Massive funding boost for Jewish education and culture

A new foundation drawn from the proceeds of the sale of the Cranbourne Country Club golf course will fund education, youth, and cultural activities in the Victorian Jewish community.

The new foundation is expected to provide millions of dollars annually for causes including – but not limited to – supporting education at Jewish schools, funding youth groups and investing in cultural initiatives.

While the endowment has not been disclosed, the course is reported to have sold for $190 million and a substantial proportion of the proceeds will be vested in the new Cranbourne Foundation.

“We believe this will be the largest injection of funds from any single source into the community. It has the potential to make a really exciting impact,” CEO Jayne Josem told The Jewish Independent.

“There are so many organisations out there doing incredible work trying to foster pride in our Jewishness and really doing it with very little funding. This injection of funds has the potential to support so many important projects and programs.”

Josem, who recently retired as CEO of Melbourne’s Holocaust Museum, said many communal organisations had great programs but lacked the funding to maximise their potential for building community.

She said the foundation would have a strong focus on education, including fee support for students at Jewish schools, and on youth activities.