Women’s Philanthropy Leadership presents
Uniquely Rockland: Important, Iconic & Oddball Objects
Wednesday, October 11, 2023,
11 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Historical Society of Rockland County
Many of us will be sitting in a Sukkah over the next week, eating our meals, enjoying time with family and friends, celebrating a festive time in the Jewish year. There are so many customs associated with the holiday. Some continue to use honey with their challah, while others return to using salt; some will remain in the sukkah through a downpour (not me, usually), and some will stay warm and dry.
There’s one family tradition that I have that has made me think each year about how we diffe...
50 years ago, I was a happy four year old, youngest of four children in a proudly Zionist household. When my parents got word of the Egyptian and Syrian attacks on Yom Kippur, October 6 1973, there was overwhelming sorrow and worry, as there was in so many households. My dad volunteered to go to help as he could, but the response was they were only taking military age young men.
The eventual Israeli victory in the north and their surrounding of the Egyptian 3rd army in the south, ended the w...
Ever since I was a boy, the experience of Rosh Hashanah has had both physical and spiritual hallmarks. Everyone eats challah and apples dipped in honey, but every year I also always had my mom’s refined onion soup, and helped her make roast duck for the extended family (If I can dig it up, I’ll share the recipe. It’s really something special. And I don’t even like duck). Many people have a wonderful synagogue experience, but I walked home with my dad singing the beautiful hasidic melo...
Jewish Federation & Foundation of Rockland County condemns the Russian invasion of Ukraine and is deeply concerned for the wellbeing of the country’s entire population, including the Jewish community.
We are working to get help to those in need as quickly as possible through our partner organizations, The Jewish Agency for Israel, JDC, and World ORT, which have mobilized their extensive operations on the ground.
Plans now in motion rely on the strong presence built up through years of Federation support that is today serving as a critical lifeline to help protect and safeguard Ukraine's Jewish community, the many important Jewish organizations working in Ukraine, as well as Jews in neighboring countries.
The connection between Rockland’s Jewish Federation and Kfar Silver Youth Village is a recent one when a group of Rockland County residents visited the school, which is supported by ORT. The agricultural/residential school located just eight miles from Gaza is part of the Zionist dream to make the Negev bloom.
Students come from all over to Kfar Silver, some born in many parts of the FSU…former Soviet Union, as well as students from Ethiopia who were airlifted to Israel with their parents. One third of the student body—750 students—live on the campus. Many come from low socio-economic and single parent families, the disadvantaged part of Israeli society. By the time these kids graduate and move on to the IDF and further educational opportunities, Kfar Silver will have given these kids a leg up they might otherwise not have had.
Rockland County’s Jewish community supports Israel in many ways. Federation’s direct support of Kfar Silver is as much about supporting Israel as it is about supporting a special project we feel a connection with…one we have grown to love.
Rockland’s Adult Jewish Education classes are for you. Background doesn’t matter. Level of education doesn’t matter. A desire to learn and participate in riveting, fascinating classes is all you need. Join our classes taught by fascinating, articulate teachers and enjoy!
Got questions? We have answers.
For young moms and dads, reading stories to their children is something many do every night at bedtime…or even in the middle of the afternoon! PJ Library, which is a program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, is underwritten in Rockland County by Rockland’s Jewish Federation. It provides Jewish-themed books for children, ages 2-8 every month and gives those moms and dads a wonderful way to help them understand and appreciate what it means to be Jewish…even at a young age.
PJ Library books are wonderful additions to every Jewish family’s library. It doesn’t matter what the family’s background, knowledge or family make-up or observance is. There are PJ Library books for every kind of Jewish family.
But PJ is not only about books. It’s also about Jewish-themed activities…like Zoom classes on cooking for the holidays. And outings where young Jewish families can meet and make friendships with other young Jewish families.
Leket Israel is the largest food bank and food rescue organization in Israel. Rockland’s Federation has had a long-standing relationship with Leket because we know how important it is to take care of the most basic need of making sure people who struggle to feed themselves and their families have food to put on the table each and every day.
During the year of the pandemic, Leket Israel had to change the way it feeds people in need. It went from rescuing good, nutritious food from restaurants, hotels, and even the IDF, and feeding more than 200,000 Israelis per week, to buying 12,000 meals a day because just like here in Rockland County, the need for food increased tangentially as the Pandemic worsened and people lost their jobs.
Here in Rockland County’s Jewish community, we have a strong relationship with Leket Israel. It’s a special project we support directly and that has come to mean a lot to us. Through donations to Jewish Federation, we can see the difference those donations make in the lives of those who are helped by Leket Israel.
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The Community Relations Council is Federation’s advocacy arm. One of its prime roles is as the Rockland Jewish community’s voice with elected officials at every level from national to local. The CRC has developed relationships with many of these people and will contact them when there’s an issue that is of concern, and must be addressed. From gatherings the were highly visible, such as the one that occurred after the Monsey stabbings, to those that are strictly behind-the-scenes, the CRC takes a strong and active role in combatting antisemitism no matter where it occurs.
The CRC makes sure our elected officials understand the pernicious effects the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) has on the State of Israel, and the hateful rhetoric that is too pervasive on certain social media channels and group pages in and around Rockland County. When the CRC becomes aware of such hate speech or any violent threats against the Jewish community, it makes sure our local officials are aware of them so they can be dealt with.
The most important role Jewish Federation plays in the community is in community weaving. Federation has built a platform where all organizations and individuals can come together to share common concerns. Through Community Weaving, Federation brings synagogues and organizations together to work for the common good of Rockland’s Jewish community.
Whether it’s to learn how to apply for security grants, or the PPP during the pandemic, or learning how to set up endowment funds for the financial security of an organization through Life and Legacy, Federation has made Community Weaving the important initiative it is for the community.
