The Big Picture
Few things in life inspire more awe or hope than the miracle of a newborn child. When well nurtured and cared for in their earliest years, children are more likely to survive, to grow in a healthy way, to have less disease and fewer illnesses, and to fully develop thinking, language, emotional and social skills. In just one generation, these human gains can help break the cycles of poverty, disease and violence that affect so many countries.

Out of 100 children born in a year, 30 will most likely suffer from malnutrition in their first five years of life, 26 will not be immunized against the basic childhood diseases, 19 will lack access to safe drinking water and 40 to adequate sanitation, and 17 will never go to school. In developing countries, every fourth child lives in abject poverty, in families with an income of less than $1 a day.

The most egregious consequence is that nearly 11 million children each year – about 30,000 children a day – die before reaching their fifth birthday, mostly from preventable causes. Of these children, 4 million die in their first month of life.

Even when children do survive, they too often do not thrive, suffering from diminished learning capabilities and other disadvantages that limit their overall prospects for reaching their full potential.

The process of giving children the best start in life begins even before birth. Poor nutrition and ill health on the part of a mother can lead to low birth weight in her children, putting them at much greater risk of developmental delay, malnutrition and death.

Our mandate to provide interest-free loans to the Jewish community helps to promote self-sufficiency with dignity. By providing loans rather than charity, Toronto Jewish Free Loan Cassa (G’milath Chasodim) Association provides an important service to individuals and families in our community.

TJFLC has been providing interest-free loans to members of Toronto’s Jewish community for over eighty years, even prior to its incorporation on July 12, 1924.

TJFLC is the amalgamated organization that combines the loan services of Toronto Hebrew Re-Establishment Services, Loan Cassa and Educational Loan Program, offering personal, business and student loans to community members in need.

Our loans are helping a broad range of Toronto Jewry with a variety of needs including education, personal and business opportunities. There are approximately 550 active loans outstanding, with a total value of $1.5 million dollars.
Types of loan
Economic Opportunity Start-Up Business Loans of up to $15,000 are available to members of the Jewish community. These loans have a small administrative fee. Loan applicants must have a business plan leading to financial enhancement or independence.

Educational Loans of up to $7,500 are available to members of the Jewish community. These loans are granted to assist with the expenses of post-secondary education and are restricted to programs offered by institutions approved by the Ministry of Education. Since TJFLC educational loans are intended to supplement existing scholarship assistance programs, all educational loan applicants must show proof of application to the applicable government-supplied student financial aid program or programs.

Personal Loans of up to $5,000 are available to members of the Jewish community, to assist persons during temporary times of need. TJFLC will also assist needy and qualifying individuals with loans of up to $5,000 to assist with the expenses of Jewish Life Cycle events.

TJFLC gives loans for a multitude of purposes, but our focus is singular. We have a communal responsibility to the completion of Tikun Olam by assisting people to become independent and self-sufficient.

PROJECT MISSION

Eventually with the financial support of Bnai Zion, the hospital was renamed the Bnai Zion Medical Center in 1988. The hospital has a long history of service to the people of Israel. In its early days, it was known primarily as a facility for the treatment of children with developmental disorders. In 1948, during the War of Independence, it was the only medical facility in Haifa available to treat the wounded. It met a desperate, emergency situation head-on; injured soldiers and civilians were accommodated in tents and makeshift huts on hospital grounds and at the Technion.

In 1982, Bnai Zion Foundation presented an initial contribution to the hospital, which enabled the opening of its new Emergency Room and made a commitment to raise the funds needed to complete the West Wing Project. In 1988, recognizing its $5 million contribution, and in honor of Bnai Zion’s 80th anniversary, the hospital was renamed the Bnai Zion Medical Center.

The hospital is affiliated with the B. Rappaport Faculty of Medicine at the Technion (Israel’s Institute of Technology) and serves as a teaching hospital for its students. Many of the hospital’s department heads and senior physicians are on the faculty of the Technion and are associated with its varied and wide-ranging medical research activities.

