Now Accepting Applications: Young Pros Service Trip to Belarus

If you’re a young Jewish adult interested in a life-changing overseas service experience, we’ve got news for you!

Apply Now for JDC’s 2011-2012 Jewish Service Corps

’Tis the season! We’re excited to announce that JDC is now accepting applications for its 2011-2012 Jewish Service Corps (JSC) through March 15, 2011. This unparalleled fellowship is a year-long, paid, professional opportunity for recent college graduates and young professionals to directly engage with JDC’s global mission and to turn the Jewish value of responsibility into action through international service.

White House Blog Highlights JDC in Haiti

We are excited to share a White House blogpost recognizing JDC’s work in Haiti and our partnership with USAID (the US Agency for International Development). The post, penned by Joshua DuBois, Special Assistant to the President and Executive Director of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, follows the one year anniversary of the tragic January 12th, 2010 earthquake in Haiti.

Groundbreaking Agreement on Center for Disabled in Serbia

Last week, as the European Union (EU) ratified the United Nation’s Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities—the first time in history the EU has become a party to an international human rights treaty—JDC celebrated its own small victory promoting these rights in neighboring Serbia.

RIG Fellowship Inquiry Deadline: TOMORROW, 12/30

You may know–or may be–the next Ralph I. Goldman Fellow! If so, there’s still time to submit a letter of intent for this premier fellowship opportunity in global Jewish service with JDC, the world’s leading Jewish humanitarian assistance organization.

“Thank You, JDC” from Tirat HaCarmel

Four years ago in the aftermath of the Second Lebanon War, JDC – with the support of the JFNA Israel Emergency Campaign and others – launched its New Galilee Initiative, a broad endeavor to bring long-term strength, resilience and preparedness to Israel’s north.

Fleeing Ein Hod

We caught up with a group of evacuee families in temporary accommodation in Neve Yam who had fled the ahead of the fire that ended up burning their homes. We were impressed and moved by their hope and optimism despite all they had lost. One evacuee, Niv Horovitz, told us that they didn’t want to ask for help, “but sometimes you need to.” The goal isn’t just to fix the damage “but to make things better.”

Through one family’s story — see JDC’s impact

Here’s a video showing the dramatic impact of JDC’s Supportive Community for the Elderly program in Tirat HaCarmel in the fire emergency.

Heading towards Carmel Fires

We’re heading north to rendevous with our teams on the ground — as we pass the Hadera power station, an elongated brown smoke cloud is clearly visible over the Carmel range.

JDC’s Gideon Hersher on the Fireline in Tirat HaCarmel

JDC Receives Assessment from the Minister of Agriculture

We just spoke with the Shalom Simhon — Israeli Minister of Agriculture — he not only talked about the devastating impact of the fire on the communities of the Carmel, but the vital need and importance for support from Jewish communities abroad at this critical time.

34 Planes are dropping water and retardant on the fires through daylight hours

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JDC Participates in Emergency Meeting with Mayor of Isufiye

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The Mayor is telling us that that “entire physical and emotional and landscape has changed.”

JDC Supported Centers are Playing a Critical Role in Emergency Evacuation and Relief

We’ve just met with some of the remarkable leaders and volunteers at the JDC supported Young Adult Center of Tirat HaCarmel. These young folks went into immediate action on Thursday night as the fire intensified, heading into danger zones to rescue the elderly and others in need. Check out the video.

Physical Rehabilitation Clinic Dedicated for Haiti’s Amputees

Yesterday marked a tremendous stride forward for Haitian amputees and others severely injured by the earthquake: the dedication of a rehabilitation clinic and prosthetic workshop developed by JDC together with Israel’s Magen David Adom and Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer Hospital as well as the Haitian Red Cross and the HUEH (l’Hôpital de l’Université d’Etat d’Haïti). These modernized facilities are the first of their kind in Haiti.

JDC Remembers Kristallnacht

Today’s is a date not easily forgotten: November 9th, 1938 marked the beginning of Kristallnacht (the night of broken glass), the series of pogroms committed by Hitler’s stormtroopers and civilians alike against Jews in Nazi Germany and Austria. Jewish homes, stores, and synagogues were ransacked and destroyed, leaving streets filled with the glass that gives this event its name.

Jewish Learning Goes Global

This coming Sunday, JDC proudly participates in the Global Day of Jewish Learning, reaffirming its 20-plus year relationship with Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz and his bold mission to make key sources of Jewish knowledge accessible to Jews of all backgrounds worldwide. The Global Day, a project of Steinsaltz’s Aleph Society, celebrates the completion of the Rabbi’s 45-volume annotation and translation of the Talmud into Modern Hebrew, with parts also translated into four other languages.

JDC Fights Breast Cancer in Jerusalem and Sarajevo

Today, more than 5,000 people participated in Jerusalem’s first Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. A JDC delegation of Board members and staff from the U.S. proudly participated in the Race, which brought together people of multiple ethnicities and faiths for a common cause: to tackle breast cancer.

London Hosts 4th Pan-European Conference of JCCs

This past Sunday, more than 370 participants from 31 countries descended on London for the 4th Pan-European Conference of Jewish Community Centers (JCCs), Jewish Communities, and Jewish Organisations. Designed to connect Jewish leaders from geographically and culturally diverse communities, the conference effectively helped build a common ground for the future of European Jewry.

JDC is Key Player in Multi-Faith Conference on Social Services

This past week, if you wanted a hands-on feel for JDC’s important role in building not only Jewish life but community and leadership across Europe and beyond, London was the place to be.