Local couple receives national camp award

PAULA AND JERRY Gottesman — leading Greater MetroWest philanthropists providing major support for Jewish camping — received the Harold Grinspoon Foundation’s JCamp 180 Outstanding Philanthropist Award in recognition of their significant contributions to the field of Jewish camp.

The presentation was made at a dinner held Nov. 3 in Springfield, Mass.

In her remarks, Paula Gottesman thanked Harold Grinspoon for helping to inspire donors to make significant investments in the field of Jewish camp. She also expressed gratitude to the more than 400 professional and lay leaders from across the nation in attendance for creating exciting experiences that have a vital impact on young Jewish campers.

The Outstanding Development Professional Award was given to Corey Cutler of Springfield, NJ, and a member of Temple Sharey Tefilo-Israel, director of development at the Union for Reform Judaism’s URJ Eisner and Crane Lake Camps.

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The Gottesmans, of Morristown, together with their daughter and son-in-law, Archie Gottesman and Gary DeBode of Summit; Rob Bildner and Elisa Spungen Bildner of Montclair; and others created the Greater MetroWest Jewish Camp Enterprise — housed in the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest NJ’s Partnership for Jewish Learning and Life — one of the first comprehensive Jewish camp programs in the nation. Greater MetroWest was also one of the first federations to hire a full-time “Jewish camp manager.”

In June, the Paula and Jerry Gottesman Family Supporting Foundation of the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater MetroWest made a commitment of $5 million to provide perpetual endowment support for JCE. This — along with support from other funders and the federation — has created the largest endowed community-based Jewish camp program in North America.

The Gottesmans are steadfast supporters of the federation and benefactors and leaders of the Greater MetroWest Day School Initiative and are nationally recognized for their support of Jewish day school education. Paula Gottesman is a board member of NJ Y Camps and the Partnership, a long-time member and past president of JCF of GMW, and past president of federation’s Women’s Philanthropy.

The Gottesmans are trustees of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and previously served on the national board of the Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education.