COMMUNITY SERVED OVER THE YEARS

The Bnai Zion Medical Center, located on Mt. Carmel in Haifa was voted leading Medical facility, offering high-quality health care in Northern Israel. It expanded to a 450-bed general hospital facility, dedicated to meeting the needs of a growing population that reaches from Haifa to the neighboring villages throughout the North.

The hospital was in the forefront of treatment for frontline victims of the recent war with Hezbollah and other terrorist bombings.
BNAI ZION’S IMPACT

A recent survey conducted by the Macabi Health Insurance Company rated the Bnai Zion Medical Center well above the national average. Patients have praised the medical staff, their professionalism, the admission procedures and efforts to relieve pain, and consider the Bnai Zion Medical Center as an outstanding hospital.

The hospital has been presented with the most prestigious Israeli award given to a hospital in Israel: The Bnai Zion Medical Center has been voted the number one hospital of choice in North Israel for eight consecutive years. Its doctors are known worldwide for the development of groundbreaking treatments and techniques. To meet the needs of all Israelis, the Medical Center has established the following specialized departments:

* Gynecology and Obstetrics
* Pediatrics
* Neurology
* Otolaryngology
* Neonatal and Premature Unit
* Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
* Orthopedics
* Internal Medicine Specialties (including Metabolic, Gastrointestinal, Endocrine Disorders and Cardiac & Liver Disease)
* Ophthalmology
* Childhood Development Center
* Urology

Construction of the Chais Building for child development was completed in September 2005. The Child Development Center was established in 1976 as the only program of its kind in Haifa and northern Israel. Today it is recognized as the region’s leading center for diagnosis and treatment of young children from infancy to six who have neurological-developmental challenges.

The Center provides consultation, assessment and ongiong treatment for a range of neuro-developmental problems: for children with genetic syndromes, autism, cerebral palsy, language and learning disorders, premature babies and others. This multidisciplinary family-oriented program places the family and the child at the focus of the treatment. More than 700 children, both Jewish and Arab, from all over northern Israel are treated here every year.

Ofarim is part of the Child Development Center. It is the only diagnostic, developmental service for blind and visually impaired children in northern Israel. The unit is committed to appropriate developmental treatment beginning in infancy and the staff strongly believes that early treatment can make all the difference. The program includes rehabilitation daycare for blind and visually impaired infants up to age three. Children receive therapy and paramedical treatments along with typical kindergarten activities, which is the best rehabilitative and educational option for these infants.

The hospital recently completed its new Neonatology Unit. This is the only protected neonatology department in Israel.

The Maternity Department was recently renovated as well.

CURRENT EFFORTS

The hospital is working toward building reinforced units for about 250 patients and staff that will protect against direct rocket attacks. In 2008 construction will begin to be able to convert an underground parking lot into an emergency room with one hundred beds to treat incoming wounded in the event of an emergency.

The hospital is in the process of renovating the Gastroenterology Unit.

PLANS FOR THE FUTURE

To finish construction of the Pediatric Department and add a pediatric emergency room to it, to upgrade the Admissions Office, to build a new Otolaryngology Department and to build a new Urology Department are just some of the priorities of the moment.

AWARDS & ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Summer 2007 – Award for Best Hospital Food

Bnai Zion Medical Center won first prize for the best healthy gourmet meal in a competition with fifteen hospitals from all over Israel. The competition took place at Barzilai Hospital in Ashkelon and the panel of judges included a famous author of cookbooks, the minister of Health, the chairperson of the union of chefs, special dieticians and senior chefs. The award-winning meal was prepared with minimal fats and salt and consisted of chicken breast stuffed with antipasto, fresh beetroot salad, sweet potatoes and baked zucchini. It was topped off by a special dessert made of dough in the shape of a basket, filled with fresh fruit and syrup made of tahini (known to be iron-rich) and honey.

