As you walk through the streets of Israel, please consider that wherever you are, there are no doubt buildings whose construction was financed by Keren Hayesod. It began in Keren Hayesod’s earliest days, when the organization was primarily involved in giving loans to build neighborhoods and to pave roads. In the mid-1920s, for example, Keren Hayesod lent £3,730 to the Beit Hakerem neighborhood committee in Jerusalem, which was used to plan the neighborhood and pave its roads. A large loan was also given to the Jerusalem neighborhoods of Kiryat Moshe and Rehavia. In Tel Aviv, £1,500 was invested in the new Tel Nordau neighborhood between 1924 and 1926, and additional funds were invested in neighborhoods in Ramat Gan, Givatayim, Haifa and elsewhere. Since the 1920s to date, thousands of projects supported by Keren Hayesod are initiated every year. What began with the building of neighborhoods evolved over the years into the construction of buildings that contribute greatly to the community. In the last 50 years alone, since 1970, Keren Hayesod has constructed thousands of buildings: kindergartens, educational institutions and classrooms, absorption centers, hospitals and clinics, youth villages, sheltered housing facilities, Project Renewal buildings and more. Behind each and every building lies a story, and people of vision who want to continue building this wonderful country. And the work continues.
Photo: Keren Hayesod poster, “And nevertheless – the builders build”, 1947