JNF-USA Memorial Convenes Golf Classic, Wilshire Blvd. Temple Holds Election Discussion

Jewish National Fund-USA’s (JNF-USA) 2024 David Frank Memorial Golf Classic took place at The Riviera Country Club on July 29. Nearly 130 philanthropists and golf aficionados came together for a day on the greens to raise money for the land and people of Israel and to rebuild Israel’s battered north and south.

As the leading philanthropic organization for the land and people of Israel, funds raised at the event will support JNF-USA’s Israel Resilience Campaign, which was established after Oct. 7. The campaign includes the organization’s “Build Together” plan to restore the southern Israeli communities in the Israel Envelope, providing the infrastructure and quality of life needed to allow residents to feel safe coming home.

A nonprofit, JNF-USA is dedicated to supporting the land and people of Israel. The organization has a particular focus on less-populated areas of the country, including in the north and south through its Go North and Blueprint Negev initiatives.

The annual Golf Classic is one of most anticipated annual events among members of JNF-USA’s local chapter.

On July 23, three experts on U.S. politics came together at Wilshire Boulevard Temple’s Resnick Family Campus for a timely discussion titled “15 Weeks Out: The 2024 Election and the American Jewish Vote.”

Before a crowd of approximately 100 people, Steven Windmueller, emeritus professor of Jewish communal studies at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, moderated an animated conversation with Alex Cohen, a host and anchor at Spectrum News, and Dan Schnur, who serves as the U.S. politics editor at the Journal. 

The discussion was held just days after U.S. President Joe Biden announced he would not be seeking reelection, thus causing much of what had been planned for the program to change. The panelists discussed the significance of Vice President Kamala Harris’ entrance into the race, to what extent partisanship over Israel and the country’s current war in Gaza would influence how American Jews vote and the differences between how the Democratic and Republican Parties have addressed rising antisemitism in this country.

The evening also included a Q&A, with audience members posing questions to the three speakers. Wilshire Boulevard Temple Rabbi Susan Nanus was among those in attendance at the event. When the discussion became overtly political, she encouraged the speakers to stay away from comments that could be perceived as the synagogue backing one presidential candidate over another. 

In recent weeks, much has been made over whether Jews in this country, who historically have voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in large numbers, will continue that trend as that party faces a split among its own over to what extent the U.S. ought to be supporting Israel in ways including military aid. At Wilshire Boulevard Temple, the panel addressed this issue and more. There were those in the crowd who expressed a reluctance to vote for Republican candidate and former President Donald Trump while also expressing concerns about progressive stances toward Israel within the Democratic Party.

At the same time, there were those who suggested they were motivated by issues other than Israel in determining how they would vote this November. Those issues included the economy, abortion and immigration.

The program concluded around 9 p.m. with attendees gathering in the synagogue’s courtyard for refreshments.