I hope everyone is managing in this heat. If we can help, please reply to this email. We appreciate those synagogues who have been serving as cooling centers.

Every year at this time I share information about our allocations to special projects in Israel. These are funds beyond last year’s Israel Emergency Campaign. And to be clear, no funding from the Jewish Federation goes to the government of the State of Israel or the Israel Defense Force.

We have been funding special projects in Israel for nearly 20 years, reaching all sectors of Israeli life. This year is a bit different as the war necessitates these smaller organizations play an even larger role in Israeli society. We are proud to offer our support to the following:

Feuerstein Institute works with students from the socio-economic periphery, special-needs children, and adults and elderly people with cognitive impairment. Using the Feuerstein Method, the Institute identifies a person’s learning profile, learning potential, and the process necessary to maximize that potential. We are continuing to fund “Aim Higher,” a program helping high-potential Israelis from the Ethiopian community and the socio-economic periphery pursue their goals in higher education. We will be supporting 20 students in their third year of university.

Israel Gay Youth (IGY) is the primary Israeli organization working with LGBTQ+ youth. We are providing for the short- and long-term mental and social needs of LGBTQ+ teens affected directly by the war in northern and southern Israel, including strengthening IGY’s mental health networks, providing immediate mental trauma-based assistance to teens, and opening therapy groups for teens.

Kfar Galim was established in 1952 as an educational youth village and today is a vibrant multicultural education institution and boarding school, offering unique study programs while maintaining a strong connection to the values of agriculture and labor. Its boarding school serves 320 students from around the country, ages 12-18, the majority of whom are from disadvantaged backgrounds and struggling immigrant families. The Jewish Federation supports five-day summer camps for children and teens traumatized by the war. Funds support room and board, therapeutic sessions with professional social workers, and camp activities.

Mabat equips Israel’s young adults of all identities with the tools and mindsets needed for life in a multicultural society. Mabat leads transformative programs on Israel’s college campuses to develop multicultural awareness, counter prejudice and racism, and promote diversity and coexistence on campus and beyond. It facilitates year-long dialogue programs and supports a growing community of young changemakers.

Neve Michael is a safe haven for over 400 needy children at-risk (ages 5-18 from all over Israel) whose biological parents can no longer care for them. The program provides sustenance, education, therapy, and a warm, caring, family-like environment for children from broken homes who have suffered physical, emotional, and/or sexual abuse. The petting zoo within the Emergency Crisis Center provides animal therapy for dozens of severely abused children each year.

Sahar provides 24/7 online free emotional support to anyone experiencing mental health distress. Trained volunteers, aided by mental health professionals, power a range of online mediums that prevent crisis escalation and suicide and save lives through collaboration with law enforcement and emergency services. Sahar fills an important role in public mental health by training non-professionals to deliver mental health first-aid against the backdrop of an overburdened public health system. We are funding Sahar’s Outreach Patrol, a revolutionary service that proactively seeks distress messages online and provides Web users with timely assistance and referrals that facilitate help seeking. Our support will increase the response capacity of Sahar’s Outreach Patrol by rapidly training dozens of new volunteers to power this novel service.

Tel Aviv Sexual Assault Crisis Center was the first such entity in Israel and remains the largest in its field. It manages over 12,700 crisis hotline calls annually and holds 20 customized support groups, serving approximately 23% of the Israeli population. The center facilitates 45 targeted programs: meeting the nuanced needs of survivors, raising awareness through educational outreach and sparking social change through advocacy initiatives aimed at shifting public discourse around sexual assault. Our funding will help the center expand its capacity to aid Haredi (ultra-religious) survivors and trainings/advanced courses for first responders.

Givat Haviva is the largest civil society organization in Israel, working to bridge the gap between the country’s Jewish and Arab citizens and facilitating the building blocks of an Israeli shared society. Its vision is anchored in principles of mutual respect, trust, pluralism, and intrinsic equality between citizens. It works to promote a prosperous, democratic society for all Israeli, one that strives for peace with its neighbors. Our capacity-building grant will provide tools for Givat Haviva's Jewish and Arab staff to promote understanding and create new programs going forward.

NACOEJ has worked for 40 years toward the advancement and full integration of the Ethiopian community into Israeli society and the lower and higher educational systems. The organization focuses on closing educational gaps and making quality education accessible to Ethiopian Israelis. It also seeks to create equal opportunities for social mobility and economic independence. Our funding is for NACOEJ’s educational reinforcement program for middle and high school students from the Ethiopian community living in Ashkelon and Netivot, providing classes in math and English for students who have been impacted by the war in Gaza.

Ohaley Kedar helps vulnerable populations in Israel. Its “Wheels of Giving” project recruits volunteers to repair damaged medical equipment, in particular wheelchairs, donated by the Israeli Ministry of Health.

Youth Futures is represented in 49 communities dedicated to guiding and empowering youth and families facing risk and exclusion across all sectors of Israeli society. Through a community-based mentorship model addressing various life domains, the program aims to assist children from Israel’s geographic and socioeconomic peripheries in overcoming challenges and realizing their potential. With approximately 450,000 at-risk children in Israel, Youth Futures focuses on preventing out-of-home placements and school dropouts by providing tailored, community-based solutions. Our funding supports Youth Future’s Family Space project, offering psychosocial support and stress management aimed at bolstering family resilience. The project reinforces coping mechanisms, parental authority, and relationship dynamics to bridge divides and enhance overall functioning.

Our community should be very proud of our role in supporting these initiatives.

Finally, on Sunday, July 21, please join the Jewish community as we march in the Portland Pride Parade! We are spot 101 and will be convening on NW Park between Couch and Davies. Please reach out to Rachel Nelson with any questions.

Shabbat shalom.