The Leon Levine Foundation

06/16/2026

Helping children develop strong literacy skills starts with ensuring families have access to the right resources and support.

Readers Are Built is making those tools more accessible and helping strengthen early learning experiences for children and caregivers alike.

Books matter -- and so do the everyday reading moments all around us. 📚

With Readers Are Built, families can help children grow early literacy skills through shared reading, storytelling, pointing out words, labeling objects, and making meaning together all day long.

Because readers are built one moment at a time.

We are especially grateful for the generous support of The Leon Levine Foundation for helping to bring Readers Are Built to life.

Join the movement: https://buff.ly/2v8hW9k

06/12/2026

This week, members of The Leon Levine Foundation team and Board attended Jewish Family Services of Greater Charlotte's Live Laugh Give event, which supports programs and services that help individuals and families navigate challenges with dignity and care.

The evening honored Lori and Eric Sklut for their longstanding commitment to strengthening both the Jewish community and the broader Charlotte region through philanthropy, volunteer leadership, and community engagement.

Congratulations to Lori and Eric on this well-deserved recognition.

06/09/2026

Strong communities depend on strong support systems for young people.

As youth mental health needs continue to grow, creating meaningful change requires collaboration across schools, healthcare providers, community organizations, and policymakers.

CaroNova's Universal Youth Mental Wellness Supports initiative is bringing those stakeholders together to strengthen how youth mental wellness is supported across the Carolinas through a coordinated, prevention-focused approach.

We supported this initiative with a $2.5 million grant, reflecting our shared commitment to strengthening youth mental health systems and expanding prevention focused supports for young people across the region.

Learn more about this important work:

CaroNova to expand ongoing collaborative efforts to co-design a framework for Universal Youth Mental Wellness Supports in the Carolinas.

06/05/2026

The joy of reading is even more powerful when it's shared.

Ari's story is a reminder of how access to books can spark confidence, curiosity, and connection within a family. Through its work across the Carolinas, Book Harvest is helping ensure more children have access to books and the opportunities they bring.

Read Ari's story below.

The Leon Levine Foundation has committed $10M to build literacy-rich environments in homes across the Carolinas, bringing together Reach Out and Read Carolinas, The North Carolina Partnership for Children (Smart Start), and Book Harvest.

06/02/2026

Thoughtful giving shapes more than a single moment. It helps carry values, traditions, and community forward across generations.

Conversations like this highlight the many ways individuals and families can help ensure Jewish life in the Charlotte region remains connected, supported, and able to grow for years to come.

In this Q&A, Phil Warshauer, executive director of the Foundation for the Charlotte Jewish Community - FCJC (a supporting organization of Foundation For The Carolinas), reflects on how thoughtful philanthropy and planned giving help sustain Jewish life across the Charlotte region for generations.

Thank you to the Charlotte Jewish News for sharing this profile.

➡️ Read more and discover how you can be part of that legacy at https://philanthropyfocus.org/philwarshauer/.

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Foundation for the Charlotte Jewish Community, an affiliate of FFTC, helps families and individuals define and achieve their charitable goals while helping to strengthen our Jewish community.

05/29/2026

Big challenges cannot be solved alone.

The LIFT Convening brought together financial leaders from 13 foundations across North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia for a day focused on partnership, shared learning, and organizational impact.

The convening created space for participants to connect with peers, exchange ideas, and learn from others supporting philanthropic organizations across the region.

Thank you to the partners and speakers who helped make the convening possible, including The Duke Endowment, Wake Forest University, Schell Bray PLLC, and Forvis Mazars US.

Photo credits: Lauren McDowell

05/27/2026

Meet Aiden Curry: Queens University of Charlotte graduate, former Leon Levine Foundation intern and someone who has learned that when plans change, possibilities open. From two ACL surgeries to a wrestling program that was cut, Aiden's path at Queens rarely went as expected. Each time, he adapted and ended up somewhere better than where he started.

That same mindset carried into his internship with the Foundation. After applying three times, he landed the role and spent the year going deep on taxes, accounting operations and two software applications he built from the ground up.

"To have the trust of the team and collaborate with various teams was so constructive. I got to make an actual change for the organization, and that is a super unique opportunity most interns don't get," said Aiden.

He is now heading into a full-time role with Asana Partners, a path he credits directly to his time here.

Read Aiden's story: https://www.leonlevinefoundation.org/tllf-intern-spotlight-aiden-curry-when-plans-change-possibilities-open/

05/21/2026

Jewish Federation of Greater Charlotte brought together community leaders this week for its Annual Meeting, including The Leon Levine Foundation board members Sandra Levine, Hal Levinson and Sue Worrel, along with Justin Steinschriber and Jen Rosen, for a thoughtful evening focused on leadership, philanthropy and Jewish communal life.

Our CEO Tom Lawrence delivered the keynote speech, sharing with the audience: "The future of Jewish life in the Carolinas will not be built by any one institution acting alone. It will be built through partnership, through leadership, through a willingness to adapt, and through a shared commitment to building communities that are welcoming, meaningful, resilient and deeply connected. This moment requires all of us to think bigger and more strategically together."

05/19/2026

East Charlotte celebrated a major milestone last Thursday as community leaders, partners, residents and small business owners gathered for the groundbreaking of Spark Centro future economic hub.

Throughout the event, there was a shared sense of what this project represents for the community: knowledge, growth, guidance and opportunity.

Designed to expand access to workforce development and small business support, Spark Centro will help create stronger pathways for entrepreneurs, families and neighborhoods across East Charlotte.

Learn more about Spark Centro: https://sparkcentro.org.

05/14/2026

The graduates of the Levine Scholars Class of 2026 have reached an incredible milestone. Through their commitment to leadership, service, and academic excellence, these graduates have made a lasting impact at UNC Charlotte and within their communities.

For more than 15 years, the Levine Scholars Program has developed leaders prepared to create meaningful change and the Class of 2026 is a reflection of that mission.

The incoming Class of 2030 now steps forward, ready to carry that tradition of leadership and community impact into the future.

Meet the Class of 2030: https://inside.charlotte.edu/2026/05/01/seventeenth-class-of-levine-scholars-to-join-unc-charlotte/

Learn more about the Levine Scholars Program: https://levinescholars.charlotte.edu

Photo credits: Levine Scholars Program