JFCS to honor Jacob Garber’s legacy of giving
Friends of the Family Award will be presented at the JFCS Annual Benefit in memory of Jacob Garber, who died in 2014
Jacob Garber’s father died when he was just a kid – he watched when his recently widowed mother declined support from a charity, as she believed the family would be able to hold their own. As the oldest child, Jacob took it upon himself to start collecting bottles, delivering papers – anything to help make money – as he became the “man of the house” at a young age.
He went on to have a very successful career in the ball bearings industry, and despite seeing his mother decline charity as a kid, being philanthropic was always extremely important to him. Jacob, who died in 2014 at age 99, was a dedicated donor both in his lifetime and all the years since thanks to his legacy giving.
Jake, as he was known, was a longtime supporter of several organizations in the Twin Cities – including JFCS, where his legacy gifts support programs such as PJ Library, Hag Sameach, Academic Scholarships, Food Security, and of course, the Jacob S. Garber Transportation Program. His namesake program provides rides for adults who benefit from rides to activities that help keep them vital and engaged, such as card games, beauty shops, medical appointments, friends’ houses, grocery stores and more.
Thanks to his longtime support and legacy of giving, JFCS will honor Jake’s memory at its Annual Benefit in December with our annual Friends of the Family Award. It will be presented in memory of him and recognizes Frank Trestman (z’l), Kevin Brazner, and Sally Forbes Friedman for carrying out his wishes.
“His intention as a philanthropist was to do as much good as he could, but out of the limelight,” said JFCS CEO Judy Halper. “He didn’t want any attention or acknowledgement. Much of his philanthropy was provided through his estate after his passing to achieve this outcome.”
Humble and generous
How Jake came to support the program that would later be renamed in his honor is perfectly representative of his personality. He enjoyed playing cards with friends at the Sabes JCC and one of his friends, Sid Sharpe, was a volunteer driver with the program. Sid always talked about how great it was, and just based on that, Jake decided to provide financial support to the ride program. It previously had a different name and was renamed the Jacob S. Garber Transportation Program in 2018 thanks to Jake’s legacy gifts.
Sally Forbes Friedman, a member of the advisory committee, said the majority of his philanthropy was below the radar. “He was a humble man who did things anonymously,” said Sally, who knew Jake for many years. “He took care of a lot of things for a lot of people that no one will ever know.”
Despite a successful career, Jake kept an office for decades in the basement of a building on Minnetonka Boulevard in St. Louis Park. His home was similarly modest. When he died, his obituary was one sentence – as he directed it to be.
Sally met Jake years ago when she was practicing at Kaplan Strangis and Kaplan and was assigned to work with him on his estate. “Jake was single-handedly the most generous philanthropic person that I ever met,” she said. “He was so impressive in his nature about caring about the community and family.”
Frank Trestman knew Jake for decades – from the days when they would see each other at the Lincoln Del. Frank spent a lot of time talking to Jake about what types of programs he wanted to support, which included scholarships for college and camps, youth programs, Israel initiatives, and more. “Wonderful work is being done thanks to Jake’s estate,” said Kevin, Frank’s son-in-law. “He would be very proud of the legacy that he left.”
Judy said Jake was kind-hearted and she always looked forward to conversations with him. He would share funny and amazing stories about his life, often remarking about his good fortune. “Jake’s love for children and his respect for helping older adults live out their lives with dignity are evident in his ongoing support for programs benefitting these individuals,” she said.