Baltimore Jewish Charity Budget Sets Record

The largest budget appropriations ever made in the history of its organization have just been approved by the Budget Committee of the Associated Jewish Charities of Baltimore, for the fiscal year ending April 1st, 1931. Amounts totalling $543,858.14 ($36,000 more than last year’s appropriations) have been assigned to the fourteen agencies, constituents of the Associated—and this, in a year when many social agencies have been retrenching. The Budget Committee, consisting of A. Ray Katz, chairman; Irving H. Kohn, Jacob Blaustein, Nathan Katz, Walter Sondheim and Harry Greenstein, Executive Director of the Associated Jewish Charities, has for the last eight weeks, according to Mr. Sondheim, president of the Associated Jewish Charities, been analyzing the budget requests of the various agencies for this year’s work, and has been struggling, in almost daily sessions trying to balance income with budgetary needs.

The appropriations, finally determined upon, are $51,000 in excess of the current income of the organization, “but,” said Mr. Sondheim, “the committee—all practical business men—was not willing to curtail the work of its organizations nor would it entertain the idea of lowering the standards of service rendered by the agencies. This year, with the unemployment situation acute, the demands upon our Jewish Social Service Bureau and in consequence, upon our health agencies, have sharply increased within the past few months.”