Our Response

Our community is stepping up during an unprecedented crisis.

The COVID-19 pandemic is unfolding with a devastating impact on at-risk populations and our Jewish ecosystem. The most pressing concerns include staggering revenue losses projected at over $43 million due to shelter-in-place business disruption, the increased demand to meet basic needs for economically and isolated at-risk populations, a need to pivot mission-centric programs to create connection during social isolation, and ability to maintain basic operations while planning for a future marked by financial instability.

Read the latest Snapshot of Bay Area Jewish organizations two years into the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

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PRESS RELEASES

Kindness in action – doing good deeds for families and seniors 

PJ Library Bay Area has declared this month Mitzvah May in the hopes of bringing some kindness and love to local seniors and families during this difficult time. The #PJKindness Campaign collects colorful art and joyful messages from PJ Library children to send to Bay Area senior living facilities to brighten their days. They've also partnered with Jewish Family and Children’s Services to help meet the increased demand for grocery staples in their food banks. Read more...

Finding inspiration in our philanthropic community

Moses, along with his wife Susan, has a history of generous giving and magnanimous leadership. Their family history, longstanding commitment to the Jewish people, and business acumen all inform his approach to giving. Recently, Libitzky’s commitment to the local Jewish community kicked into high gear through the Federation’s Pooled Recoverable Grant opportunity, designed to help Hebrew Free Loan answer an unprecedented spike in applications for zero-interest loans. Read more...

Mobilizing more than $5.5 million to provide loans for those in need

Hebrew Free Loan was facing an unprecedented demand for zero-interest loans, requested by community members facing lost wages, reduced small business income, increased childcare costs, and food or housing insecurity. Donors with assets in donor-advised funds and supporting foundations managed by the Federation acted quickly and made grant recommendations, which were pooled with others into a recoverable grant to Hebrew Free Loan for a 5-year term. Learn more...

Donors who are thinking about needs in Israel

With $804,000 earmarked grants to Israel, 200 Israeli foster children with emotional and physical needs will ride out the pandemic at the Ahava Children and Youth Village in Kiryat Bialik, Haifa. In the nearby Galilee village of Majd al-Kurum, Arab-Jewish tech incubator Moona is developing a prototype so that hundreds of small-scale manufacturers can produce the mesh crucial to N95 surgical masks. And in Ethiopia, about 8,000 people waiting to immigrate to Israel are getting emergency food packages and extra soap. Learn more...

Advocating for increased hate crime training for law enforcement officers

Since the start of the pandemic, the number of hate incidents directed against both the Asian-American and Jewish communities is on the rise. Other communities, including African Americans, Latinos, Muslims, Sikhs, immigrants, the LGBTQ community, and individuals with disabilities also face a growing number of hate crimes. The increase in the number of hate groups has also made improving law enforcement’s ability to correctly identify and respond effectively to hate crimes a priority. Read the Federation's response...

The Federation's offices are closed. Staff is currently working remotely processing all Campaign and Donor-Advised Fund (DAF) operational work such as receiving mail, sending out grantee checks, and acknowledgment letters, but at a slower rate. Please consider making your gift electronically through wire transfer and emailing us any forms, as checks and documents mailed or faxed to our office will have further delays. Contact us for urgent Campaign needs or for assistance with your DAFs.