Month: March 2020

The 1920s. Keren Hayesod is active in Europe, the USA, Canada and South America and also initiates activities in more remote and hard-to-reach countries. Keren Hayesod emissaries can be found in Arab countries, North Africa and Asia. There are three emissaries in Singapore, eight in India, six in Iraq and four in China, for example. They work doggedly and with great energy to recruit investments and donations. The offices in the various countries periodically publish news items, brochures and reports that document the emissaries’ broad-ranging activities. Special emphasis is placed on details of the significant sums of money collected, as can be seen, for example, in the 14-page brochure published by the Shanghai office in July 1924. Keren Hayesod’s worldwide activities, which began in the 1920s, continue to this day in 60 Jewish communities in 40 different countries.

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Photo: Brochure published by the Keren Hayesod office in Shanghai, with details of donations, 1924

In 1921, right after it was established, Keren Hayesod launched a worldwide effort to encourage Jews to feel closer to Eretz Israel, to contribute to the best of their ability in their own way. Surprising, moving and heartwarming examples came from around the globe, in completely unexpected ways. In Vienna, students announced that they would fast one day
a week and donate their daily food money to Keren Hayesod. In 1923, Keren Hayesod made special efforts to reach small, remote villages in far off places. Leib Yaffe, a senior Keren Hayesod emissary in the 1920s and later director of the organization, was amazed by the heartwarming contributions from locals in South America. Most of them were very poor and unable to donate money, but they found unexpected ways to contribute to the Keren Hayesod efforts. We find donations of 50 chickens, sacks of flax and grain. Other families chose to sell jewelry or precious objects, and at a party in a small village, the residents even replicated a photograph of Leib Yaffe and sold it to the guests. In 1936, the small Jewish community of Chile collected 20 tons of fine coffee, which was sold for $5,000 to benefit Keren Hayesod. In the Land of Israel, donors also found original ways to contribute their share, whether in the form of workdays donated to Keren Hayesod, kilograms of barley, parcels of land or the like. This continued even after the establishment of the state. After the Six Day War, there were surprising reports of orphanages where the children decided to donate their weekly pocket money for the cinema, and of teachers donating their monthly salaries. And even today, as part of the bar/bat mitzvah project, Jewish children around the world contribute a portion of the gifts they receive to Keren Hayesod. Throughout its years of activity, Keren Hayesod has continued to encourage Diaspora Jewry to contribute in their own way to the Zionist enterprise in Eretz Israel, and values every contribution, large or small!

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Photo: Recognition tree at the Kiryat Yearim Youth Village, acknowledging the donations of Jewish children around the world who contributed part of their bar or bat mitzvah gifts

History can happen at any time. Just a few years ago, in 2016, something happened that will go down in the annals of Israel’s history: the Karnei Ramon neighborhood was built in Mitzpe Ramon. The new neighborhood, based on “community rental”, provides 24 families with housing for three years at a reduced rent. The idea is to allow families to experience life in Mitzpe Ramon before making the final decision to move to the town. The neighborhood is intended for people who are looking for something a little different. Take, for example, double bassist Ehud Aton, who returned from the US with his wife and hoped to find a community neighborhood. “This is exactly what we were looking for. The neighborhood is not just a home, but also a young community, friends. When you live in a relatively small place, community is super-important. It has given us a soft landing in a new place and helped us realize the dream of building a home here”. Today Ehud Aton is the owner of a home in Mitzpe Ramon, adjacent to the neighborhood that absorbed him.

The neighborhood of Karnei Ramon was founded at the initiative of Keren Hayesod and the Ministry of the Negev and Galilee, in collaboration with the Ayalim Association. It is managed by the OR Movement, together with the youth center of the local council. Karnei Ramon calls upon young people to come and settle in the heart of the desert, and live in a framework that combines community, creativity and communal life against the backdrop of the natural landscape of the cliffs. As for Aton, his latest album, Deep in the Hills, was written in Mitzpe Ramon and he is not the only one who chose to make his home there. Almost 90% of the 24 families living in the neighborhood have decided to remain in Mitzpe Ramon after the end of the absorption period.

