January 23, 2007

(San Francisco, CA) – The Judith Chapman Women’s Leadership Fund of the Jewish Community Endowment Fund is delighted to announce that San Francisco resident Barbara Rosenberg is the recipient of the 2007 Judith Chapman Women’s Leadership Award. Each year, the Fund recognizes a woman who exemplifies significant and sustained volunteer leadership in the Jewish community, serves as a role model for others and values her Jewish identity and the importance of giving in her life. The Women’s Leadership Award will be presented to Barbara on Monday, March 19, 2007 at the Power of One Annual Gala Dinner and Reception in San Francisco.

Barbara has been an inspiring visionary community leader and philanthropist for over 40 years. She has demonstrated consistent and creative dedication in leading fundraising efforts for the Jewish and general communities. In addition, Barbara has been a tireless fundraiser for the Annual Campaign and for the Lion of Judah Endowment (LOJE) at the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties. She has participated in and helped recruit for many Federation-sponsored missions to Israel and is at the forefront of the Israel Education Initiative.

Barbara believes deeply in Jewish tradition, the value of education and the importance of caring for the vulnerable in our society. She has served as president of the Jewish Home and the Bureau of Jewish Education and as a Board member of Lehrhaus Judaica, the Jewish Community High School of the Bay and as a trustee of Brandeis University. She has also served as Library Commissioner for the City of San Francisco and on the advisory boards of the Department of Jewish Studies at Stanford University, San Francisco School Volunteers and Achievement Awards for College Scientists (ARCS). Barbara and her husband Richard, former chairman and chief executive officer of BankAmerica Corporation, are the proud parents of two sons, Michael and wife Ellen and Peter and wife Lisa and the grandparents of five grandsons.

Presented by the Federation’s Woman’s Alliance, the Power of One Annual Gala Dinner and Reception is a gathering of Jewish women designed to celebrate and inspire the power of each individual to make a difference in this world. This year’s event features keynote speaker Evelyn Lauder and will take place at the Westin St. Francis in San Francisco. The Women's Alliance of the Jewish Community Federation offers women a unique opportunity to enhance and support Jewish life. By perpetuating the ideals and values of Jewish heritage and tradition, the Women's Alliance encourages women to become more deeply committed to the Jewish community. 

The Jewish Community Federation is the central organization for fundraising, planning, outreach and leadership development for Jewish communities in San Francisco, the Peninsula, and Marin and Sonoma counties. In fiscal year 2006, the Federation’s annual campaign allocated $18.3 million to some 60 agencies providing social services, educational and cultural programs in the Bay Area, in the U.S., Israel and elsewhere in the world. In fiscal year 2006, the Federation’s Endowment Fund, with assets exceeding $2 billion, provided more than $203 million for a variety of grants, seed projects and emergency needs. For more information, call 415.777.0411 or visit www.sfjcf.org.