Chef Naor Aschenazi heads up the very capable and dedicated food preparation team at the Medical Center.

August 2007 – Award for Excellence

The Bnai Zion Medical Center won an award for excellence in the unique activity of its Multidisciplinary Center for Sexual Abuse and Incest Victims.

The prize was announced at the annual convention of Middle Eastern hospital managers held in Thailand in August. Bnai Zion Medical Center is the only hospital in the world that offers continuous treatment – both in the hospital and in the community – to victims of this abuse on an ongoing basis.

More information about this prestigious award and the activities of this department can be found in the December 2007 Hanukah edition of the Bnai Zion VOICE.

Autumn 2007 – Citation for Courage

Dr. Saab, an intern IN the Ophthalmology Department, received the Commander-in-Chief of the Israel Defense Forces citation last month for his courage in treating soldiers while under fire and rockets during the second Lebanese War. His force was among the first that went into Lebanon, and as a result of the difficult location and many soldiers wounded, they had to ‘open’ a clinic in one of the deserted houses in Lebanon. There he treated soldiers while under enemy fire, while the house was hit, and the soldiers inside were injured. Dr. Saab was injured from slivers in his face, eyes and limbs. Despite these injuries he insisted on continuing to treat other soldiers. A day later he and his staff were evacuated back to Israel.

The hospital is very proud to have Dr. Saab on staff.

Autumn 2007 – Research Conclusion

A recent new survey conducted at the hospital has proven that receiving an epidural at the beginning of delivery doesn’t cause any problems. Based upon this result, women who want an epidural can get it right away. As a result of this research, other hospitals in Israel and abroad have accepted this conclusion and act accordingly.

This research was recently published in the American Obstetrics and Gynecology Journal.

OMAHA, Neb. — The Canadian investment managers who paid $1.68 million in a charity auction to win lunch with investor Warren Buffett believe the meal will be worth it because of what they might learn from the billionaire.

The Glide Foundation, which receives all the auction proceeds, identified Salida Capital, which is based in Toronto, as the winner of last month’s auction.

Salida CEO Courtenay Wolfe she’s looking forward to talking to the 78-year-old Buffett about his experience and his perspective on the world.

“We’re excited to talk to him about broader themes that are affecting the global markets,” Wolfe said.

Buffett annually auctions off a lunch to benefit Glide, which provides social services to San Francisco’s homeless and poor.

Wolfe said she and her two partners at Salida plan to bring five of the firm’s biggest supporters to the lunch with Berkshire’s chairman and chief executive. The owners of the Smith & Wollensky restaurant in New York contributed $10,000 to Glide and will again host the lunch.

“Lunch with Warren Buffett is something we have always had on our ‘dream list,’” she said.

Salida is marking its tenth anniversary this year, and Wolfe said it has recovered well from last year’s difficult market, so the time seemed right to bid.

Salida’s investment managers try to identify macro trends and take advantage of them, Wolfe said. Currently, the firm is heavily invested in commodities because Wolfe says they expect consolidation in the resource area.

Wolfe said having lunch with Buffett should be great personal development.

“This is a personal and professional investment by partners of the firm,” she said. “For us, the opportunity to sit down with him face-to-face for lunch one-on-one and have a dialogue with him. For us, that’s invaluable. And it’s also going to an incredible cause.”

Glide’s founder, the Rev. Reverend Cecil Williams, said he is thankful for the support from both Salida and Buffett. Glide relies on donations for most of its $17 million budget.

“Glide is so fortunate that we were able to raise this amount of money which will help San Francisco’s poor and disenfranchised,” Williams said.

Buffett’s late first wife, Susan, introduced the billionaire investor to Williams and the Glide Foundation. Buffett has said he enjoys being able to help Glide with the lunch because he’s never found another charity more effective at lifting people out of despair.

