Jewish National Fund-USA’s (JNF-USA) Atlanta leadership is pleased to announce the organization has surpassed its annual fundraising target, contributing a record $1.8 million towards a total of $100 million in funds raised nationally as the campaign prepares for an even bigger 2021.

“The Atlanta community has always stood proudly with Israel and we always will,” said JNF-USA Atlanta Board President, Michael Levinson. “I am pleased to report that our campaign had its strongest year ever, when Israel needs it the most. Despite the COVID-19 crisis, we have great momentum and a great Board of Directors going into the 2021 campaign year as we continue our efforts to make JNF’s bold vision for Israel’s Negev and Galilee a reality. Many thanks to our local leaders and supporters—they have been instrumental in our efforts to provide for immediate needs, help children with disabilities, families in need of affordable housing, critical environmental research and development, and much more.”

News of JNF-USA’s record fundraising year follows a previous announcement that it had surpassed the $704 million mark of its One Billion Dollar Roadmap for the Next Decade initiative– a figure that now stands at $715 million.

JNF-USA continues to develop Israel’s Negev Desert and Galilee with dozens of major projects underway, including:

  • $300 million JNF Israel Education and Technology Campus in Be’er Sheva – A narrative-changing initiative that will revolutionize global Jewish education; place Israel at the center of Jewish learning; and inspire a new generation to engage with their Jewish and Zionist past, present, and future connection to Israel and the Jewish people
  • $20 million Galilee Culinary Institute by JNF – With the Rosenfield School of Culinary Arts on the Marvin Sukonik Campus, GCI by JNF will become the number one culinary school in the world, leveraging Israel’s 80+ unique cultures to create a truly world-class institution, while dramatically developing the Upper Eastern Galilee
  • 1,700 Housing Development Fund sites – Enabling thousands of families to pursue the Zionist dream in the Negev and Galilee by creating the infrastructure needed to enable new, affordable housing development
  • Supporting Israel’s firefighters – Providing critical firefighting equipment and Rapid Action Fire Vehicles to Israel’s volunteer firefighters, enabling them to protect lives and property more effectively than ever before.

Beth Gluck, JNF-USA Atlanta Executive Director, continued: “I am immensely proud to be a part of Jewish National Fund. Our vision has remained the same for 119 years, but our strategies have evolved alongside Israel’s needs and opportunities. We use our experience and on-the-ground network of service providers to efficiently change lives, and the landscape of the north and south of the country. People give to JNF-USA because their gift is used in the way it is intended and with maximized philanthropic impact.”

JNF-USA has supported the people of Israel throughout the global COVID-19 pandemic. Just days after the first cases were recorded in Israel, JNF-USA was already working with its affiliates to address their immediate needs. Examples of support included:

  • Providing laptops to children with disabilities so they could continue to receive therapy online
  • Food and medicine for the elderly who were unable to travel to local supermarkets and pharmacies
  • Supporting out-of-work Israeli tour guides through a virtual tours initiative
  • Helping small businesses that relied on traditional tourist foot traffic in the Negev and Galilee by establishing an Online Mitzvah Market Place, enabling American consumers to purchase Israeli products.

To support JNF-USA’s important work in Israel in 2021, visit jnf.org or call 800.JNF.0099.

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