Ask someone who has built real wealth what they most want to pass on, and the answer is rarely a number.

They’ll talk about their children’s character. About whether the family will still sit around the same table in twenty years. About whether the next generation will feel proud to be Jewish, and whether they’ll know what to do with what they inherit.

That’s the real family portfolio. The accounts and holdings matter, but they’re only one part of it. Investing across generations also means passing on what the family believes, how it makes decisions together and what it chooses to stand for.

L’dor v’dor: from generation to generation

Jewish tradition was thinking about this long before anyone used the word “portfolio.” The phrase l’dor v’dor, from generation to generation, is a reminder that each generation holds something in trust for the next.

Every family passes something down, whether it plans to or not. Sometimes it’s a business. Sometimes it’s a way of thinking about risk, a Shabbat table where the big questions get discussed, or a habit of showing up for the community when it counts.

The families who seem to get this right usually aren’t the ones with the best spreadsheet. They’re the ones who talk openly about why the wealth exists and what it’s meant to do.

Bringing the next generation in early

One idea comes up again and again among Menorah families: don’t wait until the handoff to include the next generation.

Children and grandchildren who sit in on investment discussions, help choose where the family gives, or simply hear the reasoning behind big decisions tend to feel ownership instead of pressure. By the time they take on more responsibility, they already understand the values behind it.

It doesn’t have to be formal. A yearly family meeting, a small giving budget that the younger generation manages, or an invitation to a Menorah gathering can do more than any trust document to prepare them.

Investing and giving belong in the same conversation

Many families keep investing and philanthropy in separate boxes, with different advisors, different meetings and sometimes different family members.

It often works better to look at them together. How a family invests and how it gives both say something about what it cares about. When those line up, the next generation gets one clear message instead of two mixed ones. You can read more about how Menorah approaches this on our philanthropy page.

Why peers make a difference

Very few families face these questions for the first time. Someone else has already worked through how to run a family meeting, how to handle a sibling who wants a different path, or how to pass on a board seat.

That’s the heart of Menorah. It’s a fellowship of business leaders who help one another think clearly about Jewish identity, wealth, family and philanthropy, built on what we see as the pillars of Jewish success: confident identity, profound partnerships and zealous philanthropy.

Giving together to strengthen Jewish life

For many Menorah families, the most meaningful part of the family portfolio is what it does for the Jewish future.

Menorah members don’t just write checks on their own. They give together through YUD Foundation, the philanthropic engine behind our network. Because the networks cover all overhead, 100% of every donation goes directly to vetted organizations across Jewish life.

That giving reaches a wide range of needs. Among the causes and partners our community supports:

• Jewish identity: Birthright Israel and the Foundation for Jewish Camp
• Jewish education: Yeshiva University, Aish HaTorah and scholarships for Jewish nonprofit families
• Poverty and relief: Colel Chabad and Avigdor Helping Hand
• Health and healing: Hatzalah Air and Bonei Olam
• Mental health and resilience: Natal and Beyond Resilience
• College campuses: StandWithUs and Chabad on Campus International
• Accountability and advocacy: organizations working against antisemitism online and in public life

The approach is as disciplined as any investment strategy:

• Align values. Members join a community of philanthropists who share a commitment to Jewish life and to giving in forward-thinking ways.
• Choose focus areas. The group decides where collective giving can make the greatest difference.
• Vet every organization. An expert advisory board reviews each charity, its strategy and its campaigns before the network invests.
• Double up. Fellow members match each major gift, so every donation becomes a truly collective investment.
• Influence inside. Members seek representation on the boards of the charities they support, to help carry out a shared vision.
• Compound resources. Every organization the network supports gets access to the people, processes and services that help it do more and stay agile.
• Evaluate and elevate. After each gift, members review what worked and bring those lessons to the next one.

If that sounds like how a disciplined investor runs a portfolio, that’s the point. Menorah families bring the same rigor to giving that they bring to building wealth. And when the next generation watches it happen, they learn that philanthropy isn’t charity on the side. It’s part of how the family invests in the world it wants to leave behind.

Learning from families who’ve been there

Hearing how another family handled a hard decision is often more useful than any framework. Did they bring their kids onto the foundation board at 25 or at 40? How did they decide which causes to lead on? What would they do differently?

Those are the conversations that happen at Menorah gatherings, in small rooms, among people who understand the stakes.

Join the conversation

For a sense of what Menorah gatherings are like, the Miami CEO & Dealmakers Retreat, hosted with Osher Partners this past March, opened with a welcome event at a private car collection, followed by cocktails and dinner. The next day brought three sessions, small-group conversations outdoors, lunch and closing cocktails and sushi. It was two days built around the conversations that matter most.

The conversations continue in the months ahead:

• October 20 to 21: Beverly Hills Forum
• December 8: NYC Chapter Lunch
• July 13: Aspen Forum
• November 9, 2027: Beverly Hills Forum

If your family is thinking about what it wants to pass on, and how to strengthen Jewish life while it does, we’d be glad to have you in the room. See upcoming Menorah events.