The Sherry and Alan Leventhal Family Foundation Center for Interfaith Families is a ground-breaking new initiative of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans. The Center is designed to engage with interfaith couples and their families. Working with an advisory committee and the Federation staff, the Executive Director will develop the program envisioned to include social, Jewish cultural, educational and spiritual programs specifically for members of the interfaith community.
GiveNOLA Day 2020
Did you know that today (Tuesday, June 2) is GiveNOLA Day? Of course you did, because you're surrounded by frequent reminders!
We at the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans are excited to once again be a part of this opportunity to bring our community together. Everything has changed over the past few months, and the Federation’s mission is more critical than ever. From helping stabilize our community agencies to providing meals to frontline workers, we have been at the forefront of disaster response. Our goal this year is to raise $100,000 from at least 200 donations through GiveNOLA Day.
A number of our donors have stepped up to offer matching funds at several points during GiveNOLA Day, during which your donation through our GiveNOLA Day page will be matched:
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8:00 - 9:00 a.m. Early Bird Power Hour (all donations matched up to $1,000, sponsored by Brian Katz)
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11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Lunch Livestream Power Hour ($1,000 sponsored by Bill and Susan Hess and Robert Force)
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2:00 - 3:00 p.m. Afternoon Power Hour (all donations matched up to $2,500, sponsored by Brian Katz)
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4:00 - 5:00 p.m. Oy! A GiveNOLA Day Saints Facebook Live Chat, featuring former Saints Vice-President Arnie Fielkow, joined by former Saints owners, Maury Herman and Russ Herman (all donations matched to $1,000, sponsored by Arnie Fielkow)
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6:00 - 7:00 p.m. JNOLA/Federation Taco Tuesday Happy Hour (all donations during this virtual happy hour will be matched up to $1,500, sponsored by Brian Katz)
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Katz-Phillips Leadership Development Program Challenge (all donations made by 2019-2021 Katz-Phillips class members will be matched up to $1,800 by Sherri Tarr)
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Federation Board Challenge (Federation Board Chair, Josh Force, and 2020 Annual Campaign Co-Chair, Mara Force, will sponsor a $500 challenge grant to encourage 100% Federation Board participation on GiveNOLA Day
Thank you so much to our incredible donors and volunteers!
We hope you'll consider donating to Federation, whether it's a payment on your Annual Campaign pledge or an additional gift. More importantly - thank you for your consideration of Federation on this incredible day of community philanthropy. If you have questions, or need help making your gift through the GiveNOLA Day website, please reach out to Cait Gladow at cait@jewishnola.com or 504-780-5614.
Statement on the death of George Floyd
The Jewish Federation of Greater Orleans: Goldring Family Foundation Center for Jewish-Multicultural Affairs is deeply saddened, and deeply troubled, by the unnecessary and unjustified death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Monday, May 25, 2020.
The Center for Jewish-Multicultural Affairs encourages the appropriate authorities – including the U.S. Department of Justice – to hold the offending police officers accountable under the law for this horrific incident. While we hope that the demonstrations currently taking place in Minneapolis and around the country are non-violent, we stand with those protestors in calling for a law enforcement culture in communities across America in which all citizens, regardless of race, are served and protected rather than victimized.
Our thoughts are with Mr. Floyd’s family and all those who have been affected by this tragedy.
Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans and the Jewish Endowment Foundation of Louisiana partner with the Consulate General of Israel to the Southwest, Metairie Bank and Humana to feed New Orleans’ frontline workers
In partnership with the Jewish Endowment Foundation of Louisiana, Humana, Metairie Bank, the Consulate General of Israel to the Southwest, and generous individual donors, the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans is pleased to announce the expansion of the Greater New Orleans Jewish Community Healthcare Workers Take Home Meal Program to include East Jefferson General Hospital. This program currently serves Tulane Medical Center, Touro Infirmary and Ochsner Health System. Since its launch on April 21, the program has served 1,200 take home meals to frontline medical staff and healthcare workers and, over the expected eight-week program period, will serve in excess of 6,000 take home meals to these community heroes.
"There's a Jewish value - tikkun olam - which means that we're all asked to do our part to repair the world, Jewish and non-Jewish alike," said Arnie D. Fielkow, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans. "From helping area small businesses to tending to healthcare workers too exhausted to cook, this program allows us to help so many people in a unique way, across three major healthcare systems in our community. Every meal is a step towards repairing the world."
This is a way to support small Jewish businesses in our community in a way that reflects our Jewish values.
Joshua S. Force, Chair of the Jewish Federation Board of Trustees, agreed, noting that, “The COVID-19 pandemic reminds us that we truly live in one, interconnected world – and that the needs created by this difficult time create an opportunity for us to collaborate creatively with area partners and businesses to solve problems.”
Three local kosher restaurants and caterers – Kosher Cajun, Rimon at Tulane Hillel and Dvash Catering – are providing 200 healthy, delicious meals for the four hospital campuses each Tuesday, for a total of 800 meals per week.
“Recognizing that we have all been impacted by this pandemic, the Jewish Endowment Foundation of Louisiana is pleased to support a program that shows our solidarity with the wider New Orleans community,” stated Jewish Endowment Foundation of Louisiana Executive Director Bobby Garon. “Our Board and staff are tremendously grateful for our frontline workers and first responders.”