Buffett is renowned for his investing success. The company owns more than 60 subsidiaries including insurance, furniture, clothing, jewelry and candy companies, restaurants, natural gas and corporate jet firms and has major investments in such companies as Coca-Cola Co. and Wells Fargo & Co.

But Buffett is also known for his plan to gradually give most of his $36 billion fortune to five foundations over time. The biggest chunk of Buffett’s Berkshire stock will go to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Salida’s bid is less than the record-setting $2.1 million bid that won last year. That 2008 bid on lunch with Buffett was the most expensive charity item eBay had ever sold.

Previously, the most expensive charity item ever sold on eBay was a letter from Democratic senators blasting conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh for using the phrase “phony soldiers” on his program. The letter signed by 41 senators sold for $2.1 million on eBay in October 2007.

The proceeds from Limbaugh’s auction went to the Marine Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation, which provides scholarships to children of Marines or federal law enforcement personnel who were killed while serving their country. And he matched the bid.

http://blog.taragana.com/n/charity-says-canadian-investment-firm-paid-168m-for-lunch-with-billionaire-warren-buffett-103402/

reviewed by Moishe Alexander, CFC Canadian funding corp CEO

ICRF acts like the venture capital bank of cancer funding in Israel. Unlike many of the enormous government and private “cancer establishment” funding institutions, ICRF is open to imaginative new approaches and will often take a risk on new ideas. Research grants are awarded based strictly on merit – they do not favour any individual, institution or scientific point of view. The grant review process is rigorous, ensuring that only the most promising cancer research is funded. ICRF’s Scientific Review Panel is composed of more than 30 leading cancer researchers from Canada and the United States.

ICRF was founded in 1975 by a group of Canadian and American researchers, oncologists and lay people who were committed to the growth and development of Israel and to fighting cancer. They realized that a unique confluence of circumstance had positioned Israel to excel at cancer research:

Superb scientists: Israel has the world’s highest per capita concentration of scientists and physicians. The only thing the country needs more of is money to properly fund research.

Cost-effective research: the cost of conducting a research project in Israel is
30 per cent less than that of running the same project in Canada and the United States.

Well-equipped research network: Israel has a network of well-equipped laboratories, sophisticated hospitals and universities. Monies contributed go directly to advancing knowledge, not on constructing buildings or paying administrative costs.

Unified health care system: all Israelis belong to a national medical program, so record keeping and bio-statistical data collection are relatively simple.

Ethnic diversity: the Israeli population comprises of ethnic groups from many countries, making the nation itself a superb “laboratory” in which to study the role of environmental and cultural factors in the development of cancer.

http://www.icrfbuzz.org/web/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7:about-icrf&catid=6:about-icrf&Itemid=8

reviewed by Moishe Alexander, CFC  Canadian funding corp CEO

(IsraelNN.com)

Israel	Main Offices 12 Aharonovitz St., POB 435 Bnei Brak 51103 Tel: 03-617-1888 Fax: 03-617-1880 Email: aleh@aleh.org Non-Profit ID: 58-004-030-1
United States	Aleh Foundation 5317 13th Ave Brooklyn NY 11219 Tel: 718-851-4596/800-317-2534 Fax: 718-851-4597 Email: shlomo@alehfoundation.org Non-Profit ID: 11-2716763
United States	Aleh Negev JNF 42 East 69th St. New York, NY 10021 Tel: 212-879-9305 x 240 Fax: 212-517-3293 Email: yossi@aleh.org Non-Profit ID: 13-1659627
Canada	Aleh Rehabilitation of Canada 75 The Donway West, Suite 1400 Don Mills Ontario M3C 2E9 Tel: 416-449-6350 Ext. 28 Email: info@aleh.ca Non-Profit ID: 86477 4088 RR0001
United Kingdom/Great Britain	Aleh Charitable Foundation 37 Ferncroft Avenue London NW3 7PG Tel: 207-433-8303 Email: alehnews@aleh.info Non-Profit ID: 327766
Mexico	Aleh South America Tel: +972-52-879-7869 Fax: +972-3-671-1880 Email: zeevkirtchuk@bezeqint.net

http://www.aleh.org/eng/donate.asp

reviewed by Moishe Alexander, CFC CEO

The American Jewish Committee has the mission to safeguard the welfare and security of Jews in the United States, in Israel, and throughout the world and to enhance the quality of American Jewish life by helping to ensure Jewish continuity and deepen ties between American and Israeli Jews.

