their projects prior to submitting an application.
Please click on the link below to access the online grant system where you will find directions on how to log on. Once you log on, you will be able to select the Mount Sinai Community Foundation, where you will be able to determine if your organization is eligible for a MSCF grant. If so, you will be invited to submit an online Letter of Inquiry, which is the first step for prospective applicants. Below are the MSCF guidelines required to apply.
2023 Mount Sinai Community Foundation Grant Awards
Annex Teen Clinic: $10,000 for Annex Teen Clinic Lab Remodel
Jewish Housing and Programming: $4,318 for Functional Trainer for Health and Wellness
Minnesota Autism Center: $10,000 for Eagan Safety Care Pilot for Youth with Autism-Spectrum Disorder
Perspectives, Inc.: $10,000 for Mount Sinai Health and Healing Clubhouse
2024 Grant Cycle Timeline
LOI Release – Wednesday, January 31, 2024
Deadline for organizations to submit LOI – Monday, February 12, 2024
Invitations to organizations from LOI pool to submit full grant applications – Monday, March 11, 2024
Deadline for invitees to submit full grant applications – Friday, March 22, 2024
Grant Finalists notified – Tuesday, April 16, 2024
MSCF Annual Giving Circle Meeting with Finalist Presentations –Tuesday, May 7, 2024
Written Grant Notification Mailed to Recipients – Tuesday, May 21, 2024
Grant Recipients’ Letter of Agreement Due – Tuesday, June 4, 2024
Funds Released – 4 weeks after grantee letter of agreement submission unless otherwise stipulated by Grants Chair
Grantee Outcome Report Due – April 25, 2025