Federation Impact | The Jewish Federations of North America

Oct 3, 2019

Amid Chaos in Ukraine, Federations Provide Comfort for Vulnerable Jews

Raisa Liebenson believed she and her family would be safe when fighting broke out in her hometown of Donetsk, Ukraine. But when the 78-year-old’s apartment was destroyed by a mortar shell that rendered her temporarily deaf, she and her husband knew it was time to leave.

“Shell fragments…

Aug 13, 2019

A Federation Model For Success: Chicago’s Israel Children’s Zone

When the Chicago-Kiryat Gat-Lachish-Shafir Partnership was looking to maximize impact with a flagship project six years ago, it didn’t take much effort to identify education as the one area in which the gaps were the most apparent and where our community could have the greatest influence. …

Mar 20, 2019

Jess and Emet: Coming Out From Jerusalem

Jessica was in search of something. Just what that was, she wasn’t sure. She was comfortable in her queer identity but didn't know how Judaism played into it. And while she didn’t grow up religious, a Federation-supported post-college Taglit-Birthright Israel trip woke up something Jewis…

Jan 31, 2019

Repairing the World, One Farm at a Time

Mudin Makaria, a small farmer in Ethiopia, has struggled to make his crops grow. His land is desert-like; sandy, mineral poor and far from an adequate water supply. It’s been a challenge to feed and support his wife and seven children. Like all of the farmers in his community, he doesn’t …

Jan 24, 2019

Rebuilding a Family and a Future

Judith never expected retirement to be so much work.

When the widowed 67-year-old was awarded custody of her five teenage grandchildren, she needed to support them—financially and emotionally.

She soon realized she couldn’t do it alone. "I needed a support group that was big enough t…