Al Osten’s Life & Legacy Gift is transformational for the Calgary community

by Maxine Fischbein, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter 

(AJNews) – When Calgary philanthropist Al Osten z”l passed away in January, there were few dry eyes in Calgary and Edmonton. Osten, who lived to the ripe old age of 95, and his partner, Edmonton’s Buddy Victor (who passed away aged 92 in 2023), lived generously, sharing their good fortune in support of the arts, healthcare, youth initiatives, and multiple Jewish and Catholic organizations, reflecting their respective religious affiliations.

Extraordinarily generous in life, Osten and Victor – who made their fortune with the sale of their Weight Watchers franchises in Alberta and Saskatchewan – planned their legacy and took intentional steps to support organizations that had been important to them during their lifetimes as well as others they considered essential to the well-being and vibrancy of the communities in which they had lived and prospered.

Especially during the last few years of his life, Osten gave tens of millions of dollars to an astonishing number of charitable organizations with a radiant joy that inspired anyone who had the privilege of basking in his reflected glow.

The names Osten and Victor came up frequently in the media as various theatres and initiatives were named for them throughout Calgary and Edmonton.

Readers of AJNews know that Osten gave generously within the Jewish community, most notably in support of his spiritual home, Temple B’nai Tikvah, and with an unprecedented $1 million gift to Camp BB-Riback this past November. A gift of $500,000 paved the way for the recent establishment of a CIJA (Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs) office in Calgary. These are but a few examples of Al Osten’s largesse.

Now, thanks to Osten’s-after lifetime gift of $1.65 million via Life & Legacy (L&L) – a program jointly organized locally by the Jewish Community Foundation of Calgary (JCFC) and Calgary Jewish Federation (Federation) – some of this community’s bedrock institutions will continue to be supported in perpetuity.

Osten capitalized his Life & Legacy endowment through a life insurance policy on which he named the JCFC as the irrevocable beneficiary. His fund resides at the JCFC and has become part of that organization’s pooled investments.

Osten’s fund agreement stipulates that 96 percent of the income on his endowment will be given annually – in varying amounts – to Temple B’nai Tikvah, Calgary Jewish Federation, Calgary Beth Tzedec Congregation Society, Calgary Jewish Academy, Jewish Family Service Calgary, Jewish Historical Society of Southern Alberta, and Paperny Family JCC. A portion of his gift will fund further grants to Jewish registered charities and/or scholarships for post-secondary students at the discretion of the JCFC Grants and Allocations Committee.

“Al gave with great intentionality including his desire to continue growing his fund,” said JCFC Chair Stuart Myron.

“In any given year it allows the organizations Al named to expand some of their offerings based upon the increased growth of this fund,” said JCFC Philanthropy Director Joseph Tappenden, noting that the extent of growth depends on the movement of the market in any given year.

The charities supported by the Al Osten Life & Legacy Fund will receive all of the distributable income earned on the first six months of his after-lifetime gift shortly after the JCFC Annual General Meeting in October, and annually thereafter.

Osten often said that he learned the importance of tzedakah at the knees of his parents who, though poor, always had a pushke in their home and extended helping hands to others.

Blessed with a beautiful voice and a passion for entertaining, Osten, who was raised in Edmonton, went east to pursue a career in showbiz. He sang with the Rover Boys, best remembered for their 1956 hit song Graduation Day. Buddy Victor later joined the group and became Osten’s life-long partner.

The Rover Boys were instrumental in launching the career of Paul Anka and performed with stars including Bobby Darrin, Robert Goulet, and the legendary Sophie Tucker, still fondly remembered as the “Last of the Red-Hot Mamas.”

In the leadup to the 2017 JNF Negev Gala, Osten, who was the honouree, recounted to this writer how he was influenced by Tucker, a woman who believed passionately in giving back to the community and did so with magnanimity.

“We performed with her twice,” said Osten. “She was larger than life, giving donations to everyone who asked. From Jewish causes to Catholic nuns, Sophie supported everything,” Osten recalled.

The good news is that just about everyone reading these words can leave a legacy too.

Life & Legacy gifts come in all shapes and sizes, say Myron and Tappenden, adding that each donation makes a difference as local Jewish charitable organizations strive to raise endowment dollars that will help to ensure a viable and thriving Jewish community today and tomorrow.

Life & Legacy commitments can be made by anyone and do not require cash up front. Some donors name organizations in their wills, while others prefer to support their favourite causes during their lifetimes in a variety of ways.

Myron, Tappenden, and Calgary Jewish Federation Development Director Diana Kalef – whose organizations worked in partnership to bring the Life & Legacy program to Calgary – take a donor-centric approach; for them, job one is helping community members to fulfill their philanthropic dreams.

Al Osten was among the first Calgarians to sign a Life & Legacy letter of intent (LOI) in 2019, when this community became the first in Canada to sign on to the program, an initiative of the Massachusetts-based Harold Grinspoon Foundation.

“I think it’s safe to say that Al’s gift is the largest Life & Legacy gift our community has seen so far,” said Tappenden, adding that Osten single-handedly doubled the quantum of realized L & L gifts.

