Jewish Endowment Foundation of South Carolina

Grantmaking - through a strategic process and oversight by a board of trustees, the Jewish Endowment Foundation (jef) grants help sustain, build and secure South Carolina's Jewish institutions and agencies. The grant requests range from operational support to new programmatic initiatives. The support provided by jef through these grants impact thousands of Jewish lives and the broader community every year and ensures a vibrant Jewish future across the state.in 2023, the Jewish Endowment Foundation disbursed 136 grants and scholarships totaling $670,116. These grants were distributed as follows: 43 grants totaling $203,266 in support of religious and other philanthropic efforts, 46 grants totaling $196,767 supporting various educational pursuits, 28 grants totaling $232,424 supporting human needs, 9 grants totaling $18,719 supporting health initiatives, 5 grants totaling $13,490 for neighborhood and community development, 1 grant for $200 in support of social justice initiatives, and 4 grants totaling $5,250 in support of the arts.

Temple sinai - in 2016, a related party of the Foundation assumed ownership of the temple sinai synagogue building and the associated cemetery in order to preserve and protect this cornerstone of Jewish history and legacy in sumter county. While the synagogue currently remains active under independent management, the Foundation provides for the upkeep of the building and grounds. On june 2, 2018, this historical landmark was converted to the temple sinai Jewish history center (sumter county museum) and is open to the public on thursdays and fridays, 1:00pm to 4:00pm, and saturdays, 10:00am to 1:00pm.