Friends of Mayanot Institute
US fundraising body of the Mayanot Institute of Jewish Studies, Jerusalem
| Friends of Mayanot Institute, Inc.
| |
|---|---|
| Logo | |
| Type | Public charity (files Form 990) |
| Founded | IRS ruling June 1998 (institute founded 1997) |
| Registration ID | EIN 11-3348050 |
| Location | 228 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10003 |
| Services | Jewish education and Birthright trips in Israel |
| Key people | Shlomo Gestetner (dean); Kasriel Shemtov (executive director) |
| Website | mayanot.edu |
Friends of Mayanot Institute, Inc. is the New York fundraising corporation of the Mayanot Institute of Jewish Studies, a Chabad-Lubavitch educational institute in Jerusalem that also runs Birthright Israel trips.[1] The Laber Foundation and the Korf Family Foundation reported grants of $298,220 to the two bodies between 2006 and 2020.[2][3] It is not the same body as the UK Mayanot Foundation.
Mayanot Institute of Jewish Studies
Mayanot's website (Chabad-side) says the institute was "established by Rabbi Shlomo Gestetner and Rabbi Kasriel Shemtov" in 1997 (Shlomo Gestetner and Kasriel Shemtov). From 2000, "partnering with Birthright", it brought 200 participants to Israel in the first session and "over a decade later" 40,000 students. Women's and post-high-school programmes were added in 2008 and 2015, and a new "Mayanot World Center" opened in 2024. The site names Joseph I. Gutnick as founding chairman and George Rohr as founder of the women's programme. Its address is Sderot Ben Tsvi 7, Jerusalem.[1]
US corporation
The IRS lists Friends of Mayanot Institute at 228 Park Avenue South, New York, as a public charity with a ruling date of June 1998 and revenue of $5,160,925 in its latest return. The Business Master File's secondary name field reads "ISRAEL MAVEN TOURS".[4]
Funding from the Korf and Laber foundations
Status: allegation. In 2020 the US Department of Justice filed civil forfeiture complaints alleging that Ihor Kolomoisky and Gennadiy Bogolyubov defrauded PrivatBank in Ukraine, and that their associates Mordechai Korf and Uriel Laber "created a web of entities, usually under some variation of the name 'Optima,' to further launder the misappropriated funds".[5] Korf and Laber are claimants in those cases, not defendants. They deny any wrongdoing, and no criminal charge against either man has been found. The Forward reported in 2020 that "there is no evidence that any of the recipients were aware of the two men's connection to the laundering".[6] This page has found no authority that accuses Friends of Mayanot Institute of wrongdoing, and no source that traces any of the alleged proceeds to it. The grants below are lawful grants as the Korf Family Foundation and the Laber Foundation reported them to the Internal Revenue Service. They are not evidence of tracing. The full account is on Chabad and Ukraine.
Every grant to Friends of Mayanot Institute listed on the 990-PF returns of the two foundations is set out below, year by year. Tax years end on 30 November. The figures for the tax year ending November 2006 are those on the amended returns, which the foundation pages cite; the original returns gave slightly different amounts.[7][8] Grants filed to "Friends of Mayanot Institute" (New York) and to "Mayanot Institute of Jewish Studies" (Chestnut Ridge, New York; Jerusalem; and New York) are both included. The foundation pages list them separately: Friends of Mayanot Institute $108,083 (Laber), and Mayanot Institute of Jewish Studies $50,137 (Korf) and $140,000 (Laber).
| Tax year ending | Korf Family Foundation | Laber Foundation | Year total | Payee name(s) and place as filed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 2006 | — | $18,000 | $18,000 | Friends of Mayanot Institute (New York, NY) | [2] |
| Nov 2007 | — | $5,035 | $5,035 | Friends of Mayanot Institute (New York, NY) | [9] |
| Nov 2008 | $25,065 | $50,048 | $75,113 | Mayanot Institute of Jewish Studies (Chestnut Ridge, NY); Friends of Mayanot Institute (New York, NY) | [10][11] |
| Nov 2009 | $25,072 | $90,000 | $115,072 | Mayanot Institute of Jewish Studies (place not given); Mayanot Institute of Jewish Studies (Jerusalem, Israel) | [12][13] |
| Nov 2011 | — | $50,000 | $50,000 | Mayanot Institute of Jewish Study (New York, NY) | [14] |
| Nov 2013 | — | $18,000 | $18,000 | Friends of Mayanot Institute (New York, NY) | [15] |
| Nov 2017 | — | $5,000 | $5,000 | Friends of Mayanot Institute (New York, NY) | [16] |
| Nov 2018 | — | $10,000 | $10,000 | Friends of Mayanot Institute (New York, NY) | [17] |
| Nov 2020 | — | $2,000 | $2,000 | Friends of Mayanot Institute for Je (New York, NY) | [3] |
| Total | $50,137 | $248,083 | $298,220 |
Revenue and expenses as filed
Basis column: e-file = IRS e-file XML; summary = ProPublica's summary of IRS Statistics of Income data (the return itself not held); scan = figures read by eye from the return's page images on ProPublica (not yet second-checked). Schedule B: a public charity must attach its list of large donors, but the names are not open to public inspection; a private foundation's are.
