Five Bellevue teens were part of a group to present checks totaling $7,200 to nonprofit agencies they chose as a group over this past school year. The group, totaling 22 members, completed a year of philanthropic learning experienced by members of J.Team, or the Jewish Youth Philanthropy Team, at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle.

Bellevue teens participating were Robbie Ellenhorn, Jordan Gaynes, Sarah Greenhall, Bridget Matloff and Ali Parsons.

J.Team is comprised of teens from 9th-12th grade who met monthly over the school year. They participated in nonprofit site visits and community service projects, and learned about Jewish values of giving. Finally, they decided as a group where to distribute a pool of community donated funds.

“As a group, we have visited organizations, and learned about what they do for the community. Together we decided what we liked and disliked about the charity, whether or not it was our responsibility to help them, and if so how much we would give them,” commented Bridget Matloff, a team member from Bellevue.

J.Team members allocated the grants to the following nonprofits: First Place Schools $2,000; Jewish Family Service $1,500; Friendship Circle $1,500; Shlomi Municipality in Israel $1,000; American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee $600; and Northwest Harvest $600.

“The short-term goal of this program is to expose the teens to the world of philanthropy from a Jewish perspective,” said J.Team Chair Tammy Federman. “An equally important goal, however, is to show them the power of collaboration – the power they have as a group to make a difference in the lives of others. We are investing in our future by building lifelong philanthropists.”