This post is part of a series highlighting the international work our Federation is doing in partnership with the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee. Learn more by joining us at Global Jewry: One People, One World on November 16th—an in-depth look at our impact and the challenges we face.
Together with our partner, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), our Federation is revitalizing Jewish life in over 70 countries around the world—including the Baltic region, where Jewish culture was nearly destroyed by the effects of the Holocaust and communist repression. Our Federation has had a focused partnership with Baltic countries for over a decade, where our work centers on strengthening and renewing Jewish life and supporting Jews in need.
Though the Baltic Jewish population was decimated by concentration camps, it never fully disappeared. However, the growing Jewish community took a nosedive in 2008, when government social services were cut in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia following the global financial crisis. Many Jews in these countries suddenly struggled to put food on the table for their families and found themselves in need of assistance. Our Federation supported and continues to offer the hardest hit communities everything from professional job training to hot meals and medical care.
Helping Baltic Jews through challenging economic times is not the only action we are taking in the region. We are revitalizing Baltic Jewish communities, ensuring that they have every opportunity for a strong and vibrant future. Through Jewish study and leadership programs, including Limmud and our School Tripling program, we are making it possible for Jewish life in the Baltics to thrive.
One of the JDC’s most popular programs, the Olameinu Baltic Jewish Summer Camp, has been immersing young children, teens and even young adults in Jewish culture for over a decade. Check out the video below to hear how Martin Levi is helping strengthen his local Jewish community by working at the camp:
Olameinu is just one program we are making possible in the Baltics with the support of our community—and it’s just a fraction of the impactful work our Federation and the JDC are doing with Jewish communities around the world. Learn more by joining us at Global Jewry: One People, One World on Sunday, November 16th! This captivating program will offer an in-depth look at our work and the challenges we face—with opportunities to hear firsthand from our partners on the ground how we’re transforming lives throughout the Jewish world.
Register for Global Jewry: One People, One World today!
For more information, contact OnePeople@JewishLA.org.