| Year ending | Form | Contributions | Programme service revenue | Total revenue | Grants paid | Total expenses | Net assets at year end | Schedule B | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2010 | 990 | $859,574 | $186,430 | $1,046,004 | $3,000 | $1,068,265 | −$21,195 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2011 | 990 | $914,556 | $268,582 | $1,183,138 | $0 | $1,144,183 | $17,760 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2012 | 990 | $751,057 | $940,049 | $1,691,106 | $0 | $1,763,294 | −$54,428 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2013 | 990 | $1,003,293 | $339,381 | $1,342,674 | $0 | $973,337 | $314,475 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2014 | 990 | $677,179 | $408,051 | $1,085,230 | $0 | $1,389,152 | $10,553 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2015 | 990 | $1,839,900 | $456,540 | $2,296,440 | $0 | $3,058,927 | −$751,934 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2016 | 990 | $2,019,200 | $481,990 | $2,501,190 | $0 | $2,568,220 | −$818,964 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2017 | 990 | $1,335,309 | $428,986 | $1,764,295 | $0 | $1,429,940 | −$485,321 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2018 | 990 | $1,242,481 | $409,296 | $1,651,777 | $0 | $1,597,717 | −$431,261 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2019 | 990 | $3,873,285 | $539,977 | $4,413,262 | $0 | $3,979,250 | $2,751 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2020 | 990 | $1,193,070 | $439,127 | $1,632,197 | $0 | $1,053,139 | $581,809 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2021 | 990 | $3,537,057 | $501,282 | $4,053,714 | $0 | $3,798,862 | $836,661 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2022 | 990 | $2,229,962 | $632,753 | $2,862,715 | $0 | $2,781,412 | $917,964 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2023 | 990 | $1,619,426 | $580,164 | $2,199,590 | $0 | $2,589,560 | $527,994 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
| Dec 2024 | 990 | $4,313,045 | $847,880 | $5,160,925 | $0 | $4,589,971 | $1,098,948 | attached (names not public) | e-file |
Officers and directors
Names and titles as filed in Part VII of the e-filed returns (spellings as filed; one person may appear under more than one spelling).
| Name as filed | Title as filed | First e-filed year listed | Last e-filed year listed | Highest reported compensation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Abraham | Director | 2010 | 2024 | $0 |
| Avrahom Silver | Director | 2010 | 2024 | $0 |
| Jeffrey Cohen | Director | 2010 | 2024 | $0 |
| Kasriel Shemtov | Director | 2010 | 2014 | $64,934 |
| Michael Lyman | Director | 2010 | 2014 | $0 |
| Mordechai Heller | Director | 2010 | 2014 | $0 |
| Shlomo Gestetner | Director | 2010 | 2024 | $0 |
| Yisroel Schulman | Trustee | 2010 | 2010 | $0 |
| Kasriel Shemtov | Executive Director | 2015 | 2024 | $92,975 |
| Mordechai Haller | Director | 2015 | 2024 | $0 |
Earlier returns (scanned filings)
The tables in this section are taken from the page images of the organisation's returns for the years ending December 2002 to December 2009, as filed with the Internal Revenue Service and held by ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.[18] Each year's return is cited in the Source column. Figures are as filed, unaudited and unadjusted. A figure that cannot be read on the scan is marked not legible; a dash means that no amount was entered or that the line does not apply.
Editor's note: these figures were transcribed by eye from image scans of the returns. Totals were checked against each return's own arithmetic, and uncertain figures were re-checked against the page images, but single figures should still be checked against the scans before being quoted.
