What is our Global Jewish Responsibility?

Remarks by Rabbi Peter J. Rubinstein, Senior Rabbi, Central Synagogue
Delivered at the JDC Ambassadors Global Symposium
December 3, 2012

It is a tremendous honor to be with you this morning and a special joy to personally salute you who are involved in and support the JDC.  In my mind you are responsible for and further the work of one of the great heroic organizations of Jewish life. To say this is not hyperbole because I have seen your work in action around much of this world.

Perhaps the most personally stunning and surprising experience I had with JDC was when in the late 1990’s I travelled with a small group of Jewish leaders to visit an Albanian refugee camp during the height of the Kosovo conflict and then to take some of those refugees with us to Israel. In those days brutalized refugees were flowing across the border seeking food and water and shelter and refuge.

I’m not sure what I expected when I arrived in Albania but a tent with a JDC sign outside was nowhere on my screen of possibilities. It was there and then that I came to understand the expansive theater of JDC operations which combat the results of human warfare and misery and are on the ground in the face of the most horrendous natural disasters as in Haiti after the earthquake. I comprehend the exquisite purity of an organization which has as its focus saving people in extremis no matter what their national origin, race, religion or gender. For that I salute and thank you.

The topic you have asked me to address is “What is our Global Jewish Responsibility?” In forming this question I suspect the planners of this symposium were purposeful in framing the question with inherent ambiguity for in fact this topic properly raises two very separate issues.

Scholarships Give Greece’s Jewish Children Second Chance at J-School

JDC’s scholarship initiative for Greek families

facing financial crisis is ensuring children like

Moni can continue to receive a Jewish education.

Photo: JDC Website

Since closing the doors of the family clothing business in Athens for good last year, Rafail, 58 has had to count every Euro. Unable to afford the mortgage or sell the house, he and his wife, Sara were forced to cut spending back to a near halt—including pulling their small children, Lela, 10, and Moni, 6, out of Athens’ Jewish Community School.

As Greece’s sovereign debt crisis turns into a full-fledged domestic economic emergency, the skyrocketing unemployment and small business bankruptcy rates are rattling families throughout the country. Rafail and Sara are among hundreds of families in the Jewish community making heartbreaking decisions just to keep a roof over their children’s heads.

The Greek Jewish community, consisting of some 5,000 Jews, operates synagogues, a Jewish school, a cultural center, and a soup kitchen to aid the most vulnerable members of their community. But with the country’s dire financial situation, the majority of Jewish communal institutions are struggling to stay afloat.

JDC Accepts Donations To Aid Israeli Fire Evacuees

CLICK ABOVE

NEW YORK, NY, December 3, 2010— The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) is participating in relief and recovery efforts for evacuated Israelis in the wake of the country’s unprecedented and devastating forest fires. JDC -- which runs programs in communities affected by the blaze -- has been working continuously with local authorities and the Israeli government to ensure the safety and well-being of the most vulnerable in the area.

"Our hearts go out to Israel and especially to those mourning the loss of their loved ones to these destructive fires. JDC's Emergency Response Team in Northern Israel was activated immediately and reached out to the elderly, disabled and youth-at-risk to help ensure their swift evacuation and provide basic needs and emotional support to them during this traumatic time," said JDC CEO Steven Schwager.

In addition, JDC’s network of Israeli volunteer initiatives is working closely with local municipalities to provide additional support in the area. JDC's Emergency Response System -- developed during the second intifada and the Second Lebanon War -- is ensuring support and assistance is delivered.

In the aftermath of the fires, JDC will launch immediate rehabilitation programs that will provide assistance to affected vulnerable populations. Additionally, JDC will assist with the ongoing deployment of local emergency response teams and psycho-social support for children and families.

JDC is working closely with the Israel’s Ministries of Social Affairs and Health, Home Front Command and the National Emergency Network to monitor the situation and make a clear assessment of current and future needs once the fires have been extinguished.

To Make a Contribution:

Online:  http://www.jdc.org/ 

  

By Phone: 212-687-6200

By Mail: check payable to

JDC-Israel Fire Relief

P.O. Box 530

132 East 43rd St

New York, NY, 10017

JDC RESPONDS TO DEVASTATING RUSSIAN HEATWAVE

NEW YORK, NY, August 13, 2010 – Amidst 100-plus degree temperatures and the suffocating, smoky air from fires south of Moscow, 82-year old Svetlana suffered without air-conditioning in her cramped apartment and wondered how she would survive. The intolerable heat and discomfort brought on by the ecological disaster made respite nearly impossible. What was she to do? Fortunately, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) was already in action — its response team ready to do everything necessary from check-in calls, in-home visits, revitalizing meal deliveries, and fan purchases to help those most tormented by the scorching weather. JDC, a leading provider of humanitarian aid in Russia, stepped up its daily services for seniors and children in response to the emergency situation, including creating a Moscow-based volunteer program led by more than 40 young Jewish students and professionals.

“With thousands of Jewish seniors and children languishing in the unprecedented Russian heat and smoke pollution , we leapt into action. By activating our strong network of community centers and social workers with supplemental help from young people who gave up their traditional Russian summer vacations to volunteer, we have helped many people escape the oppressive and exhausting conditions brought on by this environmental crisis,” said JDC CEO Steven Schwager.

In Moscow alone, JDC staff and the young volunteers – often recruited through Facebook and JDC young leadership programs – have made more than 900 calls and numerous home visits to isolated seniors. During these visits, the young people provided much-needed solace to the elderly and brought extra food, drinking water, medicine, and helped clean their homes. These volunteers have also staffed a children's care center at the Nikitskaya JCC, where air-conditioned relief is being provided for low-income families.

Outside Moscow, JDC efforts include increased monitoring and support of the elderly; the installation of additional air-conditioning units in its local community centers in regions most affected by the heat and the transportation of seniors from their hot homes to these centers. JDC also joined leaders like Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in making a donation to the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation’s fund for victims of the wildfires that were sparked by the high temperatures.

Read more about JDC 's efforts at No Passport Required. 

For FSU Elderly, Times as Difficult as Ever

Faina relies on services provided through the local JDC-supported Hesed welfare center to supplement her nutrition, medical care, and other critical needs. Without this help, she would be forced to make unthinkable choices.

Born the youngest of four children in 1937 in Minsk, Belarus, Faina has suffered many tragedies: her brother was killed and her father injured in World War II; Faina’s mother was evacuated to the East with her three children, first to the Volga region and from there to Kazakhstan. During this difficult time, they had very little income to live on. Her sister managed to find a job—but was paid with soap, not money. The family was often on the brink of starvation.

Faina married at age 26 and gave birth to a son. She worked in sales while her husband painted houses for a living. Faina’s son died in a drowning accident in 1996 and her husband passed away several years later.

Today Faina lives alone in one 17-square-meter room in Minsk on a monthly pension of $117. She has a long list of health challenges, including hypertension, heart disease, gastric ulcer, and gall bladder disease. Like many of her contemporaries who receive help from Hesed, Faina has endured suffering in her 73 years that is almost unimaginable. She’s been victimized by war, illness, and poverty.

