He then worked as a partner in Lazard Frères until 1930, when he retired from banking to focus on entirely on philanthropic and communal endeavors.
In 1938, he joined President Roosevelt's Advisory Committee on Political Refugees, which tried to find ways to aid Nazi victims.
He supervised the JDC's rescue work during World War II, risking its credit by sending money to Europe that had to be borrowed from New York banks.
His financial policy continued during the post-war years, when the JDC aided over half a million refugees to reach Israel.
[1] Baerwald died in Monmouth Memorial Hospital in Long Branch, New Jersey, following a short illness on July 2, 1961.