The angel behind the network

TALI FEINBERG

“Everything has changed,” Wolman told the SA Jewish Report. “For the six months prior to the lockdown, we were assisting with appeals as we received them. We have always tried to give a ‘hand-up’ as opposed to a ‘hand-out’ so that people aren’t dependent on us. Currently it’s only about hand-outs to prevent millions from dying of starvation.”

The organisation’s focus has changed dramatically. “In the first week in March, not one cent went towards food. In the last week in April, more than R320 000 went to food. Since the crisis, we are spending 90% of money on food parcels and e’Pap.

“The scale of work is overwhelming. We are inundated,” she says. “There are no to-do lists or plans for what has to be done tomorrow. As I open my eyes in the morning, there are requests, calls, emails, and messages, and one is literally just thrown in the deep end day after day. Before COVID-19, we were assisting 50 non-governmental organisations, outreach centres, safe havens, and orphanages, who together numbered about 40 000 people. Currently, we are trying to help more than 90 organisations which equates to helping well more than 100 000 people.

“The Community Action Network (CAN) initiative, which originated in Cape Town, has made our lives that much easier in that of the 70-plus operational CANs in Gauteng, at least 40 are being run from people within our community who are mostly assisting our beneficiaries. This frees us up to assist refugees, marginalised rural communities, as well as new beneficiaries and individuals. Together with these CANs, we have supplied close to 700 000 meals in less than two months. We have raised well over R3 million in two months, excluding the R9 million donation that the South African Jewish Board of Deputies [SAJBD] received. That donation is a game-changer, as we can now spread our reach to many more provinces.”

For Wolman, every day is different. “I get up, start working, and don’t stop for 15 to 16 hours. Unfortunately, we have no help at home at the moment, so my ‘free time’ is spent quickly doing a load of washing, making supper, or tidying up. I had visions of reading, watching Netflix, and catching up on sleep, but I guess Hashem had other plans!”

Before the current crisis, Wolman didn’t like talking on the radio, and being on TV wasn’t even up for discussion. “Now, I just take it in my stride, and don’t think about it. I realise that the more exposure we receive, the more people we will be able to assist. Until COVID-19, the biggest donation we received was R211 000 from a company in the United Kingdom, so suddenly being faced with handling millions is a huge responsibility.

“Luckily I don’t have to make these decisions on my own as I have an executive committee as well as the SAJBD that I work extremely closely with. Initially, I got very stressed with the pressure, but realised that I could do only what I could do. Now, I do as much as I can, knowing that tomorrow is another day.”

Wolman admits that balancing this work with the rest of her life isn’t easy. “My family are very proud of The Angel Network, but they don’t love the fact that I’m so inaccessible at the moment. My husband is completely amazing: washing dishes, mopping floors, and vacuuming. I’m often told by my kids that they come after The Angel Network, which definitely isn’t true, and I hate that they feel or even think that way. This too shall pass.”

She said the organisation’s most urgent need was to assist hundreds of thousands of individuals. “Lindi Katzoff, on our executive, has come up with a brilliant system where an individual who wants to help is paired with an individual who has no means of getting food. We connect them, a Checkers voucher is sent via a cell phone, and the person is able to buy food. Hayley Glasser, also on our executive, is trying to raise funds for blankets that children can wear, as they have sleeves. We would love people to donate to that as it’s getting colder.”

To those of us who feel overwhelmed about helping others as we face our own crises under lockdown, Wolman advises, “Helping has never been easier than it is now. Start a CAN, join a CAN, make food and deliver to people, do somebody’s shopping, send vouchers, knit for babies, collect and donate non-perishables, assist the elderly, or just phone someone who is lonely. Today [Friday 22 May], a friend crossed town to bring me two challahs. It was the most touching thing. We need generosity of spirit. Everyone is having a hard time, and nobody is immune.

“The South African Jewish community makes me proud to be Jewish every single day,” she said. “We are there for one another, and come together as a family when needed. This community has been incredibly supportive to The Angel Network right from the start, and your support is overwhelming, to say the least. There are no words strong enough to convey our gratitude for all that you do.

“That being said, it’s hard when we receive criticism from fellow Jews on how we should be helping our own. People are people, and thank G-d, there are organisations in place to assist our own or we couldn’t do what we do. We receive no government funding and rely on donations. We also incur no running costs, and nobody earns a salary. My garages are our warehouse. The challenge is being able to help every single soul.”

She said that what motivates her to get up and do this work day after day is the “difference we are making to people’s lives”.

“I spent many years wondering what my purpose was, and worrying that I may never know. As clichéd as it sounds, the day The Angel Network began, I knew I’d found it.”

• To help, visit www.theangelnetwork.co.za