Despite what she has overcome, Faina is living some of the hardest times of her life today. She can’t get by on her monthly budget, which exists without any social safety net: rent $12, electricity $6, phone $1, medicines $22, personal hygiene $6. She can’t afford transportation (she rarely leaves her flat) or clothing (she never purchases new garments). A precipitous rise in prices due to inflation or economic downturn, an unexpected need for an additional medicine, or any other unplanned expense could spell disaster. From the remaining $70 in her pension, Faina owes $10.50/month for a washing machine she purchased (her first washing machine ever), leaving $59.50 for a month’s worth of food, which falls more than $15 short of costs for the basic standard diet for an elderly person (as determined by the Hesed in Minsk together with three local geriatric dieticians).

To make up for the shortfall, Faina simply buys less of everything, including fish and flour, bread and butter, chicken, cheese, and potatoes. She uses buckwheat (kasha) as a replacement for healthier options which she can’t afford. Faina even skips meals. And she relies on JDC to save her from total deprivation.

JDC ACCEPTING DONATIONS FOR ASIA PACIFIC DISASTER RESPONSE

To make a donation, please go to our DONATE NOW page and choose 'Asia Pacific Disaster Response' in the drop-down menu.
PRESS RELEASE

---95-Year-Old Humanitarian Aid Organization Responds---

NEW YORK, NY, October 1, 2009—The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), an overseas humanitarian aid organization working in over 70 countries, today announced that it is collecting funds on a non-sectarian basis for relief efforts following two earthquake-related disasters in the Asia Pacific region: in the tsunami-wracked Samoan islands and on the Indonesian island of Sumatra; as well as the Tropical Storm Parma, which strengthened to a typhoon and two cyclones in the Philippines, leaving hundreds dead and thousands homeless.

JDC is conducting a full and rapid assessment of the situation on the ground, and reaching out to its network of local, Israeli, and other international partners to determine critical next steps based on immediate needs of the hardest-hit areas. JDC will look to fill critical gaps in humanitarian assistance being provided. The efforts are part of JDC’s International Development Program (IDP), which provides immediate relief and long-term assistance to victims of natural and manmade disasters.

“Our hearts go out to the victims of these catastrophic disasters, and as we did following the 2004 Tsunami in Southeast Asia, JDC will leverage its strong partnerships in the region and around the world to respond quickly and compassionately to the needs of those affected,” said Steve Schwager, JDC Chief Executive Officer. “It is our long-standing mission to provide as much help as possible for people whose lives have been suddenly devastated, be it by supplying food, medicines, and blankets or rebuilding schools and homes. Now and in the months to come, JDC will provide both immediate relief and long-term assistance to help these victims rebuild their lives,” he added.

READ MORE AFTER THE JUMP

URGENT NEEDS OF OVERSEAS JEWRY

The following letter was sent yesterday to Federation executives across the country:

TO: FEDERATION EXECUTIVES

FROM: DR. IRVING A. SMOKLER, PRESIDENT
STEVEN SCHWAGER, CEO

CC: JDC BOARD OF DIRECTORS, FEDERATION CAMPAIGN, MARKETING AND ISRAEL & OVERSEAS DIRECTORS

RE: URGENT NEEDS OF OVERSEAS JEWRY
DATE: AUGUST 20, 2009

August 21 corresponds this year to the beginning of the month of Elul in the Jewish calendar, leading us to the High Holy Days. Our Traditions teach us that during Elul, we reflect upon the past year, searching our hearts and asking forgiveness for wrongs done to other people. Elul reminds us that Kol Yisrael Arevim Ze Lazeh -- Jews are collectively responsible one for the other. And recognizing that responsibility surely reminds us how tumultuous the last year has been for Jews, locally and overseas.

Tumultuous may be an understatement for Jews and Jewish communities that JDC serves in Israel, the former Soviet Union, and in over 50 other countries throughout the world. Significant reductions in Campaign and overseas allocations have translated into a serious decline in the services we provide to Jews in dire need without alternative sources of assistance. Additionally, the economic downturn in many of the countries where these Jews reside is deeper (and will last longer) than in North America. Most importantly, in most of the countries where the poorest Jews live, there is no social safety net -- no unemployment compensation, no Social Security, no Medicare/Medicaid. Inflation overseas in many countries is unchecked, with local prices increasing by more than 10%. As a result, thousands of Jews throughout the world, whom JDC helped in past years with the assistance of the North American Federation system, are now living below the poverty line.

Because of the significant decrease in overseas allocations and the financial problems in these countries, JDC’s ability to respond to urgent human needs in the field today has been severely compromised.

As we begin the New Year and you prepare to launch your 2010 Annual Campaign, we share with you our most pressing issues and priority unmet needs. We ask that you, in turn, share the serious plight of these poor Jews with your donors.

Former Soviet Union (FSU)
In almost 3,000 cities, towns and villages that span 11 time zones, JDC continues reaching out to each Jew – young and old – who needs basic welfare services of food, medical assistance, homecare, and winter relief. But our ability to sustain these critical welfare programs has been impacted negatively by two developments: (1) Jewish Federations, our largest supporters of welfare services to non-Nazi victims, have collectively reduced unrestricted core overseas allocations by at least 14% (or $5 million); and (2) Because of inflation, the local cost of “doing business” has increased dramatically. The cost of basic services has skyrocketed, but pensions have not kept pace with those increases.

• Who could imagine that today, thousands of destitute Jewish elderly wake up each morning and must decide between eating food or taking medicines?

• Who could imagine that the cost of a whole chicken in Minsk ($1.18 per lb.), for example, would be roughly twice what it is in most US cities? The same is true of virtually all sources of protein. Therefore, poor elderly and too many families with children are forced to live on nutritionally unhealthy diets of carbohydrates – bread, rice, potatoes, kasha – and in insufficient quantities.


• Who could imagine that today over 60,000 indigent elderly Jews are turned away from any Hesed services, and over 20,000 children living in poverty do not receive support from Jewish Family Services, simply because we no longer have sufficient funds to provide for them?


• Who could imagine that $17 monthly food package deliveries to Jews in remote areas would be replaced by deliveries only once every three months, but with 33% less food?


• Who could imagine that we would have no choice but to close over 20 Hesed welfare centers in 2009 -– the only central Jewish address in many smaller cities -- with more closings scheduled for 2010?


• Who could imagine that we would reach the point where the best we can do for our non-Nazi victim clients, who typically must live on a $5 pension per day or less, is to provide them with less than $1 per day in additional critical services?

Surely we can do better.

Thankfully, Holocaust restitution funds are stable in the short-term, so that JDC can provide basic services to Nazi victims who qualify for restitution funds at dignified, minimally adequate levels. We cannot say the same for other very poor elderly, most of whom are survivors of both World War II and decades of repressive Communist regimes, who are not eligible for restitution support.

At the same time, the development of Jewish community life in the FSU has also been effected by the downturn. Local donations and other revenue sources are seeing major contractions. Jewish schools have closed or scaled back services such as transport, meals, and extra hours.

