President and CEO of the Jewish Federation Michael Balaban and Co-Chair of the Board Gail Norry recently traveled to the border of Poland and Ukraine to meet refugees and aid workers as part of the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) delegation. They took several duffle bags (about 600 pounds) full of donations, ranging from toys to essentials to medical needs, and distributed them directly to refugees.

Learn more about their trip through this photo depiction of the journey, Balaban's first-hand account of the mission, this article in the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent, or an interview on Fox29 or CBS3. If you would like to make a gift to the emergency fund, please click here.

In November, the Government of Israel voted to rescue 3,000 Jews from Gondor and Addis Ababa, two war-torn cities in Ethiopia. The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) launched a $5 million national campaign, Operation Zur Israel, to help the olim make aliyah to Israel. The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia joined the initiative, and are grateful to Marcy Gringlas and Joel Greenberg, Seed the Dream Foundation, for providing a $60,000 matching gift, dollar for dollar to funds raised in our campaign. Thanks to this generous matching gift, we have proudly raised $200,000 towards this initiative to bring Ethiopian Jews home to Israel.  

“Our sages teach, kol yisrael arevim zeh bazeh, all of Israel are responsible for one another. In the midst of our fractured world, Ethiopia is undergoing a civil war with accounts of war crimes by all sides, a severe threat of famine, and rebels closing in on the capital. In response to significant concerns raised for our Ethiopian Jewish brethren, Jewish Federation's Emergency Response Committee determined that swift action was called for to save fellow Jews in harm’s way. Thanks to the generosity of our community, approximately 3,000 Ethiopian Jews who were disconnected from their families will now find refuge in the State of Israel. Am Yisrael chai, the people of Israel live!”
- Adam Laver, Emergency Response Committee Chair

To learn more about the campaign, or to donate, click here.

The modern-day Haman that we continue to face made this year’s Purim celebrations even more relevant and a cause for celebration. More than 1,500 community members celebrated together at the various Kehillot Purim programs.

The celebration was particularly meaningful for children who attend KleinLife’s Sunday Hebrew School. The school, established seven years ago with the help of the Jewish Federation’s Weinberg Fund, has many students whose parents are immigrants from the former Soviet Union, predominantly Ukraine. Over 80 children participated in the school’s Purim event, and money from ticket sales was donated to the Jewish Federation’s Emergency Response Fund for Ukraine. To see the celebration in action, click here.

With Yom HaShoah being observed later this month, the Jewish Federation continues to educate the community through Holocaust education and remembrance events. Check out what’s happening this April:

• Philadelphia Holocaust Memorial Ceremony, Behind and Beyond the Ghetto Walls – will be held on April 24 at the Horwitz-Wasserman Holocaust Memorial Plaza or Live Streamed on Facebook. If you are attending the event in person, join the Israeli American Council to walk together from the Rocky steps to the Holocaust Monument as part of "6 Million Steps, 6 Million Lives," an international effort

• Youth Symposium on the Holocaust – a new educational play inspired through the words and lives of Holocaust survivors shown across seven high schools in Greater Philadelphia

• Mordechai Anielewicz Art Competition – Students submit original and creative responses to Holocaust studies

Learn more about JCRC’s Holocaust education programming here.

Michael Balaban and professionals from JCRC recently met with Governor Wolf and other elected officials for a day-long meet and greet session. Our professional team thanked Governor Wolf for supporting the 2022 Spending Package, which includes important investments that the Federations fought for, including nonprofit security, Holocaust survivor services, Israel, health and education, communal life, non-profit support, and aid for Ukraine.

Featuring Rabbi-in-Residence Eric Yanoff of Adath Israel

Learn more! Register for an upcoming information session:

Virtual: April 6 at 12:00 p.m. or June 1 at 12:00 p.m.

In Person at a Private Home in Longport, NJ: July 15 at 10:00 a.m. 

jewishphilly.org/israel75mission