Baxt gift adds to improvements

Gussie and Victor Baxt had always been a team. According to Gussie, they did everything together, and that includes philanthropy.

“Victor believed in philanthropy,” she said, “and so do I. I’m trying to follow through on his wishes.”

“Victor and I talked about the needs of the JCC many times in past years,” she said. “We felt that the JCC should have a more uplifted facade on the outside as well as the inside of the building … that it should be more attractive and inviting.”

So it’s only natural that Gussie continues the tradition as she makes a gift toward improvement of the Dwares JCC. Victor, who spent 65 years at Teknor Apex including as president and chairman of the board, passed away in 2012. Now, Gussie is making a $500,000 gift to “help complete the wonderful project of rejuvenation of the Dwares JCC… to make it part of the community and all that it offers,” she says.

At 91, the Providence native knows it’s important to bring in young families to the building. Growing up in Providence, she remembers going to parties at the old Benefit Street building and the holiday celebrations. “There was such a warm feeling of being welcome there,” she says. She wants that welcoming atmosphere to continue for Jews and non-Jews alike long into the future.

Gussie says that she was delighted to hear about the plans for the improvement to the Dwares JCC, spearheaded by a contribution from Donald and Bonnie Dwares.

Now Gussie’s gift will go toward the planned renovation of the Social Hall. Ceilings will be lowered, flooring, walls and lighting replaced. The result will be simple and elegant, a room that will welcome the entire community. Gussie says she was excited to see the plans for the project, and they have her approval. “It looks good. I’m very happy with it,” she said. “You’re doing something that you hope is going to last for many, many years.”

Gussie a mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, interviewed at her Providence home just a few minutes from the JCC, carries a quiet elegance about her. She met Victor after both were widowed and they married in 1967.

While they were very successful, she described both her and Victor as coming from humble beginnings. In talking with her, you get the sense of a person who wants to give back to the communities that welcomed them, helped shaped the lives of their  family and helped them succeed. And so Victor and Gussie have a long history of philanthropy to such institutions as The Miriam Hospital and the University of Rhode Island, where Victor earned his undergraduate degree. Gussie continues to contribute where she sees need in the community.

“We’ve been very fortunate,” she says.

Jeffrey Savit, president and CEO of the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island, describes Gussie as a wonderful human being. “Her gift to the Dwares JCC and our community has not only inspired others to follow her lead and contribute to our Capital Campaign, but magnificently honors the legacy of her late husband Victor. The Victor and Gussie Baxt Social Hall will become an elegant, lovely, welcoming and inclusive gathering space, four characteristics which so perfectly describe Gussie Baxt herself.

The Baxt gift is part of a $6 million campaign goal to modernize and make the entire building secure and accessible for all community members. In addition to the social hall, renovations are envisioned for the front and back entrances, upstairs and downstairs lobbies, pool, Early Childhood Center, accessible elevators, locker rooms, and health clubs. So far, roughly $5 million has been secured and fundraising efforts are continuing. For more information about the Dwares JCC Capital Campaign, please contact Trine Lustig, VP of Philanthropy.

FRAN OSTENDORF is editor of The Jewish Voice.