Jennifer Meeropol is the granddaughter of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg and the daughter of RFC Founder, Robert Meeropol. Jenn became the Executive Director of the RFC on September 1, 2013. Prior posts on this page were written by Robert (unless otherwise noted), and represent his opinions, which are not necessarily shared by the RFC.
“Reconnecting, and an offer of support,” read the subject line of the innocuous email in my inbox. When I opened it, I found a lovely note from one of the earliest RFC beneficiaries whom we had lost touch with over the years. She was interested in reconnecting, and exploring ways of supporting the RFC.
About nine months ago I joined the staff at the Rosenberg Fund for Children as the new Granting Coordinator. Hearing the stories of the repression these incredible individuals have faced due to their activism, and the impact it has had on their children, made me even more grateful to be in the position to support them in whatever ways I can.
I watched over the weekend, as I imagine many of you did as well, as the US left Afghanistan, leaving behind chaos, devastation and despair. Rachel, the RFC’s new communications manager, contacted me Monday morning to suggest we postpone a scheduled “feel good” social media post in light of the grim developments.
She emailed me again the next morning with the following idea:
Today is the 68th anniversary of my grandparents’ execution. But since the start of the year I’ve been more focused on an anniversary we just passed: April 5th marked exactly 70 years since Judge Kaufman sentenced my grandparents to death. Many of you know the nightmare my father and uncle experienced after their parents’ arrest, conviction and execution but this recent milestone has me thinking about the more intangible consequences of the loss of my grandparents and so many others who resisted repression and are still resisting today.
By Tori Montemurro, Granting Coordinator
This spring, six new families received RFC grants, joining 64 families whom the Board funded as renewals, and the Board approved one last grant to fund grocery gift cards for families this cycle. In total, the Rosenberg Fund for Children awarded 71 grants this spring totaling over $205,000. This brings the total granted in our 30+ year history to almost $8 million!