Klal Yisrael— We are one people, responsible for one another.

Community Members,

Through our partner agencies JDC, The Jewish Agency for Israel, and World ORT, United Jewish Federation of Tidewater is on the ground in Ukraine, home to more than 200,000 Jews, every day of the year, helping the most vulnerable and supporting programming to help younger generations reimagine Jewish life where it was all but destroyed.

Ukraine is now in crisis, fighting an unprovoked war. The American-Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) is in Ukraine delivering urgent, lifesaving care to nearly 40,000 Jewish elderly and 2,500 impoverished Jewish children it supports in 1,000 locations throughout the country. The Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI) is racing to process Jewish refugees in six countries. World ORT is ensuring the safety and security of more than 8,000 individuals at five ORT schools in Ukraine. And so much more.

Again, Tidewater is quickly responding to urgent needs. UJFT has allocated Israel and Overseas funds to Ukraine and many individuals have made donations, with more expressing an interest to contribute. As a result, we opened the Tidewater Ukraine Emergency Fund, with 100% of donations made distributed to our overseas partners: JDC, JAFI, ORT and others. Tidewater Jewish Foundation is generously providing a $25,000 match opportunity for donations to this fund.

As the crisis in Ukraine escalates, thousands have come under fire. Thousands more have fled the fighting. UJFT, along with other Federations plan to allocate millions of dollars to our partner agencies in Ukraine. Immediate and short-term needs already total about $20 million.

The Ukraine Emergency Fund focuses on:

• Helping people make Aliyah to Israel

• Securing the local community and its institutions

• Maintaining critical welfare services

• Assisting internally displaced people in multiple locations

• Launching an emergency hotline

• Securing temporary housing for people in transit

• Purchasing satellite phones to maintain communications

• Securing five Jewish schools and training staff to manage crisis needs.

Help us deliver hope and help now when it is so desperately needed.

To give online, go to www.jewishva.org.

To give with a check, mail to:

United Jewish Federation of Tidewater

Attention: Ukraine Emergency Fund

5000 Corporate Woods Drive, Suite 200

Virginia Beach, VA 23462

As always, thank you for your generosity. We are proud of our Tidewater Jewish community and pray for a swift end to hostilities and a rapid restoration of peace in Ukraine.

Thank You,

Laura Geringer Gross, President

United Jewish Federation of Tidewater