Temple Sinai has a long and rich heritage of tzedakah, consistent with our Jewish tradition to express charity and feelings of sorrow and joy through charitable contributions. Such giving often occurs at times of birthdays, Bar and Bat Mitzvah, weddings, anniversaries, births and deaths. Your generosity, large and small, continues to provide for Temple Sinai, sustaining programs for members and the community and supporting charitable functions.
If you have any questions, please contact the temple office at (202) 363-6394 or email Director of Development Noah Benjamin at nbenjamin@templesinaidc.org.
Ways to Support Temple Sinai Programs
Donations to many funds can be made online here. Unless the fund is specifically established as an endowment, contributions to these funds are used to cover direct costs and related staff support for each function described below.
Annual Fund – Provides general operating support across all temple activities throughout the year.
Art – Purchases and/or installs art works used to decorate, furnish, or exhibit at Temple Sinai, and to undertake art programming.
Benjamin Goldstein Adult Education – Provides for adult education activities at Temple Sinai.
Bernstein Religious School Endowment – Provides an endowment for the Temple Sinai Religious School to support current curriculum and build for the future of the Religious School.
Davis Center for Social Justice Fund – Provides opportunities for Temple members to learn, act, and work together to repair the world. Our programs provide insights and unique perspectives on a wide variety of topics including reproductive rights, environmental justice, racial equity, gun violence prevention, aid for migrants and refugees, and more. Donations to The Davis Center strengthen Temple Sinai’s social justice work through events, support for broader social justice groups, and aid to individuals and families in need. Learn more about the Davis Center.
Discretionary Funds – Rabbi Roos’s Fund; Rabbi Goldstein’s Fund; Rabbi Diamondstein’s Fund; Cantor Rhodes’ Fund; Cantor Robins’ Fund; Cantorial Soloist Robyn Helzner’s Fund – Provides for charitable, programmatic, and educational needs as determined by each member of the ritual staff. (Checks should be made out to the fund of your choice.)
Dollars for Israel – Provides for temple programming about Israel and support for Reform and Progressive causes in Israel. The programming and allocation of funds is coordinated by our Israel Committee in consultation with the Clergy.
Endowment – Provides income in perpetuity for the temple’s operations.
Florence & Irwin Speyer Endowed Music Innovation – Provides an endowment to support and enhance contemporary Jewish-themed music in the spiritual worship, community, and educational programs of Temple Sinai.
Harris Jewish History – Provides funds for archival support and educational programming on Jewish historical subjects.
Israel and Camp Scholarships – Provides for scholarships for summer programs in Israel and Jewish summer camps. It also funds the temple’s match of Israel Quest / Camper Quest grants sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington.
Library – Provides for the purchase of books, subscriptions, and other materials for the library.
Memorial Contributions – Donations to honor the memory of the deceased, amounts raised support temple operations.
Multiracial Sinai – Provides support for programs and activities that further the mission of Temple Sinai to affirm and enhance our identity as a multiracial Reform temple, committed to being an antiracist congregation.
Music – Provides support for enhanced music programs and activities.
Nursery School – Provides support for Temple Sinai Nursery School activities.
Prayer Books & Ritual Objects – Provides support for the purchase of new prayer books and ritual objects and for their repair and maintenance.
Project Mensch – Provides for Temple Sinai’s social action partnership with the Wheatley Education Campus by providing basic items needed to enrich the education provided to low-income children at this DC public school.
Rabbi Eugene Lipman Social Action and Tzedakah Fund – Provides for the Rabbi Eugene J. Lipman Grants, which are awarded annually to organizations and programs focused on the Jewish values of justice, equality, and a better world. Grants are awarded only to 501(c)(3) organizations, with priority consideration given to small to mid-size local non-profits. Learn more about the Rabbi Eugene Lipman Grants.
Rabbi Fred N. Reiner Lifelong Learning – Provides for intergenerational education programs and activities for all ages.
Religious School – Provides for the activities of the Religious School including tuition scholarships.
Simcha Tree Leaves – Share family simchas by inscribing a permanent leaf to the carved wood Simcha Tree displayed in the foyer. Contributions are directed to temple operations. Please contact the Temple Sinai Development Office at the address below to order a Simcha Tree Leaf or download the order form here and mail it, along with your donation, to Temple Sinai.
Sinai Assisted Housing Foundation (Sinai House) – Provides for the 4-unit transitional housing facility which assists formerly homeless families become independent, stable and financially self-sufficient by providing them with housing, support and social services in a nurturing environment. (Checks should be made out to Sinai House.) Learn more about Sinai House.
SinaiCares – Provides for the activities of SinaiCares, a program designed to provide services and support for members in our community most in need.
Yahrzeit Plaques – To memorialize the death of a loved one in perpetuity, a brass plaque is purchased. Each year, the plaque is displayed at the time of yahrzeit on a wall in the main lobby. Please contact the Temple Sinai Development Office at the address below to order a Yahrzeit plaque or download the order form here and mail it, along with your donation, to Temple Sinai.
Youth – Provides scholarships for youth activities, including attending URJ regional and national programs, and support for youth-focused programs at the temple.
Zwerdling Memorial Lecture – Provides for the annual Zwerdling Memorial Program for Social Justice.
For more information about any of these giving opportunities, to find out more information about the Rimonim Society, Temple Sinai’s planned giving society for individuals who have named the Temple as a beneficiary in their charitable estate plans or another financial vehicle, or to learn about other ways to give to Temple Sinai; please contact Noah Benjamin, Director of Development at (202) 363-6394 ext. 233 or email nbenjamin@templesinaidc.org.