Revenue and assets, 2002–2009
| Year ending | Form | Contributions | Total revenue | Grants paid | Total expenses | Surplus (deficit) | Net assets at year end | Total assets at year end | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 2001 | 990 (partial) | No financial pages in the public copy | [19] | |||||||
| December 2002 | 990 | $1,719,107 | $1,720,047 | — | $1,840,644 | −$120,597 | $125,132 | $125,132 | [20] | |
| December 2003 | 990 | $2,691,724 | $2,692,383 | — | $2,620,983 | $71,400 | $196,532 | $196,532 | [21] | |
| December 2004 | 990 | $1,997,517 | $1,997,908 | $0 | $2,020,722 | −$22,814 | $173,718 | $173,718 | [22] | |
| December 2005 | 990 | $1,723,446 | $1,723,446 | — | $1,700,952 | $22,494 | $196,212 | $196,212 | [23] | |
| December 2006 | 990 | $1,187,680 | $1,187,680 | — | $1,251,672 | −$63,992 | $132,220 | $132,220 | [24] | |
| December 2007 | 990 | $1,463,080 | $1,463,080 | — | $1,439,059 | $24,021 | $156,241 | $156,241 | [25] | |
| December 2008 | 990 | $1,307,838 | $4,292,065 | $13,314 | $4,396,219 | −$104,154 | $44,729 | $77,694 | [26] | |
| December 2009 | 990 | $881,536 | $940,323 | $5,691 | $983,985 | −$43,662 | $1,066 | $31,407 | [27] | |
Notes to the table:
- The file for 2001 contains only two pages of Schedule A, with no financial statements.[19]
- Programme service revenue of $2,984,227 first appears in 2008, raising total revenue to $4,292,065.[26]
- Grants paid were $13,314 in 2008 and $5,691 in 2009. Schedule F for both years names no foreign grant recipient receiving more than $5,000, and describes the overseas activity as maintaining "a learning facility in Israel for Jewish studies".[26][27]
Officers, directors and trustees
Names, titles and compensation as filed in Part V-A or Part VII of Form 990 or Part IV of Form 990-EZ. Where one person is filed under more than one spelling, the variants are noted.[18]
| Name as filed | Title(s) as filed | Years listed (year ending) | Highest compensation from the organisation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yisroel Schulman | President; Director; Trustee | 2002–2009 | $0 |
| Kasriel Shemtov | Vice President; Director | 2002–2009 | $67,500 |
| Shlomo Gestetner | Vice President; Director | 2002–2009 | $67,136 |
| Mila Rabkina (filed as Mila Rabkins 2002) | Secretary; Trustee | 2002–2009 | $0 |
| Avraham Weinstein | Director | 2007–2009 | $51,444 |
| Avrahom Silver | Director | 2008–2009 | $0 |
| Jeffrey Cohen | Director | 2008–2009 | $0 |
| Andrew Abraham | Director | 2008–2009 | $0 |
| Michael Lyman | Director | 2008–2009 | $0 |
| Mordechai Heller | Director | 2008–2009 | $0 |
Editor's note: in the first reading of the 2008 return the name on the row showing $67,500 could not be read and was inferred from its position above Shlomo Gestetner. The page image shows it as Kasriel Shemtov, director, 40 hours a week.
Korf and Laber grants compared with contributions
The table compares each grant reported by the Korf Family Foundation or the Laber Foundation with the total contributions that Friends of Mayanot Institute reported for the nearest year in the scanned returns.
| Foundation year ending | Foundation | Grant | Recipient year compared | Contributions reported by recipient | Grant as share of contributions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 2006 | Laber Foundation | $18,000 | December 2006 | $1,187,680 | 1.5% | [2][24] |
| November 2007 | Laber Foundation | $5,035 | December 2007 | $1,463,080 | 0.3% | [9][25] |
| November 2008 | Korf Family Foundation | $25,065 | December 2008 | $1,307,838 | 1.9% | [10][26] |
| November 2008 | Laber Foundation | $50,048 | December 2008 | $1,307,838 | 3.8% | [11][26] |
| November 2009 | Korf Family Foundation | $25,072 | December 2009 | $881,536 | 2.8% | [12][27] |
| November 2009 | Laber Foundation | $90,000 | December 2009 | $881,536 | 10.2% | [13][27] |
Editor's note: both foundations' tax years end on 30 November and do not coincide with the recipient's year, so the percentages are approximate. The comparison shows proportion only; it does not show how any grant was used.
See also
- Mayanot Foundation (UK)
- Taglit Birthright
- Korf Family Foundation
- Laber Foundation
- Chabad and Ukraine
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Mayanot Institute of Jewish Studies, "About us", mayanot.edu, checked 20 October 2026. Chabad-side.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 The Laber Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3925774), Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2006 (2005 form), paper or printed return as scanned for the IRS public-inspection set, PDF via ProPublica. Read from the page images. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 The Laber Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3925774), Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2020 (2019 form), e-filed 2021-12-13, IRS e-file object ID 202143479349100414, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, full filing (final return). Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ Internal Revenue Service, Exempt Organizations Business Master File extract for New York (eo_ny.csv), irs.gov, downloaded 20 October 2026, row for EIN 11-3348050 (care of Friends of Mayanot Institute; foundation code 15 (public charity); revenue $5,160,925, tax period December 2024; sort name "ISRAEL MAVEN TOURS"). Primary source (IRS).
