Israel Resources
Ways to Help in this Time of War:
Our parent organization, Reconstructing Judaism, suggests several options, including these:
Anera
Anera, which has no political or religious affiliation, works on the ground with partners in Palestine (West Bank and Gaza), Lebanon and Jordan. They mobilize resources for immediate emergency relief and for sustainable, long-term health, education, and economic development. They are recipients of USAID and US State Department funding and their relief programs in Gaza are thoroughly vetted and do not involve or engage with Hamas in any way. Since October 7, they have provided over 10.5 million meals, nearly 12,000 blankets, and over 1.7 million medical treatments to Gazan civilians in distress.
Dror Israel Emergency Response
“Our educators in Sderot, Ashkelon, Beer Sheva, Rehovot, Tel Aviv, Rishon Letzion, and other affected communities are assessing all the critical needs and addressing them. Educators are in touch with students, program participants, neighborhood leaders and groups, making sure they are safe and accounted for. Emergency initiatives include:
Supporting evacuees: Daycare and programs for traumatized children and youth are desperately needed for families who have been evacuated from Gaza border communities under attack to Dead Sea Hotels, our boarding school in Mitzpe Ramon, and more.
Youth counselors in bomb shelters: In underprivileged communities where people don’t have safe rooms in their homes, our experienced youth educators are running therapeutic and educational programs for children and families in Rehovot and Ashkelon, with more locations opening as soon as deemed safe.
Daycare for children of hospital workers and other essential staff: We are currently fielding requests from hospitals throughout Israel to set up daycare centers for children of doctors, nurses, and staff so they can treat the injured while schools are closed.
Support for children and families sheltering in place: We are providing in-person and online programming and distributing activity kits and other educational materials in Sderot, Ashkelon, Rehovot, and more.
Donate to Hand in Hand / Yad B’Yad
Hand in Hand / Yad B’Yad
Hand in Hand nurtures an equal, shared, and inclusive society in Israel through educational and community-building programs. Founded by a member of a Reconstructionist synagogue in Portland, Oregon, Hand in Hand is best known for its network of integrated, bilingual, multicultural schools that offer a transformational alternative to the status quo in Israel. Over 2,000 Jewish and Arab students, ages 3-18, study in their six schools across Israel.
Magen David Adom
Magen David Adom is Israel’s “Red Cross”. It has activated all 1,400 of its ambulances and is treating the wounded, often while under rocket attack and gunfire themselves. MDA EMTs are among the casualties.
Your help is desperately needed to put more ambulances on the road and to replenish supplies for both EMTs and paramedics and for MDA’s blood services division, which is supplying blood for the wounded.
New Israel Fund
NIF’s network of NGOs in Israel have a 4-part emergency response plan they’ve activated, and they are asking for donations at this time to implement it. The plan focuses on:
Basic care for the most vulnerable groups: While the country reels from this attack, we must make sure that no communities are left behind. Families in the kibbutzim near the Gaza Border are still not reunited and may not have the access to care that they need. A number of Bedouin citizens from unrecognized villages in the South have been killed and many more injured. With very little infrastructure – including very few bomb shelters—and decades of neglect by consecutive governments, this community needs urgent support to ensure that basic care is available for those injured, left homeless, and for those needing arrangements for the dead. These are just examples of two vulnerable groups that need our help right now.
Combating violent speech and incitement online: Ever since news of the attack first broke, right-wing extremists have been calling for revenge and attempting to escalate an already dangerous episode by inciting hatred and fomenting violence in mixed Arab-Jewish cities and towns throughout the country. Learning from past experiences, we know how quickly and easily these kinds of inciting messages can spread and lead to conflicts and conflagrations on the ground. We need to help de-escalate, de-platform and disempower these voices online.
Preventing inter-communal violence in mixed cities: Through focused efforts with municipalities, the media, and local grassroots leaders, we have to work to prevent the spread of violence into mixed Arab and Jewish cities.
Mental health and trauma counseling: We know that yesterday was among the most terrifying and traumatizing days for Israelis in recent memory. People are shocked and reeling and we know that when that shock begins to fade, there will be a massive need for trauma counseling and mental health support for many, including civil society leaders, who will need to show up for their communities and lead long-term efforts even as they deal with their own trauma.
Project Rozana
Project Rozana is an international organization promoting access to quality healthcare through joint initiatives between communities in conflict. They currently operate in Israel and Palestine, addressing healthcare gaps and building relationships between healthcare actors. Rozana’s mission is to promote cooperation between Palestinians and Israelis in the field of healthcare. Right now they are collecting funds their Palestine-Israel Emergency Relief Appeal.
Donate to Standing Together / Omdim B’Yachad
Standing Together / Omdim B’Yachad
Standing Together is a grassroots movement mobilizing Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel in pursuit of peace, equality, and social and climate justice. Since October 7, Standing Together has implemented a 6-part response to the war. These actions include holding Jewish-Arab solidarity conventions within Israel, support for students, amplifying the call to bring the hostages home, and support for Israelis facing racial or political discrimination during wartime.
Donate to World Union for Progressive Judaism Emergency Appeal
World Union for Progressive Judaism Emergency Appeal
Reconstructing Judaism is a member movement of the WUPJ. Their emergency appeal is focusing on providing funds for immediate needs, informal educational programs and childcare, elderly assistance, mental health counseling, and more.
Reconstructing Judaism's webpage dedicated to the current conflict also offers suggestions for spiritual healing relating to the war:
CLICK HERE.
