JDC’s Ukraine Response

by United Jewish Federation of Tidewater

Jewish Special and Individualized Jewish Education at OST

YOUR DOLLARS AT WORK

JDC’s Ukraine Response

Ukraine’s vibrant Jewish community is one of the largest in the world, home to an estimated 200,000 Jews. The current situation with Russia (as of Feb. 23) has convinced some in this Jewish community to leave, others to prepare to fight, and placed still others, who are vulnerable and require assistance for daily necessities, in greater need.

“The expanding economic toll of Ukraine’s crisis is more insidious than reported, increasing the suffering of the neediest every day,” Ariel Zwang, American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee’s CEO wrote in a letter published Feb. 22 in the New York Times.

Already adversely affected by Ukraine’s snarled COVID economy, Zwang said, this population has been worse off since tensions began simmering on the borders last year.

“Imagine what inflation feels like to the poorest pensioner living on $2.40 per day when utility prices are up by 20 to 30 percent and food items like sunflower oil and sugar are up by 57 and 61 percent. They’re left with a painful choice between food, medicine or heating during the harsh winter,” continued Zwang.

This mounting economic crisis adds to the pandemic’s lasting financial toll, catapulting the most vulnerable into renewed risk and suffering.

JDC volunteer delivers food packages and PPE to a needy Jewish woman in Kharkiv, Ukraine during the pandemic. JDC, a partner agency of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, is working around the clock to ensure uninterrupted humanitarian aid including food, medicine, winter relief, and emergency assistance for the most vulnerable Jews throughout Ukraine — no matter what. This aid benefits nearly 40,000 40,000 needy Jewish elderly and poor families in Ukraine. JDC is currently: • Providing food, medicine, and sanitary needy Jewish items; elderly and poor families in Ukraine • Preparing its staff and volunteers to continue to provide aid no matter the circumstances, including through food package delivery, hotlines, and online platforms; • Mapping all of its clients, especially the homebound, to ensure JDC can reach them; and • Coordinating with local Jewish organizations and partners to ensure a united emergency response. JDC says it is leveraging its vast presence on the ground and past experience from the 2014 Ukraine conflict and ongoing COVID19 pandemic to address a variety of possible emerging needs, including displacement. “Whatever happens in the hours and days ahead,” wrote Zwang, “the poorest will still face an enduring battle for survival.” JDC is a beneficiary of UJFT’s Annual Campaign.