“This meal program not only allows us to express our appreciation to healthcare workers, but also supports local restaurants and business owners, and hopefully inspires others to work together during this time,” added Larry Lehmann, Board President of the Jewish Endowment Foundation of Louisiana.
The Jewish Federation is accepting donations to keep the program running past the expected eight-week window.
Greater New Orleans Jewish community COVID-19 Response Initiative
The Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans, Jewish Family Service of Greater New Orleans, and the Jewish Endowment Foundation of Louisiana have partnered with a number of area synagogues to create a Jewish community response helpline program for problems related to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Our collective goal is to provide connection during a time of distance, as well as practical assistance (food/meal assistance, supplies, and prescription pick up for those who need it). These efforts are not intended to duplicate emergency or crisis services. In the case of an emergency, please call 911 (for a medical emergency) or 211 (for a mental health emergency).
Here are the details:
What: Jewish Community Response Volunteer Initiative
Who’s eligible: Members of a Jewish household who currently reside in Orleans, Jefferson, St. Tammany, St. Charles, Washington, Tangipahoa, St. Helena, Livingston, and St. Bernard parishes
How: Call or email the helpline (at one of the options listed below) and carefully follow the directions provided. You should receive a response within 48 hours, except during Shabbat and Jewish holidays. A volunteer will be in touch to coordinate addressing your need, whether it’s picking up a grocery order or just having someone with whom to talk.
Helpline options:
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504-780-5672
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covidresponse@jewishnola.com
All questions should be directed through the helpline.
Interested in volunteering with our COVID-19 response program?
New Orleans Jewish Communal Response to COVID-19
The Federation continues to be open for business, but obviously the top issue for us all right now is our response to COVID-19. Our communications outreach and professional efforts have been refocused on how to support and lead our community during this extraordinary time. Below you will find a listing of upcoming Federation events that we have now postponed. Additionally, while most Federation business meetings have not been cancelled, all eligible meetings will be held by phone or through Zoom. Staff will reach out to you if you are scheduled to participate in these meetings.
We’ll be communicating frequently with you to disseminate community announcements and important information. We’re updating our community resource page daily, so if your Jewish organization or synagogue want to share updates with our wider distribution list, please send them directly to the Federation’s Marketing and Communications Director, Cait Gladow, at cait@jewishnola.com.
We are committed to keeping everyone connected during this time of social distancing. If your Jewish communal organization or synagogue does not have access to a web meeting platform like Zoom, please reach out to Cait. Until the CDC guidelines for isolation are lifted, the Federation is happy to help facilitate your interactive activities.
As you know, we have created a task force to coordinate localized Jewish efforts, with community leaders, medical professionals, and New Orleans City Council Member Joe Giarrusso. We welcome your input as to how we can best serve you as we collectively navigate this crisis – none of what the Federation does happens in a vacuum.
Finally, we’re working hard with our community partners to create a volunteer program that will allow us to respond to individualized Jewish member concerns in the weeks ahead. We will have more information for you on this program in the coming days.
Stay safe, and as always, please let us know how your Jewish Federation can best serve you and your family.
We have also created a resource page to help our community organizations, synagogues and schools share announcements and news related to COVID-19.
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WBOK Series continues
In October 2018, the Federation launched a partnership with WBOK 1230AM to highlight and explore African-American/Jewish relations, with a show co-hosted by Oliver Thomas and Lynne Wasserman. On Friday, February 28, Oliver Thomas and Arnie Fielkow discussed the launch of our Center for Jewish-Multicultural Affairs.
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An Ally in Federation
After coming out, Idit and Asher didn't have spaces where they could be both gay and Jewish. So they built them. And with help from Federations, they've revolutionized what it means to be Jewish and gay in America.
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Moving Mountains in Nepal
The future looked bright for Mira’s family. They were saving up and had even added a new room to their modest home. Then the twin earthquakes of 2015 destroyed all their progress. By helping her tap into her passion for sewing, Federation partner JDC helped Mira lift her family out of a tent city and back into their home. Now, their future looks bright once again.
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Edie & Paul Rosenblum Gift of Israel
A trip to Israel is one of the most important formative experiences in your child's Jewish development - and the Edie and Paul Rosenblum Gift of Israel Program can unlock this experience. Together with the the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans and area synagogues, your child's Israel experience is closer than you realize.
An Update on Allocations | Celebrating the 2018 Annual Campaign
We wanted to share an update about the work of the Jewish Federation - work that would not have been possible without your generous support. Your donations to the 2018 Annual Celebration have been formally donated to all of our incredible community partner organizations - and on Monday, March 11, representatives from each of these organizations joined the Federation to celebrate in the Oscar J. Tolmas L'dor V'dor Lobby at the Goldring-Woldenberg Jewish Community Campus in Metairie.
If you haven't had a chance to watch our Facebook Live streamed video from the event, you can click the image to the right to view it - and you'll learn about the important work of our community agencies.
It's because of your generosity that we're able to reach so many lives. Your gift to the Jewish Federation Annual Campaign makes the work of our partners possible, from providing summer camp scholarships to offering chessed (loving-kindness) to homebound seniors.
Thank you!
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