JSAM Grants

JSAM Grants made by the UJA Federation of New York

1. Bet Am Shalom Synagogue and Congregation Kol Ami in White Plains have organized three events for at-risk youth from The Elm Street Neighborhood Center, a youth services group of Westhab. The youth, together with members from the congregations, will visit a farm, attend a nutrition and food fest with representatives from ADAMAH, and create an organic garden.

2. Community Synagogue of Rye, along with Congregation KTI and the Jewish Community Center of Harrison will glean the fields in New Paltz, New York and donate the goods to the Food Bank of Westchester. They will also hold a healthy cooking class for underprivileged families, organize and run a food drive, and sort and organize the food at the warehouse.

3. Congregation Sons of Israel in Briarcliff and Mt. Kisco Hebrew Congregation will work together on two projects. Projects include sorting food at the Food Bank of Westchester and holding a Thanksgiving dinner for needy members of the community.

4. New Rochelle Jewish Coalition is made up of six synagogues (Temple Israel of New Rochelle, Young Israel of New Rochelle, Beth El Synagogue Center, Congregation Anshei Shalom, Magen David Sephardic Synagogue, and Young Israel of Scarsdale). The six synagogues will jointly hold a teen community “PaintFest” sponsored by The Foundation for Hospital Art, where the teens will paint pre-drawn designs that will be donated to nearby hospitals.

5. Chabad Jewish Center of Clinton Hill’s teens will meet weekly to volunteer their time preparing chicken soup and cheesecake and distribute them to the elderly at Carlton Nursing Home, Oxford Nursing Home, and Brooklyn Hospital. After personally delivering the food, the teens will spend time with the members of the nursing homes and hospital in order to brighten their day.

6. Friendship Circle of Suffolk County will host a volunteer fair where teens will be recruited to become volunteers and work with special needs teens. These pairs will meet once a week and participate in activities together.

7. The Mount Sinai Sexual Assault and Violence Intervention Program (SAVI) will hold an Upper East Side Workshop that aims to educate the Orthodox community about sexual abuse. The presentation will be given by licensed specialists in the field, who have extensive experience with sexual assault within Jewish world and Orthodox community. The workshop’s purpose is to provide invaluable information on the prevention and intervention of sexual violence within the religious Jewish community.

8. Queens College Hillel will hold a 4 week workshop focusing on hunger awareness. Students will package and deliver food in Kew Gardens, Queens and volunteer with Meals on Wheels.

9. FEGS will promote awareness of the Holocaust, genocide, and human rights and encourage youth to share their own reflections on these topics with each other and with other schools across Long Island through the Partners in Care Program. These activities, which will include the participation of Holocaust survivors, will encourage children to engage in and promote social action and assist them in gaining a heightened awareness of and connection to the Jewish community.

10. Habonim Dror which works all across the five boroughs will create Project Rabin. Project Rabin will connect the New York youth membership of Habonim Dror with their Israeli counterparts in our sister-movement, HaNoar HaOved Ve HaLomed (The Working and Learning Youth), around a two-pronged program of education and service.

11. Hillels of Westchester seeks to observe Jewish Social Action Month by educating students and the local Jewish community regarding Jewish texts and traditions on the ethical treatment of workers. Students will work with its target populations and project partners to promote Uri L’ Tzedek’s Tov HaYosher Ethical Seal at Westchester kosher establishments and host campus food service workers for Shabbat dinners.

12. JCC of Manhattan will host a special Operation Chicken Soup event which will bring members of Generation R together to gather in the JCC’s culinary studio and, with a seasoned chef, will prepare a healthy kosher meal for homebound Russian-speaking families in the New York City area.

13. J-Teen will host an Overnight Community Service Trip to Brooklyn for Westchester High School students to support efforts of Met Councilon Jewish Poverty and to partner with Jewish teens from Brooklyn to develop a stronger sense of identity and connectedness through social action.

14. Kings Bay YM YWHA will have 25-30 teen volunteers attend a series of workshops which will focus on what Tikun Olam means and to work on ways through which it can be applied literally. In the third session, the teens will begin the work here at home with the beautification process of the Kings Bay building, with a focus on the parking lot.

15. JCC of Canarsie will undergo a comprehensive greening initiative that will engage and educate Jewish immigrant teens and their families in 150 homes throughout Southeastern Brooklyn.

16. The Suffolk Y Jewish Community Center will create a JCC wide “Green Team” to work on environmentally sustainable projects throughout the agency and neighborhood. The project will unite generations of Jewish people in an effort to link our Judaism to the future of our natural world and to one another across the globe.

17. Shorefront Y will bring together 20 Russian speaking teen leaders to create two awareness and action events for their peers around Jewish identity and education. In addition, through early childhood and elementary after school programs, children and their families will be involved in our Food Drive to raise awareness about poverty and hunger in the community.

18. JCCA will hold a Queens Mitzvah day where members of the Bukkharian Teen Lounge will invite speakers and participate in various service projects in the community and across Queens.

19. JCC of Staten Island plans to stage a Day of Caring and Sharing for persons with developmental disabilities. In total 75-100 people of all ages will be involved in the activities whichinclude a teen carnival, a Jewish education event, and various volunteer opportunities.