Europe
The global recession has hit hard in several countries, especially in the Baltic States, Hungary, and Romania. Developing Jewish communities, and in particular large portions of the Jewish middle class, are suddenly poor. For example, Latvia’s export driven economy is suffering what economists view as a depression worse than what Argentina experienced in the aftermath of its 2001-02 collapse. Many European Jewish families are now turning to JDC for assistance to feed their children and to avoid becoming homeless. And elderly Jews who receive meager fixed incomes are increasingly at-risk, like their brethren in the FSU.

Israel
JDC’s ability, in partnership with the Israeli government, to forge social innovations in response to poverty is being significantly tested. Every unrestricted $1 that is cut from our Israel budget means the loss, on average, of $4 that is leveraged from our Israel government partners. What does this mean?

• For Ethiopian-Israeli pre-school children, we have fewer dollars to prepare them educationally for first grade. If not, the “catch up” costs will be much, much higher.


• For teens in trouble and on the streets, it means substantially less capability to reach out and effectively reverse the course of their lives. Without our help, many will live in perpetual turmoil and may turn to drugs and crime.


• For post Army graduates from poor immigrant families, it means reduced community resources that will help them get jobs and become financially self-sufficient.


• For the disabled, it means a much slower progress in overcoming barriers to independent living.

South America
In places like Argentina, where there is no prospect of international help if the economy collapses again, the political environment continues to be unstable. JDC will complete its phase-out of crisis assistance in 2010, assuming no sudden deterioration in the situation. In Venezuela, economic uncertainty is compounded by the government’s hostility towards Israel, making the community feel less secure. Thousands of Jews have already emigrated; if the situation deteriorates, many more may decide to do so in 2010.

And so the bottom line for JDC, as we enter the 2010 Campaign year, is that we truly face a crisis in the field. We cannot adequately feed those who need food. We cannot provide sufficient medicines and medical care for those who are sick. We cannot provide enough hours of homecare for those who are homebound. We cannot provide enough nutrition to children who depend on us for proper nourishment. We cannot sustain our ability to partner with Israel in responding to its pressing social needs of its most vulnerable citizens.

JDC’s 95-year history reminds us that we are morally bound to care for global Jewry. But we do not have sufficient means. We have already cut, via attrition and retrenchment, our global staff in 70+ countries from 948 persons to 766, a drop of 24%, with further cuts likely in 2010. We have reduced JDC administrative expenses down to 3.9% of our global budget (and were recognized by Charity Navigator for a second straight year with its 4-Stars ranking). We also will spend down 10% of our unrestricted endowment funds ($11 million) this year, just to avoid an utter disaster in the field. That rate of endowment spending is not sustainable over the long term without compromising our ability to meet unexpected new needs.

Finally, we face the frightening prospect of terminating Jewish renewal initiatives in those places where we have made significant progress in developing the next generation of leadership so that there will be future Jewish communities. Cutting these programs would be short-sighted, but we may have no alternative in order to sustain welfare services globally.

We know you understand. We need you, our Jewish Federation partners, to help us with a significant infusion of new dollars, collectively from your Campaign and/or individually from your donors. In just the FSU alone, if we want to stabilize the reversing fortunes of poor elderly and children, restore last year’s cuts, and make it possible for everyone to receive equivalent levels of welfare services based upon individual circumstances, we have an unmet need which approaches $50 million. That is an enormous amount of money to us; but for poor Jews, the unmet needs translate to under an additional $1 per person per day.

We, along with our professionals who work most closely with Federations -- Michael Novick (Michael.Novick@jdcny.org), Jennifer Kraft (Jennifer.Kraft@jdcny.org), and Solly Kaplinski (SollyK@jdc.org.il) -- stand ready to assist in any way possible to help reverse this situation. We are prepared to visit your communities, to host your leadership in the field or in New York, to organize conference calls with field staff –- to do whatever it takes to change what is a very negative picture.

As Elul approaches, we are determined to be proactive and persevere through these difficult financial times, as we have done for 95 years. In the eyes of the Jewish world, North American Jews are the lifeline that never fails them. Through two World Wars, through the great Depression, overcoming every obstacle, we are the extended helping hand that never closes completely. We are confident that, with your passionate support, we will continue on this path for as long as we are needed. And as we enter the month of Elul, there is no better time to make that commitment together.

Thank you.

Irv and Steve

Two Articles on the Snyder SOS FSU Project

Edgar and Sandy Snyder call from Ekaterinburg
From The Jewish Chronicle
by EricLidji - The Cutting Room Floor

Yesterday morning, I spoke to Edgar Snyder. He called from Ekaterinburg, in central Russia, where he and his wife, Sandy, are looking over the fruits of their SOS program.

The program is sort of a “fund of last resort,” giving small donations to people who can’t get the care they need through the tradition services system. These gifts — usually only a few hundred dollars each — help cover medicine, medical procedures, furniture and appliances.

The Snyder’s have been going to Russia for seven years, but the situation is worse than usual, Edgar said, because the global recession means less money is available at a time when more people need help.

Snyder said the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, which helps administer the SOS program, is “making Sophie’s Choices every day of the week over here.”



Here is a video from a 2005 trip the SOS program made to Izhevsk. My favorite part comes at around 4:40, when the young woman in the car sings “Kol Haolam Kulo.” The lyrics in English are, “The world is a very narrow bridge, but the thing to remember is not to be afraid.”

In recession battered Russia, the Snyders meet beneficiaries of local dollars
From The Jewish Chronicle
by Eric Lidji

For seven years, Sandy and Edgar Snyder have visited Russia with their SOS program, which gives emergency aide to Jews who have fallen through the cracks of the system.

With the global economic downturn, those cracks are splitting wider, Edgar Snyder said in a Sunday phone call from Yekaterinburg, a Russian city east of the Ural Mountains.

“The recession has hit big-time in Russia,” said Snyder, the well-known western Pennsylvania personal injury lawyer and philanthropist within the Jewish community.

When the Snyders last visited two years ago, rising oil prices were filling government coffers, and the country seemed to have made a complete turnaround from a financial crisis, in 1998.

Over the past year, though, the drop in commodities prices made by the global recession hit Russia harder than most other major economies. The state statistics agency recently said the economy declined 10.9 percent in the second quarter compared with a year ago, and the state finance minister predicted inflation could hit 14 percent in Russia this year.

That means the monthly pension many elderly Russians receive — some less than $300 a month — doesn’t go as far in covering food, rent and utilities, let alone emergencies.

“If you don’t have private money, if you’re living off of a pension, in this country,” Snyder said, “you can find yourself not able to get necessary medicine.”

Snyder sits on the board of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, which helps administer the SOS Program in Russia through its Hesed Welfare Centers.

The Hesed program is a Jewish community building effort where welfare clients become trained volunteers who in turn help other clients by bringing them food, offering home care and running day centers for the elderly. JDC created the Hesed program in 1993, five years after being invited back to the former Soviet Union after a 50-year hiatus.

During those five years, the Soviet Union collapsed, forcing a transition from a fully socialized system to a public-private model, leaving a vacuum in many areas of care.

