Limmud Seattle 2019 presenter Jessica Ost introduces the program she runs at the Stroum JCC: Giving Initiative For Teens (GIFT). It is a Jewish teen philanthropy project where the teens act as a micro-foundation and focus on specific funding priorities. The teens make a call for proposals, hear from non-profits addressing their chosen issue, go on site visits, and eventually award grants based off of their Jewish values. This year, the Jewish values that the teens focus on include: sustainability, pursuing peace, freedom, dignity, justice, humility, and respect. Jessica brings Jewish texts to the monthly meetings and has posted Jewish values on the walls of each meeting so that the teens can consider their work in the context of the Jewish values. Jessica talks about how the teen’s Jewish identity is solidified through incorporating charitable giving as a touch point for their connection to Judaism. By engaging in the fields that they pick and learning deeply about them the teens are exposed to new experiences and empathy, as well as sense of bonding with the other teens in their cohort. Applications for the 2020-2021 calendar year GIFT program will be available in April and close in June on the SJCC.org website. Interview by Tamar Libicki.