American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee Inc

THE AMERICAN JEWISH JOINT DISTRIBUTION COMMITTEE (JDC) IS THE WORLD'S (CONT. ON SCHED. O) LEADING JEWISH HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE ORGANIZATION, WORKING IN MORE THAN 70 COUNTRIES AND IN ISRAEL.

SAVING JEWISH LIVES: RELIEF AND SOCIAL WELFARE PROGRAMS PROVIDE HUMAN SERVICES AND SUPPORT TO JEWS IN NEED IN COUNTRIES AROUND THE WORLD. SERVICES ARE PROVIDED TO THOSE INDIVIDUALS THAT MEET CRITERIA RELEVANT TO THE LOCAL ENVIRONMENT, SUCH AS POVERTY AND INCOME LEVELS, THE EXISTENCE OR LACK OF AVAILABLE SOCIAL SERVICES WITHIN A COUNTRY, AND CONSIDERATION FOR PHYSICAL MOBILITY, DISABILITIES, AND UNIQUE CIRCUMSTANCES. PROGRAMS INCLUDE: FOOD AND NUTRITIONAL SUPPORT DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES HOMECARE MEDICAL SERVICES, EQUIPMENT, AND MEDICINES EMERGENCY GRANTS (CONT. ON SCHED. O) UKRAINE CRISIS:IN 2022, JDC RESPONDED TO THE CONFLICT IN UKRAINE, WHICH REQUIRED INCREASED EMERGENCY HUMANITARIAN SUPPORT WORK IN THE COUNTRY, IN NUMEROUS EUROPEAN BORDER COUNTRIES HOSTING REFUGEES, AND OTHER POST-SOVIET NATIONS IMPACTED BY THE CRISIS AND GLOBAL INFLATION.JDC ACTIVATED ITS PREEXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE IN UKRAINE (INCLUDING ITS SOCIAL SERVICE CENTER NETWORK, JCCS, THOUSANDS OF JDC STAFF, SOCIAL SERVICE CENTER PROFESSIONALS, HOMECARE WORKERS, AND JDC-TRAINED JEWISH COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERS) AND PARTNERSHIPS WITH LOCAL JEWISH COMMUNITIES IN EUROPE AND ADAPTED THEM FOR EMERGENCY RESPONSE, IN WHICH THEY WORKED ON MULTIPLE FRONTS: IN UKRAINE, JDC PROVIDED ONGOING CARE TO MORE THAN 49,500 JEWS THE ELDERLY, POOR, DISPLACED, AND NEWLY IMPOVERISHED PEOPLE INCLUDING BASIC AND EMERGENCY ESSENTIALS LIKE FOOD, MEDICINE, WATER, HOMECARE FOR THE HOMEBOUND AND SICK AS WELL AS EVACUATION SERVICES. JDC AIDED 31,000 PEOPLE WITH WINTER SURVIVAL NEEDS, INCLUDING: WOOD, COAL, CANNED AND DEHYDRATED FOODS, SUPPORT FOR COVERING UTILITIES' COSTS, HEATERS, WARM CLOTHES, BLANKETS, SUBZERO SLEEPING BAGS, AND ELECTRIC BEDDING. JDC-SUPPORTED HESED SOCIAL SERVICE CENTERS AND JDC-SUPPORTED COMMUNITY SERVICE CENTERS HAVE BEEN CONVERTED INTO EMERGENCY WARMING CENTERS WITH GENERATORS FOR THOSE WHO DO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO HEAT OR ELECTRICITY. JDC HAS DELIVERED 800 TONS OF HUMANITARIAN AID INCLUDING FOOD, MEDICINE, AND OTHER CRUCIAL SUPPLIES TO JEWS SHELTERING IN UKRAINE AND TO THOSE WHO HAVE FLED TO NEIGHBORING MOLDOVA. JDC EVACUATED 13,000+ JEWS FLEEING TOWNS AND CITIES UNDER FIRE, ORGANIZING CARAVANS TO MAKE THE DAYS-LONG JOURNEY TO MOLDOVA AND BRING THEM TO SAFETY. ONCE THERE, THEY ARE PROVIDED FOOD, MEDICAL CARE, ACCOMMODATION, PSYCHOSOCIAL SUPPORT, AND CONNECTIONS TO THE LOCAL JEWISH