Hebrew Free Loan
INTEREST-FREE LENDING SINCE 1897
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
We're charged with maintaining the delicate balance between respecting the agency’s history and direct link to our biblical roots, while embracing innovation and ensuring our relevance in the future. While we evolve, we'll never lose sight of the heart and soul of our mission: helping people to become and remain self sufficient, and empowering our interest-free loan recipients to live the lives to which they aspire. That’s the impact to which we aspire! In the midst of uncertain and challenging times, we're proud of the impact our unique financial services have on community members. That said, we've only begun to scratch the surface in terms of reaching those in need. To maximize our impact, we recommit ourselves to strengthening our fundraising, outreach, and services.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Interest-Free Loans
Hebrew Free Loan offers interest-free loans to Jewish individuals in Northern California to fulfill a variety of financial needs. Those seeking loans must complete a loan application, which includes meeting in person with a Hebrew Free Loan staff member and obtaining cosigners or a security agreement. After our Board of Directors approves the request, the loan is disbursed. Repayment begins approximately 30 days after the loan is disbursed, and ranges from two to five years, depending on the amount borrowed.
Loan categories include:
Adoption
Business
Coronavirus Impact
Debt Consolidation
Disaster Relief
Emergency
Fertility
First-Time Homebuyer
General Needs
Health Care
Jewish Organization
Life Cycle
Recently Unemployed
Special Needs
Student
Ukraine Assistance
Where we work
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Total dollar amount of loans issued
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Years are according to a July 1st-June 30th Fiscal Year.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
We seek to be a more robust and vibrant agency by exploring creative approaches to funding our operation and expanding our services. We'll increase our visibility and reinforce our role in the community as the central resource for people needing financial assistance in the form of interest-free loans.
We seek to continue the rapid growth we've seen over the past couple of years and are always striving to have a greater impact on our interest-free loan recipients and the community as a whole.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
We have several strategies for obtaining our goals:
• Work with an engaged and supportive board of directors
• Implement an aggressive fundraising effort
• Manage a unified, talented, and efficient staff team
• Increase our visibility throughout the community
• Create new loan programs and funding strategies that speak to the next generation
To accomplish these goals, we've committed to a renewed effort to reconnect and cultivate relationships with an emerging community of younger donors, who either directly benefited from our services or have family members who received support from us. We also seek to leverage existing and past loan recipients to reach more prospective loan recipients, broaden our outreach channels, and increase partnerships with like-minded agencies in the Jewish community.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We believe we'll be able to accomplish our goals with the hard work of our existing staff, the help of community partners, and the generosity of our community of donors. Past growth in contributions and loans outstanding form the basis for this positive assessment.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
We're tracking closely with planned levels of growth. While we've experienced success towards our goals, we have several years remaining in the strategic plan before all objectives can be reached.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Hebrew Free Loan
Board of directorsas of 03/14/2024
Gregg Rubenstein
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No