Israel
‘Joint’ up & running on Nepal disaster
“Emergency response team already convened,” expat Solly Kaplinski, previously head of Herzlia Schools in Cape Town & now executive director of Overseas Joint Ventures of the JDC based in Jerusalem, told SAJR Online today. Please give generously, he says, as SA Jewry always does. “In the spirit of immediate communication in times of disaster,” said Solly. “I want you to know that JDC will be responding to the horrific earthquake in Nepal.”
ANT KATZ
“I know in the past the Jewish community in South Africa has responded generously in times of disaster,” said Kaplinsi.
RIGHT: What a job!
Old-Capetonian Solly Kaplinski now spends most of the money the Joint collects
“I want to make sure you have what we need in order to make that case to your readers, and in doing so, join our relief efforts.”
Solly provided this link to their donations mailbox DONATE DIRECTLY TO THE ‘JOINT’ “which,” said Solly today, “was opened a few hours ago.”
SAJR will run the link with all stories on the disaster, as well as keeping readers updated on the efforts of the the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee in Nepal.
Solly has promised to keep SAJR readers and users up-to-date on the situation as it continues to evolve.
Below is the Joint’s first media release
JDC responds to deadly Nepal earthquake
In the wake of the devastating 7,8 magnitude earthquake in Nepal, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC, or commonly, simply the Joint) has begun collecting funds for emerging relief efforts. Amid a quickly rising death toll and widespread destruction in Kathmandu and the surrounding region (including northeast India), JDC’s staff experts in India are consulting with the local authorities, the Nepalese and Indian governments, and global partners to assess the unfolding situation on the ground and ensure survivors’ immediate needs are addressed.
LEFT: The JOINT’s CEO, Alan H Gill
“We extend our deepest condolences and prayers to the Nepalese people at this time of heart-wrenching tragedy. Together with our network of global partners, we are drawing on our vast experience and standing presence in South Asia to ensure relief to survivors in their time of need,” said Alan H Gill, JDC’s CEO.
“Today, as we have done many times in the past, we are standing as one with all humankind by deploying a Jewish response to a crisis impacting millions.”
The earthquake – which flattened buildings, triggered an avalanche on Mount Everest, and has resulted in a death toll of over 7 000 people and climbing, is one of the worst in Nepal’s recent history.
Popular with Israelis
The Hindu majority nation, which is known for its mountainous terrain and hiking tourism, is a popular travel destination for Israelis, who are reported to be among those impacted while visiting the country, and is home to a Chabad House, says the JDC.
JDC has provided immediate relief and long-term assistance to victims of natural and man-made disasters around the globe, including the Philippines, Haiti, Japan, and South Asia after the Indian Ocean tsunami, and continues to operate programmes designed to rebuild infrastructure and community life in disaster-stricken regions
JDC’s disaster relief programmes are funded by special appeals of the Jewish Federations of North America and tens of thousands of individual donors to JDC. JDC co-ordinates its relief activities with the US Department of State, USAID, Interaction, the Israeli Foreign Ministry, Israeli agencies, and the United Nations.
What is the American JDC?
The JDC is the world’s leading Jewish humanitarian assistance organisation. JDC works in more than 70 countries and in Israel, to alleviate hunger and hardship, rescue Jews in danger, create lasting connections to Jewish life, and provide immediate relief and long-term development support for victims of natural and man-made disasters.
For more information on the JDC, visit www.JDC.org
Solly Kaplinski, previously head of Herzlia Schools, is the executive director of Overseas Joint Ventures of the JDC and is based in Jerusalem. Reconnect with him at: sollyk@jdc.org
SAJR Online users in North America can make a contribution telephonically at: 212 687-6200
To assist in the disaster…