Jewish Philanthropy Podcast · Dovid M Cohen

The Art of Philanthropy - Shawna Goodman-Sone

·53 min·5 clips

Shawna Goodman-Sone shares how losing her mother untethered her and the role of Jewish mourning rituals.

This episode features host David M. Cohen interviewing Shawna Goodman-Sone, a philanthropist and culinary professional living in Israel. Goodman-Sone chairs her family foundation and serves on boards including the Jewish Funders Network and the Foundation for Jewish Camp. She describes herself as a Jewish-Canadian-Israeli woman focused on Tikkun Olam and not merely "taking up space." Goodman-Sone grew up in Montreal within a highly engaged Anglo-Jewish community where her parents constantly hosted meetings. Her late mother was a primary driver of this communal involvement, having been mentored by matriarchs in organizations like UJA. Goodman-Sone studied art history at McGill University before pursuing culinary school after reading a magazine article on a plane. She cites her best friend's mother, Monica, as a key mentor who modeled lifelong learning and reinvention. Her husband's longstanding dream led the family to move to Israel, which initially presented challenges like a language barrier. A significant personal challenge was the sudden loss of her mother, which she describes as an event that "untethers you." She found Jewish mourning rituals and her community profoundly supportive during that period. Her current major philanthropic project is introducing the North American model of overnight summer camps to Israel, where they are not normative. She identified a gap where Israeli children often face unstructured, isolating summers with few affordable programs. Her initiative now supports 27 camps serving roughly 14,000 children, focusing on building resilience, community, and taking kids off devices. She approaches philanthropy by first defining family values and identifying what they feel grateful for, emphasizing empathy and kindness as the core. Goodman-Sone believes philanthropy is accessible to anyone through time or resources and that saying "yes" to opportunities leads to meaningful connections. The tone is warm, conversational, and reflective, blending personal narrative with philanthropic philosophy. Listeners interested in Jewish communal life, philanthropic strategy, or stories of personal and professional reinvention would enjoy this episode. Those seeking a highly structured debate or fast-paced narrative might find it less engaging.

As heard by us

Food, philanthropy, and Jewish belonging give the conversation its center.

Shona Goodman-Sohn's conversation on JPP follows the overlap between food, philanthropy, and Jewish community. Her path moves from McGill art history and culinary training in New York to catering, teaching, cooking for clients, and editing a kosher cookbook.

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Why you'd press play

A warm interview with Shona Goodman-Sohn, tracing how food, philanthropy, and life in Israel overlap.

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