Our Story

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.

MSCF Overview

This is a good overview of MSCF, but because it was created in 2006, it does reference the old mission and model. We look forward to launching the new giving circle model on November 13, 2012.

Posted by Mount Sinai Community Foundation on Friday, October 26, 2012