The Hesed program soon expanded to thousands of communities across Russia, including Yekaterinburg, a city of around 1.3 million people roughly 1,000 miles east of Moscow. Around 15,000 Jews live in the city and 40,000 Jews live in the surrounding region, where the manufacturing sector represents the largest segment of the economy.

Sometimes, though, the Hesed welfare centers aren’t enough.

The Snyder SOS Program provides small, one-time funds to people with emergency medical issues or home repair needs. It might be a few hundred dollars to buy diabetes medicine or to continue chemotherapy treatment; a new gas stove, or a refrigerator.

One client didn’t have clean drinking water because of rotted plumbing. When the Snyders visited, the woman brought out a box of items paid for by the sos fund: a showerhead, a spigot and other piping related items.

“She had tears in her eyes,” Snyder said.

Although the SOS program helps anyone in need, it focuses on the elderly. In Russia, the elderly is a misleading term: the average life expectancy for men is around 60 years old.

Snyder described a woman in her 50s who would be forced to spend her entire monthly pension on medical services without extra money from the fund. The woman made an impression on Snyder because she taught herself to speak perfect English.

“She had osteoporosis at the age of 50, and she was almost blind,” he said, “but she spoke beautiful English.”

In late 2008, the SOS program gave nearly $32,000 to 112 people. The stories are simple, but numerous: a new washing machine for a family of six living in a two-bedroom apartment, eye surgery for a former book store clerk and librarian.

The Snyders travel to Moscow and the Ural Mountain region every few years on these fact-finding missions: to meet the beneficiaries of the program, to thank the workers who implement the funds and to learn what needs still exist in Jewish communities abroad.

These trips inspire complicated emotions: joy in seeing the fruits of the program, exhaustion from traveling, sadness in witnessing misery and gratitude for the comforts of home. Snyder noted that his father chose to immigrate to North America, not Ukraine.

With a different decision, “I would have been brought up living as a Jew in these countries,” Snyder said, “and faced with the issues that these people are faced with.”

The Snyders feel frustrated by increasing needs at a time of declining funds.

“What’s happened in the world, and especially in Russia: The needs have dramatically increased,” he said. “Believe me, we don’t have enough money to supply all of those needs. We’re just catching the people that apply for our loans.”

Like most nonprofits and nongovernmental organizations, the JDC is facing “severe funding problems,” said Snyder.

“They’re making Sophie’s Choices every day of the week over here,” he said.

He suggested similar challenges at home. After starting the program in Russia, the Snyders set up a similar SOS Program in Pittsburgh through the Jewish Family & Children’s Service.

Seeing the situation in Russia first-hand gives Snyder information to bring back to Pittsburgh, he said. For the past four years, Snyder has chaired the United Jewish Federation’s Israel and World Jewry Commission, which allocates a portion of the capital campaign for overseas needs.

“I believe this provides me with credibility … I’m experiencing it in some small way,” he said about the trips, which the Snyders pay for out of pocket.

Despite the stories of hardship and illness, which he tells with a catch in his voice, Snyder insists Russia is a hopeful country for Jews. After decades of oppression, Judaism is experiencing a rebirth, he said. Communal life is improving as attendance at Jewish community centers and summer camps rises and more people happily indentify as Jewish.

Walking in the streets, he said, “I see optimistic people. This is not a depressing place.”

When the Dancing Slows and the Music Stops...

In this briefing from Steve Schwager, CEO, he shares a letter from a JDC Board Member that speaks to one of the great challenges JDC faces and the tough choices that must be made in light of the current economic climate.

As it is almost the end of July, we are busy producing a draft 2010 budget for the Board to consider at its October meeting. In the absence of new funds, there unfortunately will be significant reductions in our Jewish Renewal activities. There will also be significant changes in our welfare activities. It will be necessary to shift emphasis in most of our welfare programs to simply providing the basics, such as food, clothing, and homecare. The socialization component of the program regrettably will continue to shrink as we close buildings in smaller communities and save funds by reducing or eliminating soup kitchens and Warm Homes. While each of us on staff is acutely aware of what these programs mean to elderly Jews, we see no alternative without additional funding.

I received a very poignant letter from JDC Board member Etta Zimmerman, which she titles “When the Dancing Slows and the Music Stops”. I share it with you here:

I have enjoyed many trips throughout Central and Eastern Europe and the FSU; usually the highlight for me is joining a senior social event. Somehow the bittersweet home visits and all of the budget challenges seem to slip away. The joy I have experienced with the elderly through music and tasty cookies illuminates the unique essence of what JDC provides. When the communist block crumbled, the circumstances in which the Jews lived were often dire. JDC’s mission, especially in the FSU, evolved into nourishing more than just the bodies of the elderly, but also to mending the souls. Warm Homes were established, Yiddish clubs were started, and people would enjoy the company of fellow clients over a warm meal in a kosher soup kitchen. The consistent effort to provide essential services with ultimate attention to the recipient’s dignity captures the very essence of JDC.

I have held hands and embraced seniors from St. Petersburg, Russia to Zaporozhye, Ukraine and many locations in between. Often times I enter a room at the Hesed or JCC filled with seniors and I sing or dance with them. I have seen sad faces transformed by a familiar tune on a tired piano. I have watched slumped over spines somehow straighten and push themselves up with canes to sway to a familiar childhood song. I have seen tears of joy and sorrow flow from cloudy eyes. How rewarding it is to see these otherwise lonely people have each other, combined with a bit of joy. At Yesod in St. Petersburg, I sang and held hands with an 80-plus-year-old woman who smiled at meeting an American; Sofia told me she was sad because her friend died and she almost did not come to the Senior Club, but she was glad she had because now she was no longer so blue. Earlier that day, my husband, Raymond, and I came upon an organized senior “match making” service. They wanted to enter Raymond in the pool of candidates since there are fewer men than women! We nicely explained Raymond was not available for a “match”. So they continued with their activities, knitting blankets and clothing for young children, and were completely invigorated by each other’s company.

In Zaporozhe I danced with Yankie, who is in his 90s and visually impaired, but he has enough sight to brag to his friends that he got to dance with a young blonde girl! I have sung with Valentina, a woman whose only socialization occurs once a month when the HesedMobile drives her from her shtetl to Zhitomir. I have hugged Rosa in Kiev who was happy to meet a “young” lady and she sang beautiful Yiddish melodies for me. I have been told special and very personal stories by Holocaust survivors in Dneprozherzhinsk, because I tell them I am the child of a survivor and so we share a commonality. Many of the seniors share their lives, stories, smiles, and meager snacks. The dignity afforded these frail seniors through these social activities is nothing short of life-sustaining. As always, JDC goes beyond meeting rudimentary needs—a quality that distinguishes this organization from so very many others. These profound and simple acts of loving kindness (G’milut Chasadim) have been part of modern Jewish history. If you ever met anyone who was in a Displaced Person’s camp, they always will remember a liberation dress, a seder, the extra care given by the “great organization” that served warmly, selflessly, and consistently—the Joint.

