Neil Nisker

Community and tzedakah have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. My parents and grandparents passed on this tradition and taught us well. It was simply who they were.

They named me Natan in Hebrew, which means, "to give." Interestingly, it reads the same way forward and backward. That reinforced for me the saying "the more you give, the more you get back."

My father has always been very generous and remains a strong community supporter today. My mother, who died when I was a young adult, devoted much of her time to community and never refused anyone in need. The concept of tzedakah took on an even greater meaning for me the first time I said Yiskor for her. I learned from those passages that by being charitable, I was honouring her values; that it was a mitzvah to give on her behalf, because she could no longer do it herself. This was a great revelation to me and one that I knew I could share with others.

In my professional life, the opportunity to help families secure their financial and philanthropic future has enabled me to combine my passion for tzedakah with my enthusiasm for guiding various generations with their investments.

I'm blessed to share these values and this passion with my wife Rachel, who is very involved in the community in her own right, and with our four children, Joshua, Matthew, Alexandra and Sami.

They are most supportive of all of my commitments and of the time I give to the community away from them. Rachel and I are very proud to see our children carrying on the family tradition of giving of their time and resources.

I am inspired by the potential today to build a foundation to serve our community's ongoing and evolving needs. Individually and collectively we have the power to guarantee the future for the Jewish People.

This is the legacy that I commit myself to.