Our Stories From Around The World

School as a Place of Healing in Haifa

Wherever he was, Tom wished he were somewhere different. Though only in seventh grade, his difficult family life left him emotionally withdrawn and underachieving in school.

He seemed a perfect candidate for School with a Heart—Yuval, a school program for troubled youths in Haifa funded i…

How JDC Helped an Orphan Lift Herself Up

After losing her parents and older brother before turning 8, Tashkent, Uzbekistan native Angelina was sent to live with her 70-year-old disabled grandmother in her cramped apartment. Her $80/month pension stretched to its limit to provide for both of them. But with help from Federation partn…

Nourishing in Times of Drought

The young woman approached Dr. Johnson in silence, but her eyes were pleading. Modestly dressed despite the scorching heat, she beckoned the volunteer JDC doctor to follow her past shriveled trees and dead crops until they were safely behind a latrine. Then she lifted her skirt. “Please, 

From the Tel Aviv Slums to the Stratosphere of Success

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After growing up in a poor neighborhood in South Tel Aviv, Shai Pinhasi worked hard to finally go to college. Now, as a participant in Federation partner The Jewish Agency for Israel’s Choosing Tomorrow initiative, he developed "Thinking Far," a program to mentor fifth-graders in his ol…

Changing Jewish Life in Moldova One Volunteer at a Time

Nikolai is confident that volunteering holds the key to a better Moldova.

His country is plagued by economic turmoil and a culture that still associates volunteering with draconian Soviet mandates. But with funding and meeting space provided in part by Federation partner JDC, Nikolai organi…