HFLA Board Member Diana Resnik presents Gordon Rubinett with Certificate of Appreciation in honor of his family foundation’s generosity to the organization. Credit: Wendy R. Corn.

By Wendy Corn

Hebrew Free Loan Austin (HFLA) is a partner of Shalom Austin.

Jewish giving itself is a way for Jews to feel invested in a meaningful approach to living and being part of improving the world. Gordon Rubinett, an Austin native, shared his family’s ethos regarding Jewish philanthropy.

“When I was growing up in Austin, you either belonged to the Synagogue or the Temple. That was it. It was a small Jewish community. When my parents formed the Jarrell and Shirley Rubinett Foundation in 1996, the mission was to give to Jewish entities and those that espouse Jewish values. Over time, the focus became on local Jewish organizations,” said Rubinett.

As the Rubinett Foundation evolved, and the Austin Jewish community grew, they decided to make larger gifts to fewer organizations to create the most impact. Amongst these were Shalom Austin, Texas Hillel and HFLA. “We were drawn to HFLA because we like what they do in the community, we knew that they recycled money donated. They have a high percentage of loans repaid by the recipients,” said Rubinett.

Rubinett recalls his parents were impressed with the people that were connected with Hebrew Free Loan including Jarrell Tank Rubinett (z”l)’s personal friends, Michael Rotman (z”l), Marvin Shragerand Tracy Solomon. All of these people put the local organization in good stead.

The Rubinett Foundation includes family members, Benita G. Rubinett, Lynn E. Rubinett and Gordon Rubinett.

Jarrell Tank and Shirley Rubinett were very much a team in business, family and the Jewish community. The matriarch, Shirley Rubinett (z”l), passed away in August 2021 and the Foundation followed through with her final wishes of giving and choosing HFLA. ■