So I must ask, when we gently say we are shifting services in these challenged times, do we chronicle the short-term or long-term effect of reduced visits to JCCs and Warm Homes or closed soup kitchens on the frail and socially isolated Jewish elderly? Somehow the budget comparisons do not illuminate this issue, because it is so very difficult to chronicle. We know that the population is aging, often requiring a “shift” in services from hot meals to home health care. But what can we say about the widower who will not see friends because the soup kitchen has shut down? Will this lead to social isolation and ultimately bring about depression and poor health? What about the 90-year-old woman who will not get to visit the Warm Home because her residence is in the periphery and the transportation costs are no longer in the budget? How will she celebrate her life—alone with the occasional food or health products delivered at less frequent intervals? Will the seniors who gather in Kharkov on Sunday afternoon be alright when the music stops and when the cookie plate is empty?

JDC has been proactive in working within these very challenging budgetary times. The professionals in the field often must feel as though the weight of the world is upon them. None of these decisions are easy and these challenges are often difficult to quantify. But the essence of what distinguishes JDC is the dignity factor, and hopefully we can stay the course in spite of our current challenges. We can and must keep the socialization of the seniors as part of the very sustenance that is JDC.

Irv and I believe that with your help, we will find the money needed to nourish the body and the soul as JDC has always done. There simply is no other way. We owe it to these elderly Jews who have so little and have suffered so much.

Hibuki Dolls Making a Difference for Children Living in Ashkelon

In Israel JDC works to create innovative programs that help the country’s most vulnerable citizens in coping with their daily lives, as well as to provide support in times of crisis or trauma. In the aftermath of Operation Cast Lead, Israel’s military operation in Gaza in January 2009, JDC’s impact can be felt in its trauma relief programs designed to aid children living under fire, including Hibuki, (Hebrew for Huggy doll) Trauma Intervention. These emergency response programs are possible due to the support of our federation partners across the United States.

The barrage of Kassam rocket attacks over Ashkelon and southern Israel struck the physical, emotional and economic chords of the region, causing long-term damage to the most vulnerable populations. While the region is no longer in survival mode, the war-related trauma symptoms are now surfacing with great speed amongst the region's elderly, children, economically weak and disabled residents.

Thanks to the ongoing assistance provided by JDC’s proven emergency programs in Ashkelon, and in partnership with The Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore, these residents have come to rely on JDC’s expertise in child trauma relief, emergency management, community building and economic development as they recover.

As part of the Children’s Trauma Relief program, JDC introduced its Huggy Doll Trauma Intervention in Ashkelon. Known as ‘Hibuki’ in Hebrew, this entirely original intervention was created for children from Northern Israel who were in desperate need of therapeutic assistance, having been traumatized from the ongoing rocket attacks coming from Southern Lebanon. Once proven as an effective model, it was then introduced into the Southern conflict region to help yet more Israeli children suffering the outcomes of warfare.

The secret to the program's success is that it alleviates children's trauma and anxiety by transferring the therapeutic responsibility to children themselves. Using a Huggy Doll – a stuffed animal with Velcro strips on its long arms, which can 'hug' the child in various ways – as a focus, it employs self-help methods which empower children and reduce their feelings of helplessness.

(Photo from Focus on Ashekelon)

To see more photos, click on the picture above to visit FOCUS ON ASHKELON, a blog highlighting the The Ashkelon-Baltimore Partnership in Israel.

JSC Volunteers Learn Life Lessons of Tolerance and Unity from Righteous Gentile

Several months ago, newly wed Dina and Sol Adelsky, a young married couple, returned to the former Soviet Union—the area that their parents emigrated from—as JDC Jewish Service Corps (JSC) volunteers serving the local Jewish community of Odessa. As the University of Michigan graduates grow accustomed to life and work in Odessa, they start by visiting some of the clients of the JDC-supported Hesed welfare network—an eclectic group of the world’s neediest elderly, whose backgrounds can sometimes come as a surprise.

“The interesting part is that on our visits to the elderly, we sort of assume the person we are spending time with is Jewish since they are Hesed clients,” Dina explains. But visiting the home of Irina Ivanovna Yegorova, Dina and Sol learned why this special non-Jewish woman receives vital JDC aid.

Irina is 88 years old and lives alone in a communal apartment. She has been officially recognized by the State of Israel as a Righteous Gentile for her selfless deeds during the Holocaust. As the war raged on, she and her mother hid Irina’s Jewish friend in their house. When the officers came, they instead took Irina Ivanovna to the labor camps. Irina’s friend spent the duration of the war living with Irina’s mother and survived because of their bravery. When Dina and Sol asked Irina why they took her instead of her friend to the concentration camp, Irina simply said, “No, that is just what happened,” as if responding to an unasked question.

Sol elaborates, “She doesn’t want to blame her friend for the time she spent at the camps.” While the young couple expresses that meeting Irina was personally inspirational and uplifting, they have also come to gain valuable insight into their new home from this woman’s moving tale.

“During the Holocaust, many Jews were killed or exposed to the soldiers by their Ukrainian neighbors. Odessa, however, is unique in that it is a city characterized by dozens of ethnicities living together peacefully,” Dina explains. “Many of the elderly we meet emphasize that this is a city of tolerance and unity. Irina embraced this tolerance wholeheartedly in saving a Jewish life during the Second World War.” Now this atmosphere of unity extends to the 25 Righteous Gentiles living in Odessa by including them in the services for the Jewish elderly offered by JDC. Irina receives a range of assistance that makes living each day a possibility for her: a homecare worker that comes to her apartment to help clean, arrange things, and do shopping; a delivery of food packages twice a month; an allowance of money for medication, and more.

But this life-sustaining support is in danger of being eliminated since restitution funding sources deem that Righteous Gentiles cannot be considered Nazi victims, meaning that these individuals may not receive funds alotted for victims of Nazi terror. Instead of stripping Righteous Gentiles of their services, JDC continues the search for local donors to replace those funds, so these desitute elderly who risked their own lives to save Jews can continue receiving the same services as their Jewish compatriots.

In the meantime, Dina and Sol continue on their mission as JDC Jewish Service Corps volunteers. They visit elderly Hesed clients in their homes, engage young and often vulnerable Jewish families in community life through JDC’s Jewish Family Services, teach English to youngsters at the Mazel Tov early childhood development program, and work with college-age students on Jewish renewal and volunteerism programs.

JDC in Southern Israel Following the Conflict in Gaza

Update from Jerusalem

From Arnon Mantver, Director of JDC-Israel

Shalom all,

While you are celebrating the inauguration of your 44th President, we are (cautiously) celebrating a ceasefire. News photos of soldiers leaving Gaza, many of them for the first time in 15 days, are encouraging. Yet the arrangement is fragile. We hope the missile fire is over for good but must be prepared for any eventuality.

Back to School
Perhaps the strongest sign of normalization is the re-opening of schools in the South. As children return to the classrooms, school staff will likely discover a range of fears, emotional issues and trauma which need to be addressed.

