April 14, 2008 / 9 Nissan 5768

The situation in Israel’s Western Negev is deteriorating; the range of Kassam rockets is widening and more Israeli citizens are facing the terror of life on the frontlines. Children, youth and adults are suffering from ongoing trauma, businesses are collapsing and the social fabric of the region is deteriorating.

The Jewish Agency, with the indefatigable support of its founding partners, United Jewish Communities-Federations of North America and Keren Hayesod, and other funders: the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, IDB and other major business partners and philanthropists throughout Israel, and donors around the world, continue to assist the people of Sderot and the Gaza perimeter communities.

Jewish Agency chairman Zeev Bielski at the Sderot Merchants Fair with
young people from the Jewish Agency's Youth Futures program in Sderot.

In an effort to boost sales for small business owners, the Jewish Agency recently held a Sderot Merchants Fair in Tel Aviv. More than 20,000 Israelis attended the two-day event at the upscale Tel Aviv Port. The Fair featured 124 businesses from Sderot and Gaza perimeter communities, including artists, craftspeople, jewelers, food vendors, clothes designers and even a few local hairdressers. Entertainment was provided by Sderot's popular teen musicians and singers. The Fair was run in conjunction with the Tel Aviv