At Rosh Hashanah, Natalia B., a 63-year-old widow in Sumy, Ukraine, reminds us that people should always live with hope. She says 'we must believe in the good in this world, and in miracles.'
At face value, 85-year old Morris, who lives alone in a remote, rundown cottage he built himself in Zhitomer, Ukraine is a mirror of the tragic circumstances of his life.
As I started putting everything together that I would need for my first trip to Ukraine, my initial venture to the former Soviet Union that I’ve heard inspiring narratives about nearly every day for a year, my eyes drifted to the power converter set my grandmother lent me. Opening it, I saw my grandfather's name etched inside. He’d passed away nearly three and a half years ago, and I was extremely close with him, so my mind was at ease knowing that no matter what experiences awaited me, Grandpa Leon would be with me every step of the way, especially as his parents were from that part of the world.
As millions of people around the world mark World Cancer Day on February 4, Itai Shamir, Program Director of JDC’s WHEP Program, recalls the power of community when thousands of women in Sarajevo gathered for the annual Race for the Cure.
As this week saw an unprecedented cold snap for people in Europe and the former Soviet Union (FSU) resulting in the deaths of more than 60, JDC's Winter Relief program was well underway.
You might think JDC's Former Soviet Union (FSU) department would have little in common with Ashalim, our partnership with the Government of Israel to address children and youth at risk.
Residents of the Moishe House in Minsk recently partnered with JDC's Hesed social welfare center in the Belarusian capital city for a special Shabbat event. To get a taste of the event, we checked in with 80-year-old Vera to see what made it so extraordinary.
For the first time, 33 at-risk children and their families, with the youngest child less than a year old, traveled to a retreat center outside of Odessa for a celebratory Shabbaton -- a chance to rejoice and make lifelong memories.
13 year-old Egor is one of five at-risk Ukrainian Jewish children with special needs from the Odessa community who recently visited the city's Horse Club for a special therapy program.