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Photo: Ehud Aton with family and friends, 2019

One building in Jerusalem encapsulates great responsibility and a significant amount of history. This building houses the four entities that were responsible for the establishment of the State of Israel: Keren Hayesod, the Jewish Agency for Israel, the World Zionist Organization and Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael – the Jewish National Fund. In July 1934, the first party was held there. It was in honor of Nahum Sokolow and was Keren Hayesod’s first event. If the walls could talk, they would tell us that many state matters were conducted in this building. David Ben Gurion sat here as head of the Jewish Agency for Israel; the United Nations decision to establish the State of Israel was celebrated in its courtyard; the first Knesset discussions were held here and it was here that Israel’s first President, Chaim Weizmann, was sworn in. The Keren Hayesod Head Office has been located in this building from the day it was inaugurated in 1933 until today. This building, seemingly no different from any other structure, has been a central juncture in the life of the state. It has witnessed celebrations and tragedies, and countless events that shaped an entire country and the future of all its residents.

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Photo: The National Institutions Building in Jerusalem, 2019

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Photo: The National Institutions Building in Jerusalem, 1937

 

In December 1920, Keren Hayesod published its first Manifesto. “The purpose of the Keren Hayesod is to bring about the settlement of Palestine by Jews on a well-ordered plan and in steadily increasing numbers, to enable immigration to begin without delay, and to provide for the economic development of the country to the advantage of its Jewish and its non[1]Jewish inhabitants alike… No casual charity will suffice. The exceptional effort which is called for today must take the form of self-taxation – steady, persistent, systematic, inspired by the noble Jewish tradition of the Tithe”. It concludes with the following words: “The gates of Palestine are no longer barred from within. The key is in the hands of the Jewish people”.

The Manifesto was translated into 18 languages and disseminated in tens of thousands of copies throughout the world in Jewish newspapers and journals. It aroused great excitement and its impact was immense. All Jews were called upon to join the Zionist effort. This was the first time in the history of the World Zionist Organization that a direct appeal was made to the entire Jewish people to work together. And indeed, the direct appeal and the powerful words penetrated deeply, motivating Jews from around the world to work to support settlement in the Land of Israel, to promote it and fund it. Keren Hayesod’s work had begun!

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Photo: Keren Hayesod’s first Manifesto, published in the HaOlam newspaper, December 23, 1920

Keren Hayesod is, and will continue to be, the world’s leading fundraising organization for the Jewish people and the citizens of Israel. It enables anyone who wants to support Israel as the homeland of the Jewish people to realize his commitment by donating money to Keren Hayesod activities, projects and enterprises. The funds donated are intended to improve the lives of the citizens of Israel and to help strengthen the ties between them and Diaspora Jewry. Keren Hayesod will continue to serve as the bridge that embodies these ties – ties that enable the people of Israel and Friends of Israel worldwide to work together on behalf of a strong Israel in the heart of the Jewish people; a secure Israel that can serve as a home and shield Jews all over; a prosperous Israel that everyone can be proud of. Keren Hayesod activities are based on the lessons learned from the history of the Jewish people, including the fundamental value of mutual responsibility – all of Israel is responsible for one another. We are indeed all one people and responsible for each other, and together, we will realize this mutual responsibility.

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Photo: Keren Hayesod poster, 1990

Over 20 Jewish settlements were established within a few years in the 1920s at the foot of the breathtaking hills of the Jezreel Valley, under the burning sun, on agricultural land that was almost impossible to cultivate and in disease- and mosquito[1]ridden swamps amidst dozens of Arab villages. When Keren Hayesod was founded, it was clear that resources needed to be invested in strengthening agricultural settlements. Despite the inadequate water systems and difficult living conditions, the Jezreel Valley pioneers succeeded in casting roots in the area with the support of Keren Hayesod. 23 settlements were subsequently established in the Hefer Valley and in other locations throughout the Land of Israel. Between 1932 and 1939, the number of kibbutzim and moshavim increased from 37 to 134. By 1960, Keren Hayesod had helped set up some 900 settlements, proving that it is indeed possible to make the desert bloom.

