Jonathan Morgan’s career path took a few unexpected twists and turns along the way, but he’s delighted with where he’s ended up. He works for Medtronic, the largest medical device company in the world, where he manages sales of pain management devices for the entire state of Oregon.
When Jonathan came to Hebrew Free Loan for help with the costs of graduate school, he was studying occupational therapy at San Jose State University. His goal at the time was to work in rehabilitation with people who’d suffered traumatic brain injuries.
He received two interest-free student loans to complete his master’s degree, and passed his board exams in occupational therapy. But when the time came to look for a job, Jonathan found himself wanting to use his degree in a non-traditional way rather than working shifts in a hospital. The field of medical device sales provides the perfect mix, combining the opportunity to work with patients one-on-one with the challenges and rewards of managing a broad portfolio of clients. Jonathan also loves the independence that comes with this type of work, and his education and training provide exactly the foundation he needs to do it well.
Jonathan grew up in Santa Clara, and he and his wife Adina lived with his parents while he was in graduate school at San Jose State. Now they’re putting down roots in Portland, where they met some years earlier at a Shabbat dinner hosted by the Moishe House where Jonathan was living at the time. Jonathan has always had a strong connection to the Jewish community, and he lived at Moishe Houses in two different cities after college. Although he and Adina came back to Northern California while Jonathan was getting his master’s degree, in the end they chose Portland as the best place to raise their daughter, Aviva, now five years old.
“The interest-free student loans from Hebrew Free Loan were huge steps in helping me manage my debt. I can now focus on paying down my family’s mortgage and saving for my daughter’s college education, and the future looks bright!”
Jonathan is proud and amazed by the safety net that the Jewish community provides to those in need. Before starting graduate school, he volunteered in Buenos Aires and Mumbai for a few weeks, doing humanitarian work with JDC. He was struck by how comprehensive the safety net was in those communities, and he promised himself that he would do his part to pay it forward when the time came.
Jonathan finished paying back his interest-free loan earlier this year, and we’re proud to count him as a member of our Full Circle Club — former loan recipients who’ve made donations to support Hebrew Free Loan. Although he’s building his life in Portland now, we’re glad that our loans made a difference when Jonathan was in school here in the Bay Area and set him up for future success.
He and Adina have set up a modest donor-advised fund at the Oregon Jewish Community Foundation, even though they’re just starting out in life, and they look forward to supporting the Jewish free loan movement and other causes that matter to them. It’s all about tikkun olam—repairing the world—and helping to shape the society they want their daughter to inherit.