“As a result of the legacy dollars we have already realized, we were able, just in January, to drop off checks to each of our partner organizations, in varying amounts, totalling to just over $108,000. That was prior to the $1.6 million generously given by Al Osten,” Stuart Myron said.

Locally, the Life & Legacy program has garnered LOIs from 272 individuals and families totaling an estimated $20 million, a figure that is expected to increase as promised gifts are realized.

“All of this begins with a conversation,” added Tappenden, who – together with Myron and Kalef – is thrilled to be having meaningful conversations with potential donors of all income levels.

Trained volunteers are also speaking with community members on behalf of 10 Life & Legacy partner organizations: Beth Tzedec Congregation, Calgary Jewish Federation, Camp BB Riback, Halpern Akiva Academy, House of Jacob Mikveh Israel, Jewish Family Service Calgary, Jewish Historical Society of Southern Alberta, Paperny Family JCC, Temple B’nai Tikvah, and The Calgary Jewish Academy.

“Gifts come in a variety of ways,” Tappenden told AJNews, adding that it is important for donors to be strategic in their giving to reduce taxes during their lifetime or, if it is more advantageous for them, on their estate.

Tappenden says that he has had a number of conversations with younger donors over the past year who have opted to purchase life insurance policies, paying the premiums on them – and receiving the tax benefit today – while making their most cherished charitable organizations beneficiaries of the policies.

“They’re paying relatively low annual premiums for an initial policy of what may be $25,000 $50,000, $75,000,” adds Tappenden. “Should they live to life expectancy, the value of these policies may be upwards of $100,000 or more.

Tappenden and his colleagues hope that it will be a very long time before the funds are realized. Bis hundert und zwanzig…until 120!

Osten already owned his policy when he created his fund. After his passing, his estate received the tax benefit.

The value of Osten’s life insurance policy grew by roughly one third in value in the nine years between the time that he signed his LOI and his passing, said Tappenden, adding that life insurance is but one way of making an after-lifetime gift without using one’s liquid assets.

“It is important for community members considering after lifetime gifts to speak with professionals like estate planners, investment advisors, or insurance professionals to ensure they are proceeding in a way that is most beneficial for them,” Tappenden said.

“Every legacy gift is meaningful, regardless of its size. We’re looking at the bigger picture by building an endowment that can support and sustain our community organizations.”

According to Myron, some realized gifts exceed the estimates on donors’ original LOIs.

It is impossible to know what the actual value of a promised after-lifetime gift will be. The Harold Grinspoon recommends an estimate of $25,001, says Diana Kalef, a place marker the organization has calculated based on the size of the Calgary Jewish community.

But, as Tappenden points out, according to a February 17, 2025 article in The Globe and Mail, “Research from Canadian charities has…shown that the average donation in a will is close to $35,000.

“The gifts Al has given our community are transformational,” said Diana Kalef, adding that his after-lifetime support of Calgary Jewish Federation comes remarkably close to fully endowing the generous annual donation he made during his lifetime.

“I think it speaks to what the program is when we ask donors about their passions and which charities they are already supporting on a regular basis,” said Kalef.

“One thing that was amazing about Al is that he also gave to organizations he did not have a direct connection with…. I suspect he felt they were part of the fabric of the community and needed to be sustained,” Kalef said.

Osten not only gave to his synagogue – Temple B’nai Tikvah – but also to Beth Tzedec Congregation. “There are not many people that would do something like that,” Kalef said.

But that was Al Osten. He gave with gusto, and, says Kalef, with “no strings attached.” “I think that speaks volumes about who he was as a person,” Kalef added.

“The Life & Legacy program has been a gamechanger in this community…. It gave us a foundation and a format and training,” said Diana Kalef. “This culture of legacy giving didn’t exist in our community, and now, it’s become part of the vernacular. This is huge, and we want to continue expanding it.”

Toward that end, says Stuart Myron, Life & Legacy in Calgary has a goal of increasing the number of unique L&L commitments to 350 by the end of 2029.

The community is reaping great benefit from the capable and visionary work done by the JCFC since its establishment 36 years ago. Since then, successive chairs, board members, investment committee volunteers, and staff have grown the foundation.

Since 2024 alone, says Tappenden, the funds managed by the JCFC have grown from $30 million to more than $46 million… and counting.

“Our intent is to make sure that that we can provide as much of the earned income as possible to our fundholders’ designated charities while still ensuring that we’re a sustainable organization,” Tappenden said.

“JCFC does not distribute everything because we want to keep pace with inflation,” said Myron.

While the organization is prudent, its goal is to get as many dollars as possible flowing into the community to support the excellent work done day in and day out by the charitable organizations donors choose to support.

“The more people have these conversations and think about how they can establish funds and build their own legacies, the more great work we can do in the community during and well after our own lifetimes,” says Joseph Tappenden.

Al Osten’s gift will keep giving. So can all of ours.

To find out more about the Jewish Community Foundation of Calgary and Life & Legacy, go to jcfc.ca.

If you missed Maxine Fischbein’s December 2025 article about Al Osten and his $1million dollar gift to Camp BB-Riback, go to https://albertajewishnews.com/al-osten-donates-a-game-changer-to-camp-bb-riback/.

Maxine Fischbein is a Local Journalism Initiative Reporter.