Working with five Associated executive directors, Jon served as president of a local Jewish agency, The Associated and JDC, the legendary American Jewish organization that provides relief, rescue and renewal services to Jews in need across the world. 

A Baltimore native 

Born to Irving Mason Kolker, a Baltimore native, and Rosa Kolker, from Virginia, who was hired by Harry Greenstein to be a social worker at The Associated’s Jewish Family Services (now Jewish Community Services), Jon grew up in a typical Jewish childhood home. He became a bar mitzvah at Beth El, a congregation his family helped co-found with about 40 other families. 

Yet tragedy struck when he was 21. His father died suddenly. Jon stepped in to head the family business. Shortly thereafter, out of deep respect for his father, he was invited to sit on the Levindale board. He would go on to become president of Levindale. 

Guiding Levindale through change 

Back then, Jon says, it was the Board, not professional staff, which handled all major decisions related to running the nonprofit. Board members personally visited families on Sundays, interviewing them to determinetheir needs and how much money they could contribute to their parents’ care. This was prior to federal programs like Medicaid, and payment for care was based on a combination of the family’s contributions and funding from The Associated. 

The period also brought growth and modernization. The Levindale building that faces Sinai was constructed. Sinai assumed responsibility for medical care to Levindale’s patients, the first step to merger. Equally important, Jon helped guide Levindale through the critical transition of bringing in professionals to run the day-to-day operations. 

The Associated journey 

After rotating off the Levindale board, Jon deepened his involvement with The Associated. Over the years, he would hold every major lay position at the organization from chairing the planning department (as its first lay chair), chairing the campaign, and ultimately becoming Chair of the Board. 

His accomplishments would help shape The Associated for generations. 

Building a stronger Jewish future through endowments 

First of all, under his leadership, The Associated created its legacy and endowment program. We began to see the decline of business in Baltimore,” he says. “We were concerned that if we wanted to maintain the work of The Associated, we needed endowments. “At the time, there were only two endowments. Today endowments support a significant portion of The Associated’s work in the Jewish community each year.” 

Not only has Jon provided leadership, but also he and his sister, Freddie, created a support foundation with The Associated to allow his family to recommend charitable contributions to shore up the Jewish community’s future.  He also recently opened his own Donor Advised Fund. 

Transforming Jewish education and building a cohesive Jewish community 

During this period, The Associated made a critical decision to support Jewish education across all denominations. Jon believes that this decision fundamentally shaped the organization’s identity, helping establish The Associated as the central address for Jewish life for all of Baltimore. “No matter your affiliation or lack of affiliation, you would feel welcome and encouraged to participate,” he says. 

New agencies created 

Finally, both CHAI and the Jewish Museum of Maryland were established.  

Supporting national and international Jewish communities 

After completing his tenure at The Associated, Jon turned to the international stage. He joined the board of the JDC, one of The Associated’s overseas partners, at a critical time for former Soviet Union Jews. With the fall of the Soviet Union, many older Jews discovered they lacked financial safety nets and struggled to pay for basic necessities.  

“We had three choices. Turn our back on the Jews of the former Soviet Union and let them go without food. Or take the money from other countries we were in.” Or go into fundraising.” 

The obvious choice was the third, an effort he led. As a result, JDC doubled its budget, providing money for Soviet Jews while continuing to support Jewish communities worldwide. 

Out of his work with JDC, he and his family created the Kolker Fellowship, an exchange program between professionals at The Associated and JDC. It allows these individuals to learn how we are supporting Jewish communities around the world, from caring for older adults and those struggling to make ends meet, to strengthening Jewish life. 

While not volunteering 

If volunteering didn’t fill his schedule, work and family complemented it. 

Alongside his extensive community leadership, Jonathan was building The Berkshire Corporation, often working 50–60 hours a week to grow the real estate development business. His mentor, Jim Rouse of The Rouse Company, encouraged him to move to Columbia. While his company was building 400 homes and 160 apartments over a 10-year period, Jim would impart a valuable lesson. “He told me ‘the plan for the community is just as important as the plan for the house.’ It was an idea that applied to being impactful at the Federation level.” 

At the same time, Jon, along with his wife, Judy, raised a daughter, Fritzi and two sons, Alex and Robert. Judy’s career was in professional psychiatric counseling. Fritzi is a leader of the family’s business enterprise and at The Associated.  Alex is a non-profit professional providing services to his community. Robert is a successful author of non-fiction books. 

He’s traveled to 73 countries 

Through his work and for pleasure, Jonathan has traveled to 73 countries on six continents. From Uzbekistan to Argentina, Australia (which he calls the most beautiful) to China (most interesting in terms of history and culture), he often meets with members of their local Jewish communities. He’s even visited Lebanon and Syria. 

Advice he hopes to pass on. 

“The internet and technology have made it more difficult to change the world. So instead of changing the world, try to be impactful in your community, whatever that might mean to you. It could be your family, a synagogue, your neighborhood, your fellow employees. So, the advice I want to pass on is to pick a community and work within it to bring about positive change.”