Last year JDC introduced a program in Ashdod which trained the city's educational leadership to do just that. Two clinical psychologists have trained teachers and guidance counselors to identify stress and have given them a toolbox of programs to reduce the stress. Now, schoolchildren in 20 elementary schools throughout Ashdod will have the help they need from day one back at their desks. A similar program in Ashkelon certified 18 senior educational professionals as specialists in dealing with children-at-risk and trauma issues. The "Havens of Calm" and "Chibuki" programs will also be continued and expanded.

Moving at the Speed of Crisis
In a previous email I detailed two new JDC-Israel programs which were designed for the current crisis: "To 120" and Virtual Marketing for Sderot small businesses. I'm pleased to provide the following update:

"To 120": In the two weeks since the war began-- in conjunction with the Ministry of Welfare-- we have hired and trained 125 community workers in the cities within missile range. Each of these workers has already been in touch with 120 elderly and/or disabled individuals, ensuring that they get adequate food and appropriate medicines, home repairs if required, and any other type of assistance they may need. This means that 15,000 vulnerable people have a personal helpline during this ongoing crisis.

Businesses: 50 small business owners from Sderot are already receiving mentorship to help them establish an online presence for their businesses which will enable them to reach out to customers outside the region. The first websites should be operational within a month.

Give and Take
JDC-Israel is in the business of helping vulnerable populations. But some of these populations are capable of giving back as well. When JDC-Israel became a partner in establishing a network of over 30 centers to help young adults -- primarily immigrants -- we demanded that the young adults being helped also volunteer in their neighborhoods and assume leadership roles in their communities.

These young adults, who receive assistance in accessing higher education, finding jobs and integrating into Israeli society, exceeded all our expectations during the recent crisis. Young adults from Centers in Ashdod, Beer Sheva, Kiryat Gat, Netivot and Sderot have been making shelters usable, helping parents of disabled children, staffing municipal hotlines, running activities for children in shelters, bringing food and medicines to elderly in shelters and much more.

Yesterday, the senior staff of JDC-Israel went to Ashdod for a day of meetings and site visits to a large city which faced a new and difficult reality of missile fire during this war. I'm very pleased that Charles Ribakoff, newly appointed Chair of Ashalim sub-committee, joined us. Watch for my next update for details and photos.

Hoping for a real, lasting cease-fire,
Arnon

ISRAEL CRISIS UPDATE

Update from Irv Smokler, JDC President and Steve Schwager, Executive Vice President:

January 16, 2009

The current situation in the Gaza border region and beyond underscores for us how critical JDC’s partnership is to the citizens of Israel, especially when they are under fire. Thousands of elderly, children and youth at risk, vulnerable immigrants, and people with disabilities throughout the southern conflict zone continue to benefit from JDC programs that were in place well before the crisis, as well as expanded services currently being implemented to address new urgent needs.

We share with you below a personal report written by Judy Amit, JDC’s Chief Operating Officer, during her trip to Israel this past week:

The feeling in Israel today is very different than it was during the Second Lebanon War in 2006. First and foremost, there is a feeling that the Government is in control, that responses and services are better coordinated than in the past, and that residents in the south are receiving better care than was immediately available a couple of years ago.

But that’s not to say that all is well. Since 2001 more than 10,000 rockets have been launched into civilian populations in southern Israel, more than 7,000 falling on Sderot alone. The day-to-day fear of living under rocket fire has been tremendous, taking its toll on both children and adults. It is a situation that is unfathomable if you have not personally experienced it. Today this rocket fire has spread to a 25-mile radius and includes Ashdod, Ashkelon, Be’er Sheva, Netivot, and many additional settlements in the south, impacting close to 1 million Israeli citizens.

JDC Participates in UJC Leadership Solidarity Mission to Southern Israel
Yesterday I had the opportunity to participate in the UJC Leadership Solidarity Mission to Ashkelon and Sderot. Prior to leaving Tel Aviv, we received security instructions as to what to do if there was a Red Color alert siren: when driving within the 25-mile rocket range we were not to use seat belts, which would hamper our getting out of the car quickly. These instructions were a true reality check.

During a JDC briefing in Ashkelon, we got a small glimpse of the uncertainty of life in the conflict zone: the Red Color alert siren sounded and we had 45 seconds to evacuate the room and walk down two flights of stairs to safety in a bottom stairwell made of reinforced concrete. We managed with relative ease, but imagine a child, an elderly individual, or a disabled person having to take cover in this time.

Sderot residents have a mere 15 seconds to find a safe place, either in a bomb shelter or behind a concrete wall. You can read about this, you can see pictures or watch it on TV…but unless you experience these critical moments firsthand, you have no idea what it feels like. It was a sobering experience.

Help is Just a Call Away for Members of JDC’s Supportive Community in Ashkelon
At the Supportive Community for the Elderly in Ashkelon, where 700 seniors are able to live independently at home because of the many services and the personal care they receive from a JDC-trained “Community Parent.” I asked a couple in their late 70s what they did when they heard the Red Color alert siren the day before. “We just went into the bedroom [a room with only one window; they don’t have a wall of reinforced concrete], sat down on the bed with a blanket over our heads, and waited”—until they heard the bomb exploding near by.

We visited the home of Ovadia—an elderly gentleman who is partially blind, hearing impaired, and has very restricted mobility. A Grad missile had landed close enough to Ovadia’s home to blow the garden doors off of their hinges and Peter, his “Community Parent,” repaired the door for him. When asked what he does when the siren sounds, Ovadia responded, “What can I do? I sit in my chair and pray!” Ovadia described his “Community Parent” as “my security, SOMEONE to rely on, a person who cares about us, and a friend to cry with.”

But what about the elderly and disabled who are not part of the Supportive Community and don’t have a Community Parent to rely on?

That personal care—the “SOMEONE for those who do not have anyone”—is exactly the premise of 120 Strong, an initiative of the Israeli government in partnership with JDC that is assigning caseworkers to each and every elderly or disabled resident within the 25-mile fire zone.

Commitment and Concern in Sderot
In Sderot I visited a school where JDC operates “Havens of Calm,” one of a series of trauma relief programs that JDC has been implementing for children in schools and kindergartens. What impressed me most was the dedication of the principal and the therapists to try and bring some semblance of normalcy into their own personal lives and to the 180 children that they teach and treat.

The principal shared his concerns regarding the fortification of the school. “All schools in Sderot have been reinforced to withstand the rocket fire of ‘Kassamim’ but not the fire of the ‘Grad’ missiles,” he explained, which are a more sophisticated rocket with a greater range. If Grad missiles fall on Sderot, the principal will have to close the top floor of the school.

I left the south of Israel in the late afternoon in a local Sderot cab heading for Tel Aviv, and once again I was given instructions what to do if there was an alert. As we drove out of rocket range from Gaza, I felt the tension leaving my body—but I could not forget the people that I had left behind.

We were very moved by Judy’s report and grateful that because of our history and expertise in Israel, we can immediately and effectively implement programs and strategies when the need arises.

