OWN CORRESPONDENT

“Wherever you stand on the aliyah continuum or support for Israel, as Jews, most of us want see both our local community and Israel flourish. In order to do that, the organisations that facilitate these aspirations need help,” says Telfed CEO Dorron Kline, pictured.

For southern Africans, moving to Israel, with its cultural and language differences, is no easy feat. Telfed – the South African Zionist Federation in Israel – has absorbed many thousands of southern African olim and is in ongoing contact with another 100 potential ones in South Africa at any given time.

RIGHT: Telfed CEO Dorron Kline (back), at the Israel SA Expo last weekend, with Israeli  Ambassador Arthur Lenk (left) and a prospective family of olim

In 2013, the Australian Zionist Federation assigned the absorption of Australian olim to Telfed, with an additional 240 immigrants arriving each year, 30 per cent of whom are originally southern Africans.

Telfed also strives to give back to the community in South Africa. Following an invitation from the South Africa Israel Centre, Kline is currently in Johannesburg, where he participated in last weekend’s Israel Expo and continues to advise numerous potential olim.

A meeting was held in early March with Michael Sieff, CEO of the Chevrah Kadisha, in order to strengthen co-operation between the two organisations, especially regarding olim under their mutual care. Similarly, he recently met with Chief Rabbi Warren Goldstein.

In the spirit of ongoing co-operation, Kline served as MC for the IUA Top Donors Dinner in March, honouring Frances and Natie Kirsh. He also addressed three synagogues and was interviewed on ChaiFM, all part of an important awareness programme, sharing with the local community the importance of Telfed for southern African Jewry.

Since 1948, Telfed has been on the ground helping southern Africans in Israel. Guided by a small team of 13 (part-time) professional members of staff, and engaging a national network of 240 volunteers, Telfed has impacted the lives of some 25 000 southern Africans in Israel.

At one time the Jewish Agency/Keren HaYesod contributed approximately 80 per cent of the non-profit’s financial requirements. Since 2009 this support has been reduced to almost nil. 

“Fundraising is now a vital aspect of enabling us to fulfil the important mission of supporting olim, with 33 per cent of the annual budget totally dependent on community support and donations,” stresses Kline. 

Telfed is the only oleh organisation in Israel to provide subsidised rental accommodation to new immigrants, providing 102 apartments between three community buildings. Approximately 30 per cent of the services for the southern African community are financed from rental income, with another 30 per cent funded by allocations from family foundations managed by Telfed.

A major concern of any new immigrant is to secure viable employment: Telfed retains a fulltime employment advisor and HR consultant to offer advice on the local job market, vacancy referrals and training sessions.

As in any new environment, the process is wrought with bureaucracy and guidance from the organisation’s absorption counsellor provides needed direction. Annual study bursaries are provided for some 400 students in need. 

Through the PRAS programme, students who commit to 94 hours of annual community service, receive study grants. This involvement includes assisting southern Africans with special needs, providing companionship for the elderly, helping children with homework, teaching Hebrew and volunteering in absorption centres.

The warm community vibe extends to “Lone Soldiers” serving in Israel: Telfed invites them to periodic luncheons and activities, arranges gift packs, treats, clothing and shopping vouchers, and offers home hospitality for Shabbat and festivals.

Telfed was awarded the Ministry of Absorption’s Award for Excellence in Volunteerism in 2014, for the role the organisation is playing in encouraging the southern African community to be involved in Israeli society, through social projects (such as Telfed’s Ethiopian Community Initiative – TECI) benefitting the broader community.

Keren Telfed, a self-help welfare fund operated by Telfed for over 30 years, has had a life-changing impact on the southern African community in Israel, particularly for families at risk: the elderly, those with special needs and single parent families. Some 150 – 180 economically challenged family units receive financial assistance from Telfed each month. 

As Rabbi Warren Goldstein recently declared: “I would like to congratulate the South African olim who are giving chizuk to the people of Israel. In so doing, these young men and women are living the highest Torah ideals of chesed and Jewish unity.”