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Photo: Call to the people of Israel to strengthen the rescue forces, broaden assistance to the settlement enterprise, and increase volunteer work with Keren Hayesod. 1932, Jezreel Valley

1921. There was strong opposition to the activities of Keren Hayesod in the US. The leaders of the Zionist organizations, headed by Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis, wanted full control over donations within the United States and strongly objected to handing them over to Keren Hayesod. Chaim Weizmann decided to embark on a mission to the United States in an effort to change this stance. His objective was to launch the Keren Hayesod Appeal in the US. On April 2, 1921, a delegation of Keren Hayesod and other Zionist leaders headed by Weizmann arrived at the Port of New York. Thousands of cheering Jews from throughout the US awaited them. Most of them had come from afar, and walked for hours to be present for the occasion. On April 17, 1921, Weizmann published an announcement, “To the Jews of America”, proclaiming the launch of an appeal, despite the opposition of the heads of the local organizations. For three months, Weizmann and his entourage went on an unprecedented fundraising tour. He traveled tirelessly from city to city, gave speeches, explained and raised funds. He asked the American public to follow in his footsteps and called upon the Jews to support the work in Eretz Israel. He vehemently urged them not to accept the capitalist approach of Brandeis, which encouraged private initiatives. Support for Weizmann grew with each passing day. The donations increased. On June 5, 1921, a fateful conference took place in Cleveland. There, to everyone’s surprise, Keren Hayesod won a decisive victory and its proposals were accepted by a majority of more than two thirds. Keren Hayesod America began operating at full steam and succeeded in raising $600,000 within two and a half months. By the middle of 1922, this amount had reached over $3 million. Later, however, it was decided to split fundraising in the Jewish world between the American UJA, which raised funds in the United States, and Keren Hayesod, which operated in the rest of the world.

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Photo: Illustrated portrait of Chaim Weizmann, encircled by the flags of Israel, Great Britain and the United States

n 1924, the British Empire Exhibition, reviewing the achievements of the colonies, protectorates and mandates ruled by the British, was held in Wembley, England. The dozens of presenters displayed their achievements in the field of economics, culture and folklore. The Palestine-Eretz Israel pavilion aroused considerable curiosity and interest. The Keren Hayesod display was the most prominent and attracted many visitors. The Keren Hayesod exhibit included a vast wall map of the Jewish Yishuv, which showed the lands purchased by the Jewish National Fund and settled with the help of money raised by Keren Hayesod. A model of the workers moshav Nahalal became a major attraction. A booklet, translated into English, Hebrew and Yiddish, told the story of its establishment. Also on display were projects supported by Keren Hayesod: assistance to immigrants, the agricultural experimental station in Tel Aviv, Hebrew education, medical institutions and national non-profit enterprises such as the General Mortgage Bank, which lent money to build houses and neighborhoods in Tel Aviv, Haifa and Tiberias.

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Photo: The Palestine-Eretz Israel Pavilion at the British Empire Exhibition, 1924

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Photo: Advertisement for the Palestine Pavilion

“I have no doubt that my children, young people in general, and youngsters from the Ethiopian community in particular, see in me how ‘if you will it, it is no dream’ can become real”. Avraham Yitzhak spoke these words in a speech at the ceremony awarding him the rank of colonel. Avraham, who arrived in Israel from Ethiopia at the beginning of the 1990s, went through a long acclimation process, overcame all the difficulties and become the commander of the Medical Division in the Southern Command. But the way to the top was not easy. He was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. His father was an activist who worked tirelessly, risking his life, to help the Jews of Ethiopia make aliyah to Israel. In 1983, when Avraham was just 10 years old, his father was forced to flee the country after his activities were discovered by the local authorities. He describes the years that followed as a time of true hardship and poverty. His family didn’t even have the means to make clothing; he used to fashion pants for himself out of hemp. But Avraham turned out to be a gifted student. He began studying medicine in Ethiopia when he was only 15, and a few years later decided to immigrate to Israel. He was sent to the absorption center in Kfar Saba, learned Hebrew and after significant effort, was admitted to medical school, becoming the first oleh from Ethiopia to be a doctor in Israel. But he didn’t stop there. He completed an officer’s course in the IDF with distinction. He served in a number of combat units and saved the lives of dozens of soldiers. In 2017, he was appointed colonel, the first Ethiopian oleh to achieve this rank. Avraham’s inspiring story offers new hope for young people from the Ethiopian community, who see that glass ceilings can be broken, and goals can be set and achieved. Today, thanks to the various frameworks that Keren Hayesod invests in and supports, more and more Ethiopian olim have become officers and doctors, and this trend will only grow.

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Photo: Avraham Yitzhak at the ceremony awarding him the rank of colonel, with Chief of Staff Lieutenant-General Gadi Eizenkot, 2017
Credit: IDF Spokesperson