JDC Supports Sderot Residents During Gaza Crisis

TZEVA ADOM - CODE RED SIREN: Drawings by the Children of Sderot and JDC's Response to Trauma

A recent study shows that one in three children living in Sderot suffers from post traumatic stress:

From Haaretz.com:
January 17, 2008
by Mijal Grinberg and Eli Ashkenazi, Haaretz Correspondents

Between 75 and 94 percent of Sderot children aged 4-18 exhibit symptoms of post-traumatic stress, says Natal, the Israel Center for the Victims of Terror and War.

Natal's study, set to be released in the coming days, was based on a representative sample. The study found 28 percent of adults and 30 percent of children in Sderot have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The study was conducted by Dr. Rony Berger, Director of Natal's Community Services Department, and Dr. Marc Gelkopf, with the assistance of pollster Dr. Mina Tzemach.

The town of Sderot and the Western Negev as a whole have been subject to a barrage of rockets launched by Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip for over seven years.

Code Red Drawings by Sderot Children
When asked to talk about their feelings due to the violent Kassam rocket attacks perpetuated on their town every day, the children of Sderot displayed enormous emotional stress through their words and drawings.

By Noga in 5th Grade

When there is Code Red I feel helpless
because I know I don’t have many options
to be saved. Our three story house is made
of plaster and I live on the 3rd floor.
When I hear the alert, my heart drops to
the floor.

“Kids are under such stress that in some instances they cannot envision themselves within this horrific reality” - Tali, Therapist

JDC Working to Help the Children Living with Trauma
With the generous support of Jewish Community Federations across North America and UJC Israel Emergency Campaign, JDC is helping the children of Sderot and its surrounding communities with several responses:

Chibuki (Huggy Puppy)
Young children become "mini-counselors" to a huggy puppy, allowing them to express all their own fears and anxieties by acting as if the feelings belong to the puppy. By caring for their huggy puppy, kids transfer their fears to Chibuki and are better able to cope with their anxieties.

The Chibuki program was originally developed by a team of psychologists during the Second Lebanon War in 2006 then replicated in Sderot. The program will be expanded/re-activated in all kindergartens in Ashkelon, Sderot and the surrounding area as soon as schools are re-opened.

Havens of Calm
Special rooms in schools, called Havens of Calm, are set aside as a place for children to safely express their fears and anxieties about the situation. Children are able to come to these rooms during the school day, either individually or with their entire class as a 'field trip', and work with therapists in coping with life under the threat of missiles.

Code Red Song
(for more information and lyrics, please click on the link)
At the sound of the Code Red siren, children were becoming hysterical. Often times, they were paralyzed with fear and unable to run for shelter. JDC, working with teachers in Sderot, developed the Code Red Song to not only teach the children what to do when the alarm is sounded, but to make them feel comfortable with the fear and anxiety the alarm provokes within them.

JDC distributed cds of this uplifting children’s song to parents and teachers. Currently, the song is taught to school children and has quickly become a source of comfort for them.



JDC’s programs are supported primarily by contributions to the annual campaigns of the Jewish Community Federations throughout North America in partnership with United Jewish Communities (UJC)

JDC-ISRAEL: Update from Jerusalem

From Arnon Mantver, Director of JDC-Israel:
The Gaza War

Shalom all,
Yesterday an officer from the paratroopers was wounded very badly. He got married two days before he was called to fight in Gaza. This underscores the three "circles" of people who are really hurting in this war: the soldiers themselves; the parents, wives, siblings of the soldiers; and the residents living down south. We are praying for the first two groups and continue to work with our partners to bring comfort and care to the last group.

Easing the Trauma of the Children
The Chibuki program was devised during the Second Lebanon War to alleviate stress among pre-schoolers and was later replicated to Sderot and the surrounding areas. The young children become "mini-counselors" to a huggy puppy, allowing them to express all their own fears and anxieties by acting as if the feelings belong to the puppy.

We have re-activated the program for about 120 children who are currently attending pre-school in protected buildings or shelters. One of the psychologists which works with the program reported that the "graduates" of Chibuki jumped right into the play-therapy, explaining how they had been sleeping with Chibuki to keep him calm, had taught him to go toward a protected area when the "red alert" is sounded.

Those who received their first Chibuki took time to get to know him and to listen to his worries and fears. In one of the kindergartens, the teacher took the children and Chibuki on a virtual tour of the neighborhood, stopping at each child's home. The program will be expanded/re-activated in all kindergartens in Ashkelon, Sderot and the surrounding area as soon as school resumes and with the generous assistance of the UJC.

Corporate Philanthropy Leverages Youth Volunteerism
IDB, Israel's largest holding company, also boasts one of Israel's most active corporate Foundations. JDC works hand in hand with the Foundation on a number of key programs in the community, and also works to promote corporate philanthropy throughout Israel via Matan, Israel's version of United Way.

Supersol, Israel's biggest supermarket chain which is owned by IDB, launched an initiative which allows Israeli consumers to purchase a variety items at half-price and to have them packaged and sent to an Israeli soldier directly from their local supermarket branch. IDB asked JDC to activate AMEN youth volunteers to pack the boxes, address them and include personal letters from the sender. Because AMEN exists in 45 locations and includes more than 50,000 teenagers, it was easy to mobilize them quickly and efficiently for this program. More than 500 volunteers are in 40 Supersol branches getting the packages out to soldiers serving in Gaza and the number grows each day.

Other AMEN volunteers are providing activities for children in shelters, hosting children and youth from the south in communities in the Center and North of the country, collecting donations to create activity kits for children in shelters and providing warm clothing for soldiers.

The Federation Response
A group of Federation leaders was here in Israel on a solidarity mission this week under the auspices of UJC. Yesterday they visited JDC's Supportive Community for the Elderly in Ashkelon to see how this program – which was established long before anyone envisioned missiles hitting the city -- is helping elderly who live in their own homes to cope with the current crisis.

John Ruskay reported experiencing a "Red Alert" during the visit as follows:
"We were listening to our colleague, Dr. Yitzhak Brick, director of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee’s (JDC) programs in Israel for the elderly, explain how JDC has expanded its services, in partnership and at the request of Israel’s government, to serve the elderly during the war in Gaza. As Dr. Brick outlined JDC’s efforts to contact and identify the needs of every elderly or disabled Israeli person in Ashkelon and the other 25 cities and communities in the south, the sirens began. We immediately and quickly left the room and scurried down the stairs to protected areas in the basement. As we waited three minutes for the "all clear," a JDC staffer asked us to imagine what this must feel like for the elderly and disabled who can't leave rooms quickly — who can't get down those stairs."

It's very encouraging to us that the Federation leadership comes to Israel to experience and understand the situation here and how difficult it is for the most vulnerable populations which the Federations help via JDC. We are also extremely encouraged by UJC's $10M campaign for the South, a portion of which will enable us to expand the Supportive Community program to another 25,000 elderly in towns under attack.

Wishing for an effective resolution of the crisis and the speedy return of all IDF soldiers,
Arnon

The Three R's of JDC

According to Will Recant, Assistant Executive Vice President, JDC has a great elevator speech that captures the essence and importance of JDC's long-time mission of Rescue, Relief and Renewal of Jews wherever they may be.

