JDC (The Joint)

Shabbat Shalom from Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine! A group of young JDC volunteers recently delivered challahs to ten Jews in need for Shabbat, most of whom are elderly and have limited mobility. In addition to the bread, the families received tickets to an upcoming regional philharmonic performance. This program is part of the Shabbat Guest volunteer initiative that has helped isolated seniors in Zaporizhzhia stay connected to the Jewish community and observe traditions for more than two years. "This project allows me and my wife to interact with the young volunteers in our community, which is very important to us,” said Hennadii L., one challah recipient. “It helps us bridge the generation gap, as they help us understand them better and we, in turn, share with them the interests of people our age.”

For 26 summers, the JDC-supported Solomonika Jewish Community Center (JCC) in Dnipro, Ukraine, has organized a family camp designed to foster bonding, socialization with other families, and learning Jewish traditions. This year’s camp was named “Juvie Steitel” (town in Yiddish), and campers were divided into teams who spent the week creating miniature houses for a model community that reflected their values and traditions. They also participated in creative workshops, exciting field trips, engaging plays, and volunteer activities to strengthen the local Jewish community. The camp brought together around 50 families, including internally displaced persons (IDPs), new campers, and families from the city’s Jewish Family Service (JFS). The camp was particularly proud to host five participants from the “World on the Palm” project, which is dedicated to supporting the deaf and hard-of-hearing community. "We are grateful to all the organizers and participants of this wonderful family camp for the incredible emotions, creativity, and friendly atmosphere,” said one participant. “You make the world a better, warmer, and more interesting place!"

"There will be trauma for my whole life." Kyiv residents were just starting their week when rockets blasted through the skies on Monday, July 8th. Days later, they are still trying to make sense of this horrible attack. For Yevdokia P., 88, the bombing was a shock. "I was in the hall. A door fell on me. Now I can't get into my apartment because all the windows are shattered, there is glass everywhere." Thankfully, Yevdokia was not alone during the attack. She was with Alena, her selfless JDC homecare worker, who visits a few times a week, bringing Yevdokia food and care. After the attack Alena explained, "There are many people who suffered, many elderly who suffered. There is blood everywhere. This will be a trauma for my whole life." Yevdokia and Alena are some of the luckier ones. Two of Yevdokia's peers, JDC's vulnerable elderly clients, lost their lives. Though traumatized and in mourning themselves, JDC's staff in Kyiv remain focused on helping those who need it most – offering support to those who lost loved ones and helping clients and homecare workers whose apartments were damaged, with windows and doors destroyed in the blast, to rebuild. Staff from JDC's Trauma Support Center in Kyiv are reaching out to community members to offer counseling and other Trauma Support Center services. JDC's Volunteer Center also rushed into action – delivering water and other helpful items to those working to clear the debris at the Kyiv Children's Hospital. While our thoughts and prayers remain with those who are hurt and suffering, we want to take a moment to thank our dedicated staff, volunteers, and supporters who go above and beyond to care for Kyiv's Jews.

Despite growing fear and isolation amid rising antisemitism, European Jewish leaders and professionals are not seeking to emigrate, and they remain committed to their communities and strengthening engagement between Jews and Jewish communities. These are among the findings of the just released Sixth Survey of European Jewish Community Leaders and Professionals (https://bit.ly/3A2f0bc) conducted by JDC’s International Center for Community Development. This major survey provides an in-depth look at how the October 7th terror attack impacted shifting attitudes about antisemitism, communal safety, and other issues facing the European Jewish community. Several recent articles explore key findings and you can read them here: eJewish Philanthropy (https://bit.ly/3y9YxkK), JTA (https://bit.ly/4cPp9Xt), Times of Israel (https://bit.ly/4cUxFEs), and Haaretz (https://bit.ly/3Sos5lB).

