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The Good People Fund

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Special Individual Needs

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Gideonsoup

Perhaps the most profound lesson we learn each day is that people’s lives can disintegrate precipitously, with little warning and, all too often, with little hope for change. Those with the fewest resources are at greatest risk.

Sometimes we learn about these situations from the very organizations we support; other sources are social workers or doctors with whom we have developed a close relationship and who know that when no other resources are available we can be “a place to turn where all else fails.” Sometimes this means saving a life⎯literally.

In addition to “keeping the lights on,” we also provide emergency funds for food, medical needs, summer camp and rent. Sometimes, by joining forces with other resources, we are able to mitigate even more serious needs, such as purchasing a car for an otherwise self-sufficient victim of domestic violence, or paying tuition for young men and women who have chosen to leave their insular, ultra-religious community, losing both family and friends in the process.

In each case, we know our funds have made a significant difference in helping to restore dignity and hope to people who far too often have so little.

INTRA-Israel National Therapeutic Riding Association

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When Dan* returned home from serving the IDF during Israel’s Second Intifada, friends and family noticed significant changes in his personality. He became depressed and argumentative, experienced intense flashbacks of his time on the battlefield and was unable to sleep. The PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) that afflicted him drove him to isolate himself from those around him.  He remained that way until his psychologist recommended equine therapy.

It was for soldiers like Dan, as well as children and adults with disabilities, that Dr. Anita Shkedi and her husband Giora began their equine therapy program in a bucolic setting in central Israel. Riding and caring for horses builds trust and promotes kindness and positive thoughts in people with PTSD. For those with physical disabilities, riding a horse stimulates muscles untouched by more traditional physical therapy.  Our grant supports therapeutic equine riding for soldiers with PTSD.

Jeremy’s Circle

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Good People Fund Jeremys Circle

Jeremy Coleman succumbed to cancer in 2007, but his legacy lives on in this beautiful program, which realizes the shared vision of Jeremy, his wife, Pamela Becker, and his two sisters.

Confronted by Jeremy’s terminal cancer diagnosis, family and friends assisted in every way possible. One of the most meaningful moments came when Zoe, his then-6-year-old daughter, was uplifted by spending time with another girl her age whose father also suffered from cancer.

That revelation inspired the blueprint for Jeremy’s Circle, which creates a supportive community for children whose parent or sibling has cancer or who have experienced a cancer loss in their immediate family.

Hundreds of children and their families have participated in the free, volunteer-run Fun Days, including some tailored specifically to teens, held throughout the year. Our funds help pay for administrative costs.

ATZUM

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Good People Fund ATZUM

As a champion for all that is good and right, Rabbi Levi Lauer has dedicated his life to social justice. In his adopted country, Israel, he formalized this quest by forming ATZUM-Justice Works in 2002. One of ATZUM’s chief programs was to end human trafficking and prostitution in that country and after innumerable attempts the Knesset finally passed legislation making Israel only the tenth country in the world to do so.

Over the past seventeen years, ATZUM has addressed other critical issues such as support for survivors of terror attacks and for non-Jews residing in Israel who saved Jewish lives during the Holocaust (Righteous Among the Nations). Most recently, ATZUM has worked to improve the lives of refugees and asylum seekers (many from African nations) who struggle to survive.  Our funds are directed to the refugee and asylum seeker program as well as individual needs.

 

 

Shutaf

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Good People Fund Shutaf

Inclusive. Interactive. Inspiring. These three words could easily be the tagline for Shutaf, a Jerusalem-based, inclusionary after-school and camp program for children and teens with and without disabilities. But as fitting as these “I” words may be to describe this winning program, there is nothing “I” about Shutaf. It is really all about the “We.”

Miriam Avraham and Beth Steinberg, two Jerusalem moms who each have kids with special needs, lamented the dearth of meaningful opportunities for their children. Rather than just identify the void, they teamed up to fill it.

This joint effort began in 2007 as a summer program with 10 children and has evolved into a finely tuned, thriving organization that provides enrichment experiences for more than 150 children. Shutaf programs encourage diversity, welcome children from across the religious and economic spectrum, and provide opportunities for growth, friendship and learning through the classic line-up of camp activities.

A visit to Shutaf is always an experience in organized chaos and fun. Kids who otherwise would remain isolated can feel good about themselves and are part of a supportive community, while other kids learn lessons of acceptance and celebrate differences. That is the magic of Shutaf and the prime reason we offer funds for both programming and administrative needs.

Survivor Mitzvah Project

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His name is Isaak and today he is 90 years old.  Born in Berdichev, Ukraine, Isaak still recalls very clearly the summer of 1941 when the Fascists appeared and ordered all of the Jews to a nearby town and a certain death. Isaak’s father approached a neighbor who kindly sheltered the family underneath their barn. Food was scarce and danger ever-present. And yet, somehow, the family survived. But, as Isaak says, “Humiliation, hunger and cold. This is what our family endured.”

It is for Isaak and Fanya and Luba and Tsilya and thousands more who reside in remote areas of Eastern Europe that Zane Buzby founded The Survivor Mitzvah Project. After traveling to the region years ago in search of her own family’s roots, Zane was stunned by the poverty, poor health and isolation she witnessed. She returned home inspired to make sure that these elders who have already suffered so much, live their last days in some comfort. Today, more than 2500 people benefit from financial assistance and regular contact, assuring them that they are not forgotten.  Our funds underwrite survivors’ needs.