Though Judaism has been part of Dena Blaustein’s life since birth, she didn’t envision herself working as a Jewish professional.
But the post-college job market wasn’t favorable, and Blaustein moved back to her family’s Baltimore home to save money. Volunteering led her to a full-time role with The Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore.
“My first sort of ‘real’ job out of college was at a Jewish nonprofit, and the rest is history,” Blaustein said. “I’ve worked in other sectors, and I just keep coming back to the Jewish nonprofit world.”
Blaustein was recently appointed the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington’s first director of donor engagement. In this role, the Rockville resident works with the Federation’s community campaign donors, meeting them where they are.
She serves as a bridge connecting the fundraising, community campaigns, campaign operations and communications efforts.
Currently, Blaustein is also in the midst of a “listening tour” of some of the Federation’s longest-standing donors to “hear what they need most and what they’re looking for out of their relationship with Federation, to be able to help move people along their philanthropic journey with Federation,” she said.
Through her listening tour, she hopes to learn donors’ stories.
“It’s really trying to figure out what pulls at people’s heartstrings,” Blaustein said. “We have these donors who have been giving to Federation for 20-plus years, who are members of our Roots Society … I’m doing a lot with my colleagues to try and identify, ‘Who are those folks?’ ‘How else might we be able to plug them in?’ ‘Are there leadership opportunities?’ ‘Are there opportunities to tell their stories in a new way that might be a catalyst for other people to want to give?’”
The Federation differs from other Jewish organizations due to its larger scope, according to Blaustein.
“Because of our position in the community and our partnerships in the community, we constantly have a pulse on where there is the most need,” Blaustein said. “By making a philanthropic contribution to Federation, we are able to take the dollars that folks are entrusting us with and put them where they’re needed most. One day that might be one place, and another day, it might be another place.”
She also wants to ascertain which sectors of the Federation’s work most resonate with donors: security at home, humanitarian efforts, support for Israel or something else.
“One of the things I love most about fundraising are the stories,” Blaustein said. “I love meeting a donor and just sitting back and listening and having them tell me about who they are, where they came from [and] what makes them connect to the mission and vision of this organization or any Jewish organization.”
Blaustein uses that information to help connect donors to parts of the local “Jewish network” they may not have previously known about.
What motivates her to do this work? Blaustein’s two sons, ages 3 and 7.
“My kids motivate me a lot, making sure that we as a Jewish community are setting ourselves up so that future generations can be just as successful, if not more successful than we are, with creating a vibrant Jewish community,” she said.
Growing up, Blaustein attended Richmond, Virginia’s only Jewish day school at the time through eighth grade. After relocating to Baltimore, she attended Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School.
Her current role isn’t Blaustein’s first rodeo with the Federation. After finishing college, she joined The Associated as the program associate for Shalom Baltimore, a welcoming program for newcomers to the area.
From 2014 to 2015, Blaustein worked as a young leadership associate for the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington. She helped restore the Federation’s NEXUS program, an educational series for young Jewish adults, and worked on Reverse Mifgash, which sends Israel Defense Forces officers to American Jewish communities.
“That was a really exciting opportunity, career-wise, to be doing something new and different,” Blaustein said.
Her husband’s Ph.D. program took them to Florida, then Chicago. Blaustein took on a role with a local nonprofit that helps fund research for children’s cancer, before joining a corporate events company.
“When we moved to Chicago, I really missed being in the Jewish world,” Blaustein said.
She worked on a capital campaign for a large Reform synagogue on the North Shore. “I got back into Jewish life, and then when we got the opportunity to come back to the East Coast, I knew that was something that I wanted to continue,” Blaustein said.
“At the end of the day, [Jewish community is] something that I believe in and [reflects] the values I grew up with. Keeping an eye out for other people and making sure you’re giving back to your community are ingrained in me, and I find those to also be ingrained in the Jewish sector as well,” she added.
Blaustein considers herself fortunate to have found a role with Congregation Har Shalom in Potomac, where she and her family belong. Blaustein most recently served as the marketing and communications coordinator for more than five years, and is now perfectly content as a member.
And she remains enthusiastic about her current role.
“I think that with this being a new position, what I’m most excited about is the fact that Federation wants to be at the forefront of change,” Blaustein said, referencing the common belief that every city’s Federation is the same. “What we’re doing here in the D.C. area is really innovative, and we’re really trying to meet people where they’re at and find out what this community needs in order to be the vibrant Jewish community that everyone here is looking for.”
