Going beyond Mandela Day

GILLIAN KLAWANSKY

Afrika Tikkun

“We believe we have a responsibility as a Jewish community to upskill people and provide, as Chief Rabbi [Cyril] Harris used to say, a light unto the nations,” says Marc Lubner, the chief executive of Afrika Tikkun. “That means we have to think about providing support, infrastructure, and what we call responsible kindness to a wider spectrum of individuals than those in the Jewish community.”

Founded as a charity initiative in 1994 by the late chief rabbi and late philanthropist and businessman, Bertie Lubner, Afrika Tikkun has evolved to become a nongovernmental organisation (NGO) that offers holistic development to disadvantaged communities.

“Fifteen years ago, when I joined,” says Marc, Bertie’s son, “we changed the vision to an organisation that had employment or entrepreneurial development as its outcome.” In pursuit of that goal, Afrika Tikkun developed a “360-degree cradle-to-career model” offering early childhood development, child and youth development, and career development.

From preschool, children are taught Tikkun’s values, as well as numeracy and literacy skills. Youth development is then cultivated through five youth centres in Gauteng and the Western Cape for kids between seven and 19. “Centres have structured programmes that help kids to take responsibility for themselves and their decisions,” says Marc. Career development and job-readiness programmes promote skills development, while Afrika Tikkun Services annually place 3 000 people in jobs and learnerships.

“There are 15 000 to 16 000 kids that come to the centres regularly, and a further 10 000 are reached through our primary healthcare efforts and schools,” says Marc. Afrika Tikkun works together with the communities in which it operates, a factor key to its success.

Mensch

Non-profit organisation (NPO) Mensch creates and empowers a network of change-makers, mobilising positive social activism based on Jewish values.

“I started Mensch in 2014 while working at the South African Jewish Board of Deputies in Cape Town,” says Executive Director Gina Flash. “We launched a network of Jewish people doing social-enterprise work or serious volunteering. The network stretched to include public health and HIV doctors, academics, and those working in the public or development sectors.”

In early 2016, Flash left the board and launched Mensch as an NPO. “Today we have about 70 members in Cape Town and about 20 in Johannesburg. We’re a network of organisations that go beyond the Jewish community.”

Mensch supports, grows, and empowers individuals in their network and the organisations with which they work, to create greater impact. “We do that by offering professional development services, training, and workshops,” says Flash. “We create programmes and engagements linking people directly to network members and their particular work.” Members also support one another through networking and peer mentorship.

Flash says helping those outside of our community is the “essence of being Jewish”.

“I’ve travelled, studied, and worked all over the world,” she says. “I’ve come back to South Africa with a feeling shared by many of my generation: if you’re going to live here, you should be doing something to help. Being white, Jewish, and young, we don’t really know what our identity is. There’s a lot to be said about stepping up and in, not wanting to be part of a generation of Jewish South Africans that didn’t do enough.”

Union of Jewish Women

The Union of Jewish Women (UJW) supports Jewish and broader South African communities. “Our projects include the Alexandra Aftercare and Feeding Scheme through which we feed and support 100 children and 100 adults in Alexandra daily,” says UJW Executive Director Cindy Kree. “We also run a sewing empowerment project at the Oxford Shul to help combat poverty and unemployment.” The UJW also runs the Hillbrow Soup Kitchen. These programmes operate alongside ongoing outreach projects.

“Our hearts all belong within our Jewish community, but we’re also South Africans. As such, we’re also responsible for all South Africans,” says Kree. “It’s important to make people understand that Jews don’t only give to their own. We must uplift the Jewish image by giving in the Jewish name.”

Cadena SA

NPO Cadena SA is a Jewish community initiative that provides humanitarian aid and disaster relief. “We’re dedicated to helping communities affected by natural and man-made disasters and emergencies across southern Africa, bringing aid directly to those in need,” says Director Leanne Gersun Mendelow. “Founded in Mexico City, Cadena means chain in Spanish, representing our mission of ‘hand to hand’ giving.”

Cadena offers sustainable solutions to vulnerable communities. “On our last mission to Mozambique, we distributed more than 100 “village bucket” water filters to affected communities, which will provide clean drinking water to almost 26 000 people for the next five years,” says Gersun Mendelow. “We handed out 412 dignity kits – with underwear and reusable menstrual pads – to schoolgirls, and 1 500 hygiene kits to communities affected by Cyclone Idai.”

Mitzvah School

The Mitzvah School, founded by Lesley Rosenberg and Molly Smith in 1986, aimed to address the education crisis during apartheid. “Our kids were safely in good schools and the kids from Alex were just down the road from us, and unable to write,” recalls Rosenberg, who’s now the school’s director. “We decided to do a mitzvah (good deed), and the rest is history!”

Initially established for just one year on the Bet David synagogue property, the school offered quality education to Alexandra-based students in their matric year. Yet, in response to the lingering education crisis, the school remains operational more than 30 years later. Mitzvah School has a consistent 98% pass rate, and an average university pass rate of 75%, well above the national average.

The school currently has 29 students. “To contribute to uplifting the people of South Africa has been a great joy,” says Rosenberg. “Most of our financial support has come from big companies with a Jewish chief executive, although individuals contribute too.”

“Kids who studied by candlelight now return here in their motorcars, and say, ‘If it wasn’t for you, we don’t know where we would’ve been.’ We change lives – for students, teachers, and our own. Many students achieve their potential, and leave here with a feeling of self-worth.”

Students also pay it forward. “Together with the Kehillah Sisterhood at Bet David, we also run a daily feeding scheme in Alex, started by a past student.”

Jewish National Fund

By promoting environmental awareness and educating communities about self-sustainability, the Jewish National Fund (JNF) and its offshoots have had a significant impact.

“The JNF is the guardian of the land and ecology of Israel,” says Education Officer Bev Price. “We deal with land, water, and vegetation. We also take Israel’s experience, and try to bring it to our people. JNF South Africa is one of the only JNFs in the world that has had an impact locally, rather than just on Israel.”

The JNF Walter Sisulu Environmental Centre in Mamelodi creates a culture of community conservation. Through environmental education, it builds awareness amongst the youth, motivating them to preserve the wealth of our natural heritage.