Christian-Jewish Group Donates $6.5 Million Israel's Poorest Families
JERUSALEM, Israel (March 4, 2010)—Contributions totaling more than $6.5 million were announced last week by Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, founder and president of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ), to help fund the urgent needs of thousands of families in Jerusalem and approximately 140 other cities around Israel.
The largest portion of the donation, $3.5 million, was presented by Rabbi Eckstein to Jerusalem's mayor as a way of fighting poverty among Jerusalem's neediest residents and building new self-sufficiency programs. The remaining $3 million will go to 140 other municipalities to maintain "urgent needs" funds to be used at the discretion of social workers who help to supply thousands of poor families with basic products and services. Funds will be distributed based solely on need regardless of race or religious background.
The global economic crisis, which resulted in drastic government cutbacks throughout Israel, also plunged thousands more Israelis into poverty. Local councils have been unable to meet the desperate needs of their poorest citizens. IFCJ's contribution will triple the available government funding to help fill this void.
Welfare workers encounter numerous requests from impoverished citizens who are in dire need of clothing, food, medication, dental care, baby care items, transportation to and from medical treatments, eyeglasses, and other essentials.
"When I saw a social worker use her own money to buy shoes for the child of a needy family that could not afford them, I decided to put an emphasis on grants for basic needs," Rabbi Eckstein said.
"These funds give immediate relief to Israel's most vulnerable citizens and provide for a range of needs—from a bus pass for a child who needs to get to school, to a hearing aid for a poor, elderly man, to kidney dialysis treatments for sick people who can't afford them, to a host of other needs," he said.
This is the seventh year IFCJ has supported an emergency assistance fund for cities and towns other than Jerusalem. With over $9 million donated already, more than 50,000 citizens across Israel have received emergency assistance. The aim of the program is to provide these families with the means to become financially self-sufficient and thus end their dependence on welfare.
In a recent letter to Rabbi Eckstein, Minister of Welfare and Social Affairs Itzhak Herzog said, "The activities of the IFCJ have been a great blessing and provide an important source of aid to the many needy citizens in Israel. Your efforts and good intentions help these individuals live with respect and dignity."
During a press conference at City Hall on Wednesday, Feb. 24, Rabbi Eckstein presented the check for 13.5 million NIS (shekels), or approximately $3.5 million, to Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat. Part of the donation will help to fund a "From Dependence to Independence" welfare program that includes support for job training, tutorial aid for school children, and workshops on strengthening the family unit and contributing to society.
Of the more than 140 Israeli municipalities throughout Israel that receive IFCJ support, Jerusalem receives the largest donation. Since 2000 when the program to aid Jerusalem's needy citizens began, IFCJ has donated more than $10.8 million to Israel's capital city, primarily due to the generous support of Christians in the United States and Canada.
Mayor Barkat spoke about the biblical values of charity and how the Bible states that the best charity is that which enables a poor person to become independent.
About half of the donation to Jerusalem's Urgent Emergency Needs Funds will be earmarked to support projects in the Ethiopian Jewish community, including the construction of a spiritual and cultural center in the capital.
In addressing the unique needs of the Ethiopian community, Mayor Barkat stated how the IFCJ has provided support to the Ethiopian Jews when other funding was not available. "For years this strong need has not been fulfilled, but now it is, thanks to IFCJ's donation."
"My family goes back many generations in Jerusalem," Rabbi Eckstein said. "It is my privilege and honor to live in Jerusalem. IFCJ wants to give the city and youth of Jerusalem a chance. And through the mayor and social workers, and IFCJ's generous donors—who are the real heroes—we know it will succeed.
For more information about the IFCJ municipal emergency fund programs, go to www.ifcj.org.
The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ), headquartered in Chicago and Jerusalem, was founded in 1983 by Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein with the vision of building bridges of cooperation between members of both faith communities and together supporting Israel and Jews in desperate need throughout the world. To date, IFCJ has raised two-thirds of a billion dollars to support programs aiding sick, elderly, orphaned and at-risk populations in Israel, the former Soviet Union, Ethiopia, India, Latin America, and Arab countries. For more information about IFCJ programs and projects, visit www.ifcj.org.
Originally published March 04, 2010.
