David Harris
Successes of 2016: You Helped 2 Million People—By Debbie Brant
By Debbie Brant, 2017 Community Campaign Chair
December is here and the Federation’s 2017 Campaign has begun. As chair of this new Campaign, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your 2016 gift. You’ve had real impact on the Jewish community in Cincinnati, in Israel, and globally for an entire year. Thanks also to our over 400 volunteers, and our dedicated lay leadership, for their commitment, energy, and courage this year. They embody a thoughtfulness borne of expertise and belief in our mission, and I am proud to know many of you personally.
In total, in 2016, through our local and international partners, the Jewish Federation’s donors helped, supported, or educated over 2 million people worldwide.
Here are three stories of the 2 million you supported this year:
1. Holocaust survivors have difficulty in institutionalized settings, and do better in their own homes. Having survived Auschwitz, and lived a full life, Evendale resident Bella Ouziel now—at 92 years old—needs daily support. As of today: you helped Bella get the support she needs. She has daily help to visit her sick daughter, shop for groceries, attend her survivors’ Friendship Club, and other vital services.
2. Natalia Mogilyanskie is a typical teenager—but she barely has the necessities. She has to bring in freezing water from outside her home and heat it to wash her hair. She has often been sick through the bitter winters in Belarus. As of today: you helped Natalia and her mother get the help they needed. They now have new windows and a fixed roof. It’s no longer cold inside, and Natalia no longer gets sick in winter.
3. Twelve-year-old Bryce, a Cincinnati native, has challenges relating to kids his own age. Without an advocate to help him manage, he can’t be as successful at Camp at the J or Wise Temple’s religious school. As of today: Bryce’s long-hoped-for bar mitzvah is next month. You helped Bryce get the advocates he needs to be successful in religious school, and be a full and engaged member of our Jewish community. And mazal tov, Bryce!
Here’s four people you helped in Israel:
- You helped French Jews build new lives in Israel.
- You helped immigrants from Ethiopia, get settled in Israel.
- You helped Kibbutz Hannaton in Israel’s Lower Galilee become a “revitalized kibbutz, helping families like Sophie Rafalovitz’s.
- You helped Jerusalem’s most troubled teens with an on-the-job training center called Susan’s House.
So many more stories are out there: Ukraine, Argentina, Paris, Havana. It is hard to summarize such diverse work, global in reach but local and very individualized in impact. (I was honored to witness several programs firsthand recently; here’s a link the story of my Paris trip.)
However, I will hold onto the strength of these two numbers as we move into 2017’s community campaign:
- Globally, this year you have helped more than 2 million people.
- Locally, at least one of those 2 million is likely to be someone you know.
Strength in numbers. All of us, working together, is how we support and empower Jews everywhere. That’s what keeps the Jewish community strong. That’s why our volunteers can accomplish so much. And that’s why you are essential. So thank you.
From the Congregation and Community Mission’s success to our rating in the top 5% of charities, the Federation accomplished exceptional work this year.
That means we have a big challenge ahead of us in 2017, and I look forward to it. I am glad to honor such a strong foundation of accomplishment as we move forward.
Wishing you and your families a healthy, happy, peaceful New Year and beyond.
