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The Brandman Foundation

The Brandman Foundation was founded in the 1970’s by Saul Brandman to support a variety of charitable causes. The Foundation provides support for more than 100 charities including the Jewish Free Loan, Our House, UCLA Pulmonary Project, Cedars-Sinai Pulmonary Project, Jewish Home for the Aging’s new Westside Project and the new Jewish Home for the Aging’s Research Institute, Aspen Foundation, International Hearing Dog Foundation, the Israel-American Chamber of Commerce, Ben Gurion University and Hebrew University.  Following Saul’s passing in 2008, his wife Joyce, continues to oversee the Brandman Foundation and expand on its charitable projects.

The Brandman Foundation was born out of the principle that Saul’s mother instilled in him at a very young age – that there is always room for one more at the table.  With this mentality always top of mind, Saul’s charitable nature guided him through life as he worked to give others the opportunity to achieve a better life.

Education always played an important role in Saul’s life and he was an exceptional student. He enrolled in the pre-med program at UCLA, but his studies were interrupted when he was called to duty and left to serve with both the Navy and Marine Corps during World War II. He later returned to UCLA and subsequently became a successful businessman working in retail manufacturing, international trading, banking and real estate development. Following Saul’s retirement, he remained actively involved with many different business and charitable endeavors.

In October of 1999, Joyce's life changed dramatically when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. During her treatment she had a vision of what today is Cedars-Sinai’s Saul and Joyce Brandman Breast Center.  Joyce continues to devote an extensive amount of time to the Center, which provides women facing a significant health crisis with a place where they can be treated with warmth, understanding, compassion and dignity.

In 2009, the Brandman Foundation made a historic donation to Chapman University College. Joyce Brandman hopes that this donation will help provide additional resources for working students who want to better themselves while remaining in the communities where they reside.

To acknowledge the extraordinary impact the donation will have on expanding educational opportunities for working students, Chapman University College renamed itself Brandman University.