American Red Magen David for Israel (ARMDI) is the only authorized fundraising organization in the United States for Magen David Adom, Israel’s equivalent to a Red Cross Society. ARMDI supports the MDA Emergency Medical, Ambulance Blood and Disaster Services.

The American Technion Society (ATS) supports the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Israel’s premier university, to ensure the Technion’s continued excellence and achievement. The future of a secure and economically independent Israel is in high technology, and the future of high technology in Israel is at the Technion.

For more than 88 years, the Anti-Defamation League has been combating anti-Semitism and bigotry of all kinds. Their web site chronicles the history and current status of many issues in this ongoing battle.

Since 1843 B’nai B’rith, “Children of the Covenant,” has carried forward the idealistic mission: uniting Jews in service to their community and the world. B’nai B’rith is the world’s largest Jewish human rights, community action and humanitarian organization.

The Congress of Secular Jewish Organizations is composed of independent organizations whose unity of purpose is a secular expression of our Jewish heritage, with particular emphasis on the cultural and ethical precepts of Jewish learning.

The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations represents 52 national Jewish organizations from across the political and religious spectrum. The Conference provides a forum for deliberations of American Jewish leadership and a central address for key American, Israeli and other world leaders to consult on issues of critical concern to the Jewish community.

Giving Wisely, sponsored by the School of Social Work of the Hebrew University, is the Internet Directory of Israeli nonprofit and philanthropic organizations, developed to help donors to evaluate and make educated decisions (or even know which organizations are legal) so that they can choose those that are closest to their own areas of interest.

Hadassah the Women’s Zionist Organization of America, is a volunteer women’s organization, whose members are motivated and inspired to strengthen their partnership with Israel, ensure Jewish continuity, and realize their potential as a dynamic force in American society. In Israel, Hadassah initiates and supports pace-setting health care, education and youth institutions, and land development to meet the country’s changing needs. In the United States, Hadassah enhances the quality of American and Jewish life through its education and Zionist youth programs, promotes health awareness, and provides personal enrichment and growth for its members.

• Newtown (PA) Chapter of Hadassah

Hadassah Kaddish is a program under which your donation to Hadassah ensures that the ancient Kaddish prayer will be recited each year beneath the Chagall windows at Hadassah Hospital in Jeruslaem.

JCC Association of North America is the leadership network of, and central agency for the Jewish Community Center Movement. It is comprised of more than 275 JCCs, YM-YWHAs and camps in the US and Canada, annually serving more than one million members and an additional million non-member users.

Jewish Family & Life (JFL), a fast-growing pluralistic entrepreneurial non-profit organization, is the world’s leading publisher of original Jewish content online. Their on-line presence includes:

• JewishFamily.com
• GenerationJ.com
• SocialAction.com
• JVibe.com
• MzVibe.com
• JewishSports.com
• JewZ.com
• JBooks.com

Jewish Deleware is a fine example of a website devoted to a regional Jewish community.

The first fifty years of the Jewish National Fund were spent purchasing the land that would become the State of Israel. Now after another fifty years spent developing the land for the people, and with the continued assistance of supporters from around the world, JNF has a vital role in conserving and protecting the ecology of the land for now and the future. The JNF web site offers a lot of ways to help Israel, including planting trees in Israel and helping Israeli victims of terrorism.

MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger is a national, nonprofit agency which allocates donations from the Jewish community to nonprofit organizations providing food, help and hope to hungry people of all faiths and backgrounds.

