August 24, 2009
By Staff

This year in Kyrgyzstan, the Jewish community of Bishkek, in cooperation with the Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS and the Ohr Avner Foundation, launched a program aimed at assisting needy children.

The humanitarian aid provided through this program is made possible thanks to financial support from the Fellowship Foundation, headed by Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein.

In this most recent project, more than 20 children from the community came to the synagogue, where they collected both clothing and food parcels. Each package contained kosher food products, including flour, buckwheat, rice, oat flakes, potatoes and other products. The children also received warm clothing and footwear in appropriate sizes, to get through the upcoming winter season.

The gratitude expressed by the parents is overwhelming. In one letter, a mother writes, "I am thankful to the Fellowship Foundation for its assistance. At the moment, in connection with the financial crisis, I could not even imagine allowing myself such necessities. Thank you. My children are happy and very pleased with their new clothes." Yet another beneficiary wrote the following: "I would like to express my gratitude to the Fellowship Foundation for its assistance to us during this difficult time. Thank you once again."

In this economically challenging time, where we are all feeling the global economic crisis in one way or another, the support that has been provided to those in need is very critical and timely. The parents of the children receiving the much-needed material assistance also felt the moral support of the Jewish community.