- ↑ "Justice Department Seeks Forfeiture of Two Commercial Properties Purchased with Funds Misappropriated from PrivatBank in Ukraine", US Department of Justice, 6 August 2020. Primary source (allegations).
- ↑ Molly Boigon, "Two Florida Chabad donors implicated in Optima schemes", The Forward, 21 February 2020 (with later corrections). Critical.
- ↑ The Korf Family Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3942766), original Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2006 (2005 form), received by the IRS in October 2007 and later superseded by the amended return, PDF via ProPublica. Read from the page images. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ The Laber Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3925774), original Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2006 (2005 form), received by the IRS in October 2007 and later superseded by the amended return, PDF via ProPublica. Read from the page images. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 The Laber Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3925774), Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2007 (2006 form), paper or printed return as scanned for the IRS public-inspection set, PDF via ProPublica. Read from the page images. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 The Korf Family Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3942766), Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2008 (2007 form), paper or printed return as scanned for the IRS public-inspection set, PDF via ProPublica. Read from the page images. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 The Laber Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3925774), Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2008 (2007 form), paper or printed return as scanned for the IRS public-inspection set, PDF via ProPublica. Read from the page images. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 The Korf Family Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3942766), Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2009 (2008 form), paper or printed return as scanned for the IRS public-inspection set, PDF via ProPublica. Read from the page images. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 The Laber Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3925774), Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2009 (2008 form), paper or printed return as scanned for the IRS public-inspection set, PDF via ProPublica. Read from the page images. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ The Laber Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3925774), Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2011 (2010 form), e-filed 2012-09-05, IRS e-file object ID 201222499349100512, PDF via ProPublica, XML from the IRS e-file data mirrored by the GivingTuesday 990 data lake. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ The Laber Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3925774), Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2013 (2012 form), e-filed 2014-06-20, IRS e-file object ID 201431719349100303, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, full filing, PDF via ProPublica. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ The Laber Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3925774), Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2017 (2016 form), e-filed 2018-10-15, IRS e-file object ID 201812889349100856, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, full filing, PDF via ProPublica. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ The Laber Foundation Inc (EIN 20-3925774), Form 990-PF for the tax year ending 30 November 2018 (2017 form), e-filed 2019-07-02, IRS e-file object ID 201911839349100311, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, full filing, PDF via ProPublica. Primary source (filed by the foundation).
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Friends of Mayanot Institute Inc (EIN 11-3348050), Form 990 filings and scanned returns, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, accessed 22 October 2026. Location of the IRS filings.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Friends of Mayanot Institute Inc (EIN 11-3348050), Form 990, partial copy (Schedule A pages only) for the year ending December 2001, scanned return filed with the Internal Revenue Service, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, accessed 22 October 2026. Primary source (filed by the organisation).
- ↑ Friends of Mayanot Institute Inc (EIN 11-3348050), Form 990 for the year ending December 2002, scanned return filed with the Internal Revenue Service, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, accessed 22 October 2026. Primary source (filed by the organisation).
- ↑ Friends of Mayanot Institute Inc (EIN 11-3348050), Form 990 for the year ending December 2003, scanned return filed with the Internal Revenue Service, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, accessed 22 October 2026. Primary source (filed by the organisation).
- ↑ Friends of Mayanot Institute Inc (EIN 11-3348050), Form 990 for the year ending December 2004, scanned return filed with the Internal Revenue Service, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, accessed 22 October 2026. Primary source (filed by the organisation).
- ↑ Friends of Mayanot Institute Inc (EIN 11-3348050), Form 990 for the year ending December 2005, scanned return filed with the Internal Revenue Service, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, accessed 22 October 2026. Primary source (filed by the organisation).
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 Friends of Mayanot Institute Inc (EIN 11-3348050), Form 990 for the year ending December 2006, scanned return filed with the Internal Revenue Service, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, accessed 22 October 2026. Primary source (filed by the organisation).
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 Friends of Mayanot Institute Inc (EIN 11-3348050), Form 990 for the year ending December 2007, scanned return filed with the Internal Revenue Service, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, accessed 22 October 2026. Primary source (filed by the organisation).
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 26.3 26.4 Friends of Mayanot Institute Inc (EIN 11-3348050), Form 990 for the year ending December 2008, scanned return filed with the Internal Revenue Service, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, accessed 22 October 2026. Primary source (filed by the organisation).
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 27.3 Friends of Mayanot Institute Inc (EIN 11-3348050), Form 990 for the year ending December 2009, scanned return filed with the Internal Revenue Service, ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer, accessed 22 October 2026. Primary source (filed by the organisation).