Based in San Francisco, the Koret Foundation is a private philanthropic organization that supports groups that promote a vibrant and distinctive Bay Area region, with major initiatives in Israel and Poland.
Koret focuses giving in two major areas: building connectivity and identity in the global Jewish community, and strengthening Bay Area anchor institutions. Since its founding in 1979, Koret has invested $500 million to contribute to a higher quality of civic and Jewish community life.
The Koret Foundation is rooted in the Jewish community, and its grantmaking reflects that commitment today though Koret’s Initiative on Jewish Peoplehood. The Initiative on Jewish Peoplehood seeks to increase Jewish identity and involvement by inspiring all members of the Jewish community to engage in meaningful Jewish experiences that are enhanced by involvement with Jewish organizations.
Jewish Peoplehood encompasses a collective Jewish identity, tied through history, language, culture, religion, and heritage. It transcends borders, merges narratives, and finds common bonds between Jews from different backgrounds and experiences. Koret’s work to help revive Jewish life in Poland is a complement to its work in the Bay Area, by connecting Jewish people locally and globally though the celebration of Jewish culture and life.
Seeing the Museum of the History of Polish Jews become a reality is the fulfillment of a dream for me. I left Poland in 1939 as a young boy, narrowly escaping the Holocaust. As I built my life in the United States, a time came when I began reconnecting to my own past and dedicating myself to supporting the revival of the Jewish culture in Poland – most significantly, this Museum. Now I visit Poland as a American citizen, a Jewish communal leader, and Honorary Polish Consul, committed to the Museum’s mission. The Museum is a powerful symbol of Poland’s transformation into a dynamic landscape of Jewish rebirth, belonging, memory, and legacy.