Denver, CO—Roots & Branches Foundation, a grantmaking initiative of Rose Community Foundation, has awarded $75,680 in grants to three programs that help low-income families with children ages zero to five live healthy lives of dignity while working to end the cycle of poverty.
This was the eighth year of Roots & Branches Foundation, which is composed of Jewish individuals in their 20s and 30s from throughout the Greater Denver community. To inform their grantmaking, this year’s 18-member group studied Jewish values and teachings, explored community needs and engaged in strategic philanthropy, grantmaking that supports organizations in creating lasting, positive change. Across the past eight years, Roots & Branches Foundation has granted over $600,000. There are now 143 alumni who have participated in this collaborative giving group.
The grant priorities Roots & Branches members selected and the grants they made represent a manifestation of their shared Jewish values: that the highest level of tzedakah (giving in pursuit of justice) is to support people in becoming self-sufficient and that the dignity of others should be as precious to us as our own.
“I love feeling more connected to the broader Jewish community as well as to peers who are smart, engaged and working to make a difference in the Denver area,” says member AJ Grovert.
Following is a list of the grants awarded by Roots & Branches Foundation in 2015. Locations indicate the organization’s headquarters, not necessarily the geographic area served.
Growing Home (Denver)
$30,624 for the Seedlings Parents Institute, a series of eight weekly skill-building workshops focusing on parenting skills, including both parent-focused programming and joint activities for parents and their children ages birth to five.
Mile High Montessori (Denver)
$20,000 for Babies Ready for College, a parenting skills and early literacy program for families with children ages birth to five. The program will expand to a second permanent location in the Montbello neighborhood, serving approximately 75 children and their caregivers.
New Legacy Charter High School (Denver)
$25,056 to hire an early childhood education director to support the opening of a new charter school for pregnant and parenting teens and their children in August 2015. The school will offer early care and education for students’ young children, parenting support and education, and an individualized traditional high school curriculum.
To learn more about Roots & Branches Foundation, visit rcfdenver.org/rootsandbranches, or contact Ben Finan at 303.398.7417 or bfinan@rcfdenver.org . A list of members follows.
Roots & Branches Foundation 2014-15 Members
- Jacob Allen
- Robin Behrstock
- Darren Benton
- Greg Chalfin
- Marci Colb
- Megan Feldman
- Jesse Fishman
- Max Gibson
- AJ Grovert
- Alexander Hoffman
- Marlow Hoffman
- Alyssa Levy
- Shana Montrose
- Moshe Rhodes
- Adrienne Russman
- Irena Shwayder
- Brian Tannenbaum
- Kate Van Daele
About Rose Community Foundation
Rose Community Foundation uses leadership, grantmaking and donor engagement to invest in strategic and innovative solutions to enduring problems and emerging issues. The Foundation has granted nearly $226 million since it was founded in 1995. To learn more, please visit rcfdenver.org.