A special two-week camp has recently taken place at the JDC-supported Hesed Hana social welfare center in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, welcoming more than 30 children aged 7 to 12, including internally displaced people (IDPs). The children — part of the Active Jewish Teens (AJT) Junior, a division of the JDC youth network in the former Soviet Union in partnership with BBYO — are attending classes, playing games, going on field trips, watching movies, and meeting with a therapist. Additionally, they are exploring Jewish life and traditions through the exciting theme of Marvel Superheroes, collecting "stones of Jewish value" each day. “I see how difficult it is for the current generation of children aged 7-12 in Ukraine to communicate and interact with their peers,” said Polina, the Hesed’s head of children’s programs. “The camp provides a space for children to socialize, make friends, and learn.”

“Jewish communities in Ukraine are very strong. The conditions we’re living in now are forcing us to survive, but we’ve gathered all our resources and all our people, and we keep going.” Veronika R. is a madricha (counselor) at JDC’s Superhero Camp in Ukraine’s Carpathian Mountains. Superhero Camp allows the country’s Jews to find respite and relief from the ongoing conflict, and Veronika — a Ukrainian Jew herself — is part of the team offering trauma support to internally displaced Ukrainian Jewish families. Watch the video to learn more.

Through leadership initiatives, like the LEATID Training Program for Community Leaders — annual seminars that bring together outstanding Jewish professionals from around the region — JDC invests in Argentina’s Jewish future. LEATID provides courses in management, fundraising, and leadership to ensure that Argentina’s local Jewish organizations have the resources they need to thrive. LEATID also partners with the Kaplan Leadership Initiative, a global JDC program that promotes and sustains Jewish life worldwide by training and supporting Jewish communal professionals. Learn more about JDC's work in Argentina: https://lnkd.in/e5fMvkHN

Shabbat Shalom from Poltava, Ukraine! Enjoy this traditional Shabbat song from one of the madrichim (counselors) who recently helped organize a virtual Shabbat for 45 homebound Jewish seniors through the city’s JDC-supported Hesed Nefesh social welfare center.

Nana Addo is the CEO of Forte Medical, a Ghanaian organization that provides access to quality healthcare using technology. Forte Medical is partnering with ImpactWell, an initiative of JDC and Ruderman Family Foundation that leverages sustainable Israeli-pioneered mobile and tele-medicine solutions to reduce illness and improve life expectancy in developing countries. We recently caught up with Nana in Accra, where he explained the incredible impact this partnership has already created. “Without ImpactWell,” said Nana, “we’d be so many steps behind.” Watch the video to learn more.

Sigmund Freud. Arthur Schoenberg. Stefan Zweig — all Jewish, all Austrian, and all examples of Jewish Austria’s magnificent legacy. And in partnership with JDC, Austria’s Jews are creating a future just as rich and lasting as this history. Looking back, it’s difficult to overestimate the artistic, intellectual, and spiritual influence of Austrian Jewry on global Jewish life — and global life at large. From the insights of Sigmund Freud to the music of Arthur Schoenberg, the philosophy of Martin Buber to the novels of Stefan Zweig, Jewish Austria has gifted its rich heritage to Jewish communities across Europe and around the world. JDC is a part of this story, too. During World War II, we were instrumental in spiriting Austria’s Jews to safety when Nazi terror threatened their community. Most of the over 17,000 Jewish refugees in WWII-era Shanghai fled Germany and Austria in 1938-1939, after the Nazi Anschluss. JDC provided essential support, working through local organizations such as the Committee for the Assistance of European Jewish Refugees in Shanghai, which was organized in 1938. And as World War II drew to a close, JDC mobilized its staff to meet a crisis of staggering proportions: helping tens of thousands of newly liberated Jews enjoy the fruits of freedom. By late 1945, more than 75,000 Jewish Holocaust surivors were crowded into displaced persons (DP) camps, many of which were in Austria. Conditions were difficult, but JDC stepped in, providing food, medicine, and spiritual support, as well as emigration assistance for DPs seeking a new life elsewhere. Learn more about JDC's work in Austria: https://lnkd.in/eQ-adeed 📷: Jewish community members celebrate Jewish life at a Havdalah service.