JDC Brings Essential and Life-Affirming Care to Elderly and People with Disabilities

Innes and Levirana, Sderot residents, are both victims of recent rocket attacks. Yet, as their homes were not directly hit, it is unlikely that their stories will be told on the news. The trauma and pain that they experience could go unnoticed and untreated by the outside world.

Fortunately for these women, they are not invisible to JDC: they know that there is someone there who cares for them at all times. Innes and Levirana are members of two JDC programs in Sderot: the Supportive Community for the Disabled, and Supportive Community for the Elderly, respectively.

Innes, a fifty-something veteran Sderot resident, is physically disabled. She can only move around with the aid of a walker. Innes was wounded recently during a Kassam attack. Her home was not hit, but when the “Code Red” alert sounded, she darted for safety and fell. Subsequently hospitalized, Innes returned home a day later to the same apartment but with injuries and an extra layer of fear and concern for her personal security.

Levirana, 83, an immigrant from Ukraine and a Holocaust survivor, has lived in Sderot for 12 years. She has no family in Israel. When a Kassam recently fell in an open space adjacent to the public housing project where she lives, her home was damaged: windows were shattered, shutters were torn apart, and her air conditioning unit was wrecked, expelling liquids and fumes. The exterior apartment wall was packed full of holes and the external gas supply, pierced multiple times with shrapnel, had to be turned off immediately.

JDC originally designed the Supportive Community Program model to promote independent living among Israeli seniors, allowing them to age in place. In the past eight years, the model has been developed and adapted in two additional directions—to assist people with disabilities, and to offer upgraded emergency help to both populations during times of conflict. A comprehensive basket of services is provided to the elderly and the disabled. Central to the success of both programs is the ‘community parent,’ who acts as a case manager, constantly reaching out to members, checking their well-being, and ensuring that their needs are taken care of.

In Innes’s case, community parent Yaakov Shwartz was there to ensure that she was accompanied to the hospital and had what she needed upon her return home, such as food and help with daily chores. Yaakov was well prepared to help Innes, since checking in with his Supportive Community members after attacks is part of his daily routine.

For Levirana, it was Alah—community parent and fellow immigrant—who calmed and reassured this elderly woman, who sat paralyzed and crying uncontrollably. Then she arranged for local volunteers to come clear Levirana’s apartment, including cleaning up glass splinters and taping plastic across the bare window frames. Together with other JDC staff, Alah also coordinated the various agencies that needed to come in to evaluate the damage and helped ensure that the gas company quickly restored supply so Levirana could cook on her gas stove.

Yaakov, Alah, and other JDC Supportive Community staff in Sderot and across the country report that in 95% of cases, members share the difference the personal call or visit makes to their lives and that it gives them the strength to carry on.

With this knowledge, the Government of Israel, together with JDC, has initiated “120 Strong,” a program to offer immediate outreach and response to the elderly and the disabled in the conflict zone. Planned for three months or longer, 180 trained case managers will be mobilized to be responsible for cohorts of 120 people in the 25-mile radius of the crisis.

These case managers will responsible for addressing the individual needs of elderly and disabled residents in their charge. They will offer the essential personal care and attention that JDC’s Supportive Community experience has shown to be so life-affirming.

JDC Staff Help Ethiopian-Israeli Families Cope During Escalated Attacks

It had never occurred to Batsheva Tamano, director of JDC’s Atzmaut program in Sderot, that her work helping Ethiopian-Israeli families gain self-sufficiency would one day help her own family.

It became clear a few days ago, when, on her way out the door of her Be’er Sheva home to work, a siren went off signaling a grad missile attack, forcing Batsheva to detour to her family’s shelter. Waiting for the attack to end, she found herself using breathing techniques from trauma relief workshops she had herself arranged for Atzmaut participants, for whom life with these types of attacks is routine.

Now Batsheva is experiencing firsthand the trauma to the families whom she serves.

“Last night, as we were descending into the shelter, my son asked me a barrage of questions, ‘Why can’t I go to kindergarten? Are they going to kill us? Why do we need to go the shelter? Is our house weak? Will the shelter stop us from dying?’ shared Batsheva. “It broke my heart. I just tried to explain calmly that the shelter was more protected.”

But these trying times have only reinforced Batsheva’s commitment to empowering her Ethiopian-Israeli community. “It’s not easy when you are worrying about your family, but it gives me strength to know that I have to help those who need it more than I do,” she said.

Batsheva was particularly eager to get to work that morning: In addition to doing the regular check-in with program participants, most of whom had spent the last five days in the crowded local public shelter, she was seeing off 20 Ethiopian-Israeli families (54 people) for a respite trip to Eilat, arranged by the municipality.

Developed by JDC to aid the absorption process in Israeli cities with smaller Ethiopian-Israeli populations, Atzmaut works with families as a unit, preparing parents for employment, bridging parent-child communication gaps, and boosting children’s academic achievements. Atzmaut, which has been operating in Sderot for four years thanks to Israel Emergency Campaign funds from the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, is seen by the municipality as a central address for coordinating the needs of the city’s Ethiopian-Israeli community, and they contacted Batsheva the day before to organize a list of suitable families to participate in the excursion.

Preparing families for respites is just one of the support services that Batsheva and her staff have been providing to Ethiopian-Israeli families in Sderot since the attacks escalated. They have been working on rotation to look after children so that parents can go to work; arranging activities in shelters; connecting them to opportunities to leave the city for safe excursions; and working diligently to find an Amharic-speaking psychologist to help the adults in the community (children are receiving psychological support through the local trauma center).

“The rather chaotic atmosphere in the public shelters can be difficult for some of the adults to deal with,” Batsheva explained. “Although it’s safer for them to be there, some of the elders need quiet to deal with their worries so they just get up and leave even though they are not protected in their houses,” she added.

The following encounter from Batsheva on the morning described illustrates a common scenario in working with Ethiopian-Israeli communities living under fire:

“Before I went to the office that morning I visited the neighborhood’s public shelter. It was quite empty as most of the children and their parents had gone on a day trip to Jerusalem. A couple of women were still lying down. They were alone with a few young children.

I asked them where their husbands were. One said that her husband had gone to work but the other explained, with tension in her voice, that her husband David had dropped her and her children off and had gone home alone. She shared that she was worried about him as their home wasn’t protected.

As their home was on the way to my office I went into see David, a man in his 40s. I found him just sitting around. He had clearly returned home so he could deal with the situation in his own way. When I asked him what he was doing there since his family was in the shelter, he responded ‘I’m fine, what could happen’?

I couldn’t leave it like that. I said, ‘Don’t you realize you’re a role model for your family? Your home isn’t protected. Why aren’t you with them? What would you say if your children wanted to join you? If you are scared, share that with them, so they know its ok to be afraid, but you’re in this together’.

He smiled weakly at me. It was clear that he understood me but wasn’t ready to talk. We arranged to speak later…”

Batsheva’s work with people like David and his family is critical during crises such as this. Vulnerable in the best of times, Ethiopian-Israelis and other immigrants living in and around the conflict zone need the extra support JDC provides to cope during emergencies.