UJA Helps Israel Respond to Coronavirus
At the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, UJA allocated nearly $1 million in emergency funding, in addition to the tens of millions we give to Israeli partners as part of regular allocations. Now as the crisis continues and ongoing needs increase dramatically, UJA is providing an additional $3.5 million from our endowment.
Latest Allocations
1) Combating Food Insecurity: Our funding is helping Latet and Leket, leading organizations that provide food aid across the country, distribute food packages to 5,500 low-income households and nearly 2 million pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables to Israelis facing food insecurity. We’re also helping Amanina, a nonprofit leader in Arab communities in Israel, supply food packages to hundreds of families living below the poverty line in 7 to 10 Arab towns. UJA’s funding in this area will total $1.5 million. The money will be allocated as “challenge grants,” with the receiving organizations expected to raise $3 million in matching funds from Israeli philanthropy — in order to leverage UJA’s funding to increase the overall philanthropic support for the field.
2) Helping the “New Poor” and Small Businesses: Paamonim, one of Israel’s industry leaders in the financial consulting field, has seen demand for their services increase 50% as more Israelis lose jobs. We’re helping Paamonim provide financial consulting to Israelis who are among the “new poor.” We’re also providing funding to find creative solutions to help struggling businesses stay solvent.
3) Expanding Centers and Online Services for Young People: Our funding is expanding holistic youth support centers, currently in 50 Israeli towns, that provide services to children and teens in under-resourced communities who are facing mental health and academic challenges. The Israeli Association of Community Centers runs each youth center, which includes teachers, volunteers, and social workers. Our support will help open eight new centers across the country. We’re also supporting online services provide by ELEM, an organization that assists young people in distress, to help teens experiencing anxiety, depression, and abuse.
4) Keeping Israeli Cities Resilient: MAOZ is a network of hundreds of leaders from local Israeli municipalities. Our funding is expanding the number of cities MAOZ is working with, from 15 to 22, to help local government officials develop strategies that effectively manage public health matters. We’re also funding the Council on Volunteerism and Shachaf Foundation to mobilize volunteers across Israel to keep communities resilient.
5) Scaling Tech for Social Innovation: Hilma is a key player on Israel’s tech scene that uses apps and technology to respond to Covid challenges. One example: A digital platform that matches unemployed teachers with schools needing substitute teachers when educators go into quarantine. Our funding is helping Hilma launch a “scaling center” to take their products to a larger market, both in Israel and around the world.
Early on, we allocated nearly $1 million in emergency dollars to help provide:
1) Caring for the Caregivers: Our funding is supporting the Israel Trauma Coalition’s expanded efforts to provide psychosocial support for hospital teams, homecare workers, and more.
2) Leadership Command Center: MAOZ is a network of 600 leaders and professionals representing the full diversity of Israeli society. Our funding is supporting a command center, bringing the network together virtually to coordinate solutions to major challenges. For example, MAOZ has worked on remote learning for Israel’s children, better communication about the virus to the Haredi community, and finding quarantine solutions for the Bedouin in the Negev. You can learn more about MAOZ’s work here.
3) Coordinating Volunteers: The Israel Association of Community Centers is managing 30,000 volunteers serving diverse communities, including Haredi, Arab citizens, Ethiopian Israelis, and Russian speakers. They are especially active in lower socioeconomic locations. We’re supporting a hotline that connects vulnerable people — mostly the elderly, people with disabilities, and people who live alone — with a volunteer in their area. Volunteers can offer assistance, including purchasing food or medicine, and make connections to helpful resources.
4) Loan Fund for Nonprofits: We’re also supporting a low-interest loan fund through OGEN and the Jewish Agency for nonprofits that need cash and have an expected revenue stream as collateral.
Our partners are on the ground addressing coronavirus challenges with a priority to assist the elderly, people with disabilities, nursing homes, and people living in poverty. Here’s how:
Helping the Most Vulnerable
The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) is providing food, medicine, and a call center for virtual assistance to 100,000 homebound elderly people in 140 of Israel’s poorest municipalities. JDC is also working with Haredi and Bedouin community leaders to develop tailored responses to their community needs. In response to the rise in unemployment, JDC is helping with workforce development strategies for hundreds of thousands of Israelis who were laid off or furloughed.
Since the crisis started, our largest overseas partner, the Jewish Agency for Israel, has welcomed to Israel, and straight into quarantine, nearly 800 olim from dozens of countries, including Argentina, Brazil, England, Ethiopia, France, Russia, and Ukraine.
For Holocaust Survivors living in Amigour sheltered housing supported by the Jewish Agency, staff is working longer shifts while taking steps to keep residents safe. They are in constant contact with the families of residents to assure them their loved ones are in good care.
Emotional Support
The Israel Trauma Coalition (ITC) is preparing materials in Hebrew, Arabic, Russian, Amharic, and French that offer support for a range of audiences, including parents, caregivers, medical teams, and others. ITC is also staffing hotlines to provide emotional counseling.
Beit Ruth, a safe residence in the north of Israel for teen girls removed from their families because of abuse or neglect, has been designated by the Israeli government as an essential service. Beit Ruth remains open and continues to provide critical services and programs for the teens.
Other programs that we funded at the start of the coronavirus pandemic include:
Creating Connections
An initiative funded by UJA, Israeli Hope, supported by President Reuven Rivlin, is hosting an online story time. Israeli Hope strives to strengthen connections between diverse segments of Israeli society: secular Jews, Orthodox Jews, Haredi, and Arab citizens. For the first online story time, President Rivlin chose a popular children’s book that talks about the need to respect all people. You can watch the story time session with English subtitles here.
Helping the Helpers
The Nachshonim Association is a youth movement in Israel that reaches out to young Israelis on the margins. Our funding is helping support Nachshonim so they can provide child care for parents who are essential health care workers and required to be at their jobs.