COMMUNITY. THESE INCLUDE SPECIAL MEDICAL EVACUATIONS OF FRAIL, HOMEBOUND HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS, WHICH HAVE BEEN CARRIED OUT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CLAIMS CONFERENCE. TO DATE, WE HAVE EVACUATED 167 ELDERLY HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS IN RESCUE OPERATIONS.THESE ELDERLY ARE TRANSPORTED BY AMBULANCEIN DELICATE OPERATIONS ACROSS UKRAINE TO POLAND. AT THAT POINT, MOST HAVE GONE ON TO GERMANY WHERE THE CLAIMS CONFERENCE, TOGETHER WITH LOCAL JEWISH SOCIAL SERVICE AGENCIES, HAVE ARRANGED FOR THEIR LONG-TERM CARE IN NURSING HOMES. PROVIDED MORE THAN 40,000 REFUGEES WITH VITAL NECESSITIES, LIKE FOOD, MEDICINE, ACCOMMODATION AND, PSYCHOSOCIAL AID AS THEY CROSSED FROM UKRAINE INTO ROMANIA, MOLDOVA, POLAND, AND HUNGARY PLACES WHERE JDC IS OFTEN THEIR FIRST LINE OF SUPPORT. TOGETHER WITH LOCAL EUROPEAN JEWISH COMMUNITIES, JDC PROVIDED SUPPORT TO 12,000 JEWISH REFUGEES VIA THE LOCAL EUROPEAN JEWISH COMMUNITIES, INCLUDING LONG TERM INTEGRATION SUPPORT FROM HOUSING TO EDUCATION, EMPLOYMENT AND TRAUMA CARE, AND JEWISH COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION. FIELDED OVER 67,600 CALLS FROM JDC HOTLINES AND CALL CENTERS. JDC ESTABLISHED MANY OF THESE HOTLINES DURING THE PANDEMIC, AND NOW WE ARE LEVERAGING THIS EXTENSIVE SUPPORT NETWORK TO DELIVER LIFESAVING AID AND HUMAN CONNECTION TO UKRAINE'S JEWS. BEYOND UKRAINE: IN ADDITION TO UKRAINE, JDC CONTINUED TO WORK ACROSS THE FORMER SOVIET UNION ADDRESSING THE HUMANITARIAN NEEDS OF TENS OF THOUSANDS OF VULNERABLE JEWS AND BUILDING JEWISH LIFE. FOR MORE THAN THREE DECADES, JDC HAS DONE THIS NONPOLITICAL WORK ACROSS 2,000 LOCATIONS IN 11 COUNTRIES, FROM MOLDOVA TO RUSSIA, GEORGIA TO BELARUS, AND NATIONS ACROSS THE CAUCUSES AND CENTRAL ASIA. ASSISTANCE WAS DELIVERED THROUGH OUR NETWORK OF 64 HESED WELFARE CENTERS, SUPPLEMENTED BY A CORPS OF 7,000+ VOLUNTEERS, TRAINED AND DEPLOYED THROUGH JDC-SUPPORTED VOLUNTEER CENTERS ACROSS THE FSU. IN 2022, JDC PROVIDED OVER 75,000 OF THE MOST VULNERABLE JEWISH ELDERLY IN THE FORMER SOVIET UNION (FSU) WITH MUCH-NEEDED RELIEF AND WELFARE SERVICES. JDC ALSO MANAGED TO MAINTAIN CORE SERVICES (I.E., HOMECARE, FOOD, AND MEDICINE) AT APPROXIMATELY THE SAME LEVEL AS BEFORE DUE TO MAJOR OPERATIONAL EFFORTS ON ALL LEVELS, AND THE EXPANSION OF CERTAIN ELEMENTS (MAINLY FOOD AND MEDICINE). WE PROVIDED OVER 23,400 NEEDY ELDERLY IN THE FORMER SOVIET UNION WITH APPROXIMATELY 21.7 MILLION HOURS OF HOMECARE. AFRICA & ASIA:IN 2022, JDC CONTINUED TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF HUNDREDS OF THE MOST VULNERABLE ELDERLY AND POOR JEWS LIVING IN THE JEWISH COMMUNITIES OF MOROCCO, TUNISIA, TURKEY, AND INDIA BY ENSURING THEY HAD FOOD, MEDICAL CARE, COMFORT, AND, IN MOROCCO, A RENOVATED OLD AGE HOME.

