Braden Hamelin and Zoe Bell | Staff Writers
Grant Ottenstein made his first donation from the initial payment he received for delivering newspapers as a boy. Ever since, philanthropy has been a large part of his life.
The B’nai Israel Congregation member and University of Maryland alum founded an insurance agency in Rockville and has several decades of experience in insurance and financial services. Ottenstein is also the secretary on the Jewish Social Service Agency’s board of directors. In between his roles, he finds time to give back to the community.
Tell me about your Jewish background.
Born [and] bred Washingtonian. I was born in Columbia, [Maryland]. My dad was born in Columbia. My wife was born in [the] Columbia Hospital for Women, and both my in-laws were second-, third-generation; all Washingtonians. How I got involved: 1967, the Six-Day War. In 1967, I was at the synagogue, Washington Hebrew [Congregation], with my father and grandfather. The rabbi said, ‘Everybody’s got to write a check.’ I saw my father, my grandfather, writing a check. And I had a paycheck. I was delivering the Washington Star at the time. I said, ‘I’ll give this to Israel.’ So that’s how I got started.
Can you tell me about some of the work that JSSA does?
We’re the social safety net. We’ve got counseling, hospice, we’ve got nursing, we’ve got good pediatrics, we’ve got divorce arbitration instead of litigation. [Whatever your needs], JSSA will do it for you. So they’re doing things that need to be done that nobody else is doing. Half of our 30,000 patients a year, you know what percentage are not Jewish? Fifty percent. So they serve a big diverse clientele. It’s the true meaning of tikkun olam. As I like to say to people, it’s in my DNA, so I get it. I drank the Kool-Aid, I understand, but there’s a tradition, there’s lineage and they do good stuff.
What do you do outside of volunteering?
Insurance, investment and estate planning.
What drew your interest in creating a company like that, and how are you able to balance that and your Jewish volunteer work?
Well, I’m in the insurance business. I have a book of business that throws me income every year to build up the book with annuities and life insurance, neutral funds and retirement plans. I’m busy, but I’m not killing myself. I’m 67 years old. I’m enjoying things, and I’m not hurting anybody. I keep it very boring, very safe.
What are your responsibilities for the JSSA board of directors?
For years, [I did] everything from helping organize events to raising money on a private basis, like literally writing an introduction speech. You get what JSSA does; it’s a pretty good concept. I mean, it’s a Swiss Army knife. So it’s easy to get people to buy into, but I bought into it a long time ago, and it makes me happy. I’ve been on the executive committee for a couple of years, on the enlistment committee. I was on the development committee. I’m more of a sales guy. I’m not a number cruncher, but I know what I know, and I know what I don’t know.
What has your fundraising done for JSSA?
We remodeled the building on the campus where the Hebrew Home is on Rockville Pike at Montrose Road and Jefferson. So they had a building with a land lease, the rent per year for the building was $1 a year. Instead of moving to another building, we went inside-out and made the space more efficient. So, I helped raise money for that project. I get my hands dirty. I like what I’m doing.
How has your Jewish identity and strong value of tikkun olam influenced the work that you’ve done throughout your professional and volunteer career?
Let me give you a story I had a rabbi once tell me. Four guys were soliciting in Israel, and the rabbi was sitting there watching us make these solicitations, and he said, ‘Life is like a frozen pond. The further out you’re going, the skinnier the ice gets, and the less shekels you have in your pocket, the further out you can go on the lake.’ So you’ve got to give it back. That’s what it’s about. You can’t take it with you, so give it away.
Young people don’t want to be involved with charities like we are, like our parents were. They’d rather be on FaceTime to have the meeting, and that’s not where you do it.
