By ROCKNE ROLL
The Jewish Review
Jakob Rich-Levin is back in the family business. 
The son of a Federation professional  in Florida, Rich-Levin joined the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland earlier this month as Campaign Administrator. 
“Federation was always a place  I saw myself ending up at,” Rich-Levin said.
It’s the latest step in a career of work in causes close to his heart. After graduating from the University of Florida in 2022, Rich-Levin joined the Humaine Society of North Central Florida, first coordinating their adoption programs and later as their office manager. He’d been fostering dogs through the organization – animals continue to be a passion of his, as he and his wife, Emily, have two dogs and two cats. 
He’s also passionate about his Judaism. His mother is Israeli and he attended a Jewish day school in Florida through 12th grade along with eight summers at Camp Ramah, active synagogue involvement, and an eventual stint on the student board of Hillel at University of Florida. 
“That’s really where I fell in love with Jewish nonprofits,” Rich-Levin said. 
His wife, who works in education, is also from Florida. The pair were  ready to live somewhere else and looked at Washington D.C., Denver and Seattle before selecting the Rose City. 
“When I just saw this was open,” he said of the Campaign Administrator role, “I knew that it was a perfect fit.”
He cited the vast array of activities and projects Federations take on as a motivating factor in pursuing the job. 
“From working with the elderly in the community to working with homelessness to education, Israel’s emergency response fund, the Ukraine response fund, hurricane response funds; we don’t need to help during hurricanes, but we do,” Rich-Levin said. “I think that’s the biggest thing that drew me to working at a Federation.”
Away from the office, Rich-Levin’s passions continue – comic books and the vast sphere of media that’s stemmed from those stories, Star Wars, and most prominently, Legos – a hobby he shares with Emily. 
“It’s a great escape from the stresses of life, and you really can make whatever you want with it,” he said. “You can make so many different characters that don’t conform to the typical notions of Lego,   nor the typical notions of our society. I think that’s incredible.”
Email Rich-Levin at jakob@jewishportland.org.