GLOBAL RESPONSE & INNOVATIVE DEVELOPMENT (GRID) PROGRAM: THIS PROGRAM RESPONDS TO HUMANITARIAN CRISES AND NATURAL DISASTERS THROUGH EMERGENCY RESPONSE AND RECOVERY WORK FOR VULNERABLE POPULATIONS PROVIDING FOOD, WATER, MEDICINES AND SHELTER AS WELL AS PSYCHOSOCIAL SUPPORT, OPPORTUNITIES TO REGAIN THEIR LIVELIHOODS AND PREPARE FOR FUTURE CRISES. JDC ALSO CONVENES AND COORDINATES THE JEWISH COALITION FOR DISASTER RESPONSE, AN ALLIANCE OF OVER 40 JEWISH AGENCIES THAT RESPOND TO MAJOR GLOBAL CRISES AND MAJOR DISASTERS. IN 2022, GRID PROVIDED NONSECTARIAN MEDICAL AID AND PSYCHOSOCIAL SUPPORT TO MORE THAN 20,000 UKRAINIAN REFUGEES AND SUPPORT TO MEDICAL FACILITIES IN UKRAINE, INCLUDING THE DISTRIBUTION OF TELEMEDICINE DEVICES, TRAINING IN THEIR USE, AND CRITICALLY NEEDED WHEELCHAIRS AND CRUTCHES. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT: THESE PROGRAMS INCLUDE JDC'S RESEARCH INSTITUTES, OTHER TYPES OF RESEARCH STUDIES AND JDC'S INVESTMENT IN DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNOLOGIES AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS. ENTWINE: AN INITIATIVE OF JDC, IS A ONE-OF-A-KIND MOVEMENT FOR YOUNG JEWISH LEADERS, INFLUENCERS, AND ADVOCATES WHO SEEK TO MAKE A MEANINGFUL IMPACT ON GLOBAL JEWISH NEEDS AND INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN ISSUES THROUGH EDUCATION, LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, AND VOLUNTEER SERVICE.

INNOVATIVE SOCIAL SERVICES IN ISRAEL: JDC ASSISTS VULNERABLE JEWS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD. THIS MISSION IS CRUCIAL IN ISRAEL, WHERE A REMARKABLE ECONOMIC BOOM HAS NOT REACHED EVERYONE. JDC PROVIDES AID TO ISRAEL'S MOST VULNERABLE CITIZENS, INCLUDING UNEMPLOYED ISRAELIS, CHILDREN AT RISK, ELDERLY AND ISRAELIS WITH DISABILITIES. JDC USES A UNIQUE MODEL, WHICH MAXIMIZES OUR IMPACT. WE PROMOTE INNOVATION, RUNNING PILOT PROGRAMS TO DEVELOP AND TEST MORE PROMISING WAYS TO DELIVER SOCIAL SERVICES. IF A NEW IDEA SUCCEEDS, THE ISRAELI GOVERNMENT TAKES OVER THE PROGRAM AND IMPLEMENTS IT THROUGHOUT THE NATION. WE USE THE ACRONYM "DNA" TO DESCRIBE THIS (CONT. ON SCHED. O) APPROACH, SINCE OUR INVOLVEMENT WITH A PILOT HAS THREE STAGES: 1) DESIGN (I.E., COMING UP WITH A NEW IDEA); 2) NURTURE (I.E., TESTING THE NEW PROGRAM); AND 3) ACCELERATE (I.E., IF IT WORKS, SCALING IT UP AND HANDING IT OFF TO BE REPLICATED). IN 2022, JDC DIRECTLY IMPACTED MORE THAN 465,000 ISRAELIS JUST THROUGH ITS EMPLOYMENT, AGING, AND AT-RISK YOUTH PROGRAMMING. OVER 1,000,000 ISRAELIS BENEFIT FROM PROGRAMS ORIGINALLY DEVELOPED BY JDC THAT HAVE BEEN TAKEN TO SCALE AND ARE NOW OPERATED BY OTHER ORGANIZATIONS.IN ADDITION, JDC MADE DATA AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE ORGANIZATION AND OUR PARTNERS' NEW SOLUTIONS TO SOCIAL CHALLENGES, ADVANCING THE USE OF DATA TOOLS INCLUDING JDC'S OPTIMAL AGING DASHBOARD, WHICH THE ISRAELI GOVERNMENT ADOPTED IN A HISTORIC FIRST; THE MOOVIT APP, CONNECTING THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES TO ACCESSIBLE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION; AND A NEW HEALTH DASHBOARD THAT HELPED IDENTIFY HEALTH ISSUES AMONG MUNICIPAL RESIDENTS TO SUPPORT EARLY INTERVENTIONS AND PREVENTION MEASURES.