NAVAH Organization provides financial and social support to victims of terrorism in Israel. NAVAH receives donations that are used to assemble care packages to be delivered by groups of volunteers to victims and their families in Israel. Each package contains a loving message from donors and the organization works to facilitate contact between donors and recipients if it is requested. NAVAH also provides direct financial assistance to help victims meet their increased expenses as they recuperate from their injuries.

United Jewish Communities represents 189 Jewish federations, 400 independent communities and 700,000 people across North America, who contribute more than $2 billion every year to help repair the world. The UJC site is a rich source of news and information about Jewish affairs and charitable works.

World ORT is one of the largest non-governmental education and training organisations in the world, with past and present activities in over 100 countries. A non-profit, non-political organisation, ORT’s objective is to meet the educational and vocational requirements of diverse students throughout the world. Currently, ORT educates or trains more than 290,000 students annually, through its network of programmes, training centres and schools.

http://middleeastfacts.com/links/links_jewish_charity.php

The report reviewed by Moishe Alexander, CFC CEO

More and more people who think of themselves as average donors are creating Donor Advised Funds at the Jewish Foundation of Greater Toronto. As a matter of fact, over 30% of the almost 300 Foundation funds are Donor Advised Funds.

“Many people don’t realize they can do all their charitable giving through the Foundation,” says Carol Kassel, Director of the Jewish Foundation of Greater Toronto. “They can support causes of their choice, here, in Israel or anywhere in the world where Jews are in need. And it makes giving so much easier. Donors don’t need to write separate cheques for each donation or create different charitable vehicles.”

There are many ways to put yourself in the driver’s seat when it comes to making decisions about your philanthropy.

One way is to set up your own private foundation to look after your annual grants to any charity you like. For most of us, this sounds a bit daunting.

And it is. Not only from the financial point of view, which requires that you disburse at least 3.5 percent of the invested assets each year without disturbing the initial capital, but setting up your own foundation is a cumbersome and expensive process. You need a board of directors, investment consultants, and legal and accounting experts to incorporate, register and organize your private foundation. There is a certain need and a place for these private foundations, but for most of us – it is a stretch.

Fortunately, there are other alternatives. “A Donor Advised Fund is a simple, convenient way to streamline all your charitable giving,” explains Kassel. “The whole purpose of a Donor Advised Fund is to put the donors at ease by letting the Jewish Foundation look after all the administration of the fund. The donors can then concentrate on the causes that mean the most to them.”

HOW A DONOR ADVISED FUND WORKS

•   A donor may start a fund with a minimum contribution of $10,000 of cash or other assets.

•  The donor receives an immediate tax deduction when he or she makes a contribution to the fund, but does not need to make a quick decision about which charities to support.

•   The donor may recommend distributions from the fund to registered charities whose activities fall within the broadly defined charitable mandate of the Jewish Foundation.

•   The assets in Donor Advised Funds are pooled and invested by professional money managers who are selected to manage the funds wisely and profitably. By pooling funds for investment and administrative purposes, the Jewish Foundation is able to minimize costs while engaging first rate fund managers.

•   Last fiscal year, our pooled funds earned 10.5%.

•  Donors are free from administration and record keeping. The Jewish Foundation processes distributions, mails cheques to recipients, administers and invests the assets of the fund and issues regular financial reports on the status of the fund to the donor. This frees the donor to concentrate on the rewards of charitable giving.

•   Donors enjoy ready access to the knowledge and experience of the staff of the Jewish Foundation regarding the Jewish community’s local and overseas needs and the organizations that exist to serve those needs.

“These funds provide the greatest flexibility and convenience without burdensome reporting requirements and high administrative costs. They offer terrific tax advantages as well,” says Kassel.

“Our donors are often people who don’t want to just write a cheque,” explains Kassel. “They want to be more actively involved in their philanthropy. They want to support the organizations that will directly impact the issues they care deeply about.”

reviewed by Moishe Alexander, CFC CEO