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Music Mends Minds

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Meeting Carol Rosenstein is a joyful experience. Her welcoming embrace, colorful scarves and passion for her newfound work are magnetic.

She and her beloved Irwin, a lawyer, met after Carol placed an ad in a Los Angeles newspaper seeking a new mate.  Several years ago, Irwin developed Parkinson’s disease and then dementia, and the course of their lives together took an unexpected turn. When Carol noticed Irwin’s spirits and energy rising as he played familiar tunes on his piano, she knew she was on to something significant. In her own words, “music mends minds.”

So together, Carol and Irwin began MMM to promote music as an alternative therapy for neurodegenerative diseases. In addition to LA’s original intergenerational Fifth Dementia Band, new groups are forming across the country and overseas. The beautiful music and camaraderie engendered amongst all involved forestalls the progression of Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and related dementias, inspiring the daughter of one participant to share that the ”music gave my mum hope, laughter, and joy when nothing else could.”

GPF funds help underwrite the costs of a music therapist to enhance MMM’s groundbreaking work.

Ani Shlishi

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“First comes the greater good, the welfare of others is second, and I am Third.”  David Baskin first heard those words from his high school baseball coach, and they led him to found Ani Shlishi in 2016.  Ending his service as an Israeli Lone Soldier, David was stunned by the enormous piles of discarded clothing and other usable items left by his fellow soldiers, so he delivered it all to agencies serving those in need. In so doing, David personally experienced how peoples’ lives can be changed by small acts.

Soon joined by Ilan Kedar, once his commanding officer and a successful entrepreneur, the two sought additional resources of good usable clothing and created “pop-up” second-hand shops around Tel Aviv. Today, Ani Shlishi stands as a business on Allenby Street, where the store acts as a “laboratory” where at-risk Israeli youth learn marketable skills and gain confidence in their abilities.  Profits from sales provide the youth with scholarships for vocational training.

Our funds cover stipends for young people being trained in the store.

Kaima Hukuk

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When you visit Kaima Hukuk on the shores of the Kinneret you quickly understand the isolation of this part of the country. That isolation means scarce resources for young people who have struggled to fit into more traditional classrooms. It was for this population that Efrat Noy, along with several educators and social workers, created Kaima Hukuk. Their alternative classroom attracts kids between the ages of 14- 21.

Many teens who cannot be recruited to the IDF come from similar backgrounds as the young Kaima farmers. Working with a program that facilitates national service activities, Hukuk’s empowering environment lets them fulfill this requirement as they flourish and set an example for younger participants. Our funds support an afterschool center.

 

 

Just Imagine

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The magical memories of summer camp include sports, campfires, swimming in the lake, and friendships that go on year after year. But for city kids whose families can’t afford such a luxury, it’s all in the imagination.

Abby Sondak’s 18 summers at sleepaway camp shaped who she is today. With a degree in elementary education and a job in a Washington, D.C. charter school, Abby realized a sleepaway camp experience could be life changing for kids in D.C. Title I schools. To date, nearly 150 kids have benefited from Abby’s vision and returned home with greater self-confidence, more independence and an awareness of what lies beyond their neighborhood.

Abby also understood the skills kids learn at camp can help prepare them for college life. For high school students the “Camp to College” program offers ACT tutoring, campus tours, service projects and workshops to help get them ready for the next stage of their lives.

GPF funds allow this all-volunteer organization to hire part-time administrative help, freeing up Abby’s time to expand the program even further.

 

Swipe Out Hunger

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It is disturbing that 1 in 7 college students worry about where their next meal may come from. In California, Rachel Sumekh’s home state, that number is even more troubling–1 in 3 struggle with hunger insecurity daily. To change that reality, in 2009 Rachel and her friends at UCLA began using their meal cards to purchase sandwiches which they distributed to hungry people along the city’s streets. Eventually, the number of meals purchased with meal points reached a staggering 15,000.

With so much unused funding left on students’ cards, what better way to feed hungry people throughout the community and on campus. Today, Rachel’s organization, Swipe Out Hunger has begun a revolution dedicated to empowering students on campuses across the country to end hunger and homelessness.  In addition to the more than 26 campuses now participating, Swipe Out Hunger also advocates to raise awareness of the problem in state legislatures. Our funds help implement campus programs.

Nivcharot (Lo Nivcharot, Lo Bocharot-No Voice-No Vote)

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Estee Shushan is one of thousands of Haredi women with voices that need to be heard. Before the 2012 elections, she started a Facebook campaign asking the public not to vote for parties that exclude women. That resulted in a full-fledged movement headed by Estee and now others who have been inspired by what she has accomplished.  Her years of raising awareness, lobbying and advocacy efforts led to the creation of the Knesset Caucus for Haredi Women, and regular participation in various Knesset committees.

Nivcharot provides training, leadership, and skill building opportunities for Haredi women no longer happy with the status quo.  Through exposure to more modern feminist thought, public speaking workshops, and more, these women are finding their voices. Two “graduates” of their courses have even run in municipal elections while still others are involved in various political initiatives.

Our funds help underwrite leadership training.