BUILDING JEWISH LIFE: JDC STRENGTHENS JEWISH COMMUNITIES IN THREE WAYS. FIRST, WE HELP BUILD JEWISH IDENTITY AND ENGAGEMENT AMONG JEWS WITH A VARIETY OF LEVELS OF JEWISH AFFILIATION THROUGH INCLUSIVE, PLURALISTIC PROGRAMS FOCUSED ON JEWISH CULTURE AND TRADITIONS. SECOND, WE NURTURE INSTITUTIONS AND TRAIN LEADERS, SO COMMUNITIES ARE EFFICIENT, TRANSPARENT, REPRESENTATIVE, AND (EVENTUALLY) SELF-RELIANT. THIRD, WE URGE COMMUNITIES TO CARE FOR THEIR MOST VULNERABLE MEMBERS. AS A RESULT, THERE ARE SYNERGIES BETWEEN OUR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND CARE MISSIONS: INDIVIDUALS ARE MORE LIKELY TO RECEIVE CARE AND JDC HAS LESS NEED TO PROVIDE IT IF VIBRANT LOCAL COMMUNITIES TAKE ON THIS RESPONSIBILITY. PROGRAMS FOCUS ON CAPACITY-BUILDING THROUGH EFFORTS TO SUPPORT THE CREATION AND MAINTENANCE OF JEWISH (CONT. ON SCHED. O) COMMUNITIES, TO STRENGTHEN COMMUNITIES BY BUILDING COMMUNAL PARTICIPATION, AND TO IMPROVE COMMUNITY LIFE. PROGRAMS INCLUDE: LEADERSHIP INITIATIVES & TRAINING DEVELOPING VOLUNTEERISM CAMPING AND RETREATS INFORMAL JEWISH EDUCATION (CLUBS AND OTHER ACTIVITIES) JEWISH TRADITION/RELIGION/HOLIDAY CELEBRATIONS JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTERS FORMAL JEWISH EDUCATION (SCHOOLS) EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES & MATERIALS (PUBLICATIONS, CURRICULA, E-LEARNING, WEB-RESOURCES, LIBRARIES, ETC.)COVID CONDITIONS CREATED BOTH A CHALLENGE IN THE NECESSITY TO SUSPEND IN-PERSON ACTIVITIES, AS WELL AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO INCREASE THE USE OF ONLINE PLATFORMS AND INNOVATE IN THIS SPACE. WE CREATED A WIDE RANGE OF CONTINUALLY UPDATED ONLINE CONTENT, AND SUCCESSFULLY LED THE ANNUAL CROSS-REGIONAL CONFERENCE ONLINE VIA ZOOM. ONLINE TOOLS BUILT CONNECTIONS BETWEEN DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES, AS LARGE ONLINE COMMUNAL EVENTS BROUGHT TOGETHER PARTICIPANTS OF DIFFERENT AGES FROM ACROSS GLOBAL COMMUNITIES. FURTHERMORE, THEY ENABLED US TO INCREASE OUR REACH TO NEW PARTICIPANTS WHO DID NOT PREVIOUSLY ATTEND OUR ACTIVITIES.