FIRELIGHT FOUND ATION

DONOR PROFILE
The Wexler Family
Ben Wexler’s seventh grade class in Palo Alto, California, has a
challenging year-long assignment. Each student must choose
a philanthropy, research it, interview a staff member, create a
descriptive poster, and prepare a persuasive essay and class
presentation. The students also raise funds for the organizations.
Ben chose Firelight Foundation, in part because he knew his
parents were donors. But he didn’t know much more than that
before he began.
What he learned made a big impression. “There are something
like 12.3 million orphans in Africa now and there will be 25
million by 2010,” he says. “Those numbers are huge, really
stunning. They make you say ‘wow.’ They make you think.”
He will begin his class presentation with the facts he’s learned,
hoping to persuade his classmates that Firelight should receive
a higher percentage of the funds they raise. The class gives
each organization a set amount, but decides together which
groups get more, Ben explains. The students are researching a
wide range of nonprofit groups, including Heifer International,
the local Alzheimer’s disease association, and a child abuse
prevention group.
The assignment, a long-standing part of the curriculum at the
Jewish day school Ben attends, has drawn Ben’s attention to
current events in Africa, says Peter Wexler, his father. Recently,
the two discussed the distinction between charity and social
justice, and the role of government corruption in human
suffering. This school project is the sort of learning experience
that helps a child develop awareness and empathy, Peter notes.
As a child growing up in
NewYork, Peter (center)
was introduced by his
parents to the Jewish
teaching of “Tikkun
Olam,” which translates
to “heal the world.”
As a child growing up in NewYork, Peter was introduced by his
parents to the Jewish teaching of “Tikkun Olam,” which translates to
“heal the world.” They supported charities as they were able.
“Responsibility for others is valued—responsibility for your family, your community, and your world,” he explains. “I didn’t
grow up giving to Africa, but I did see my parents giving.” And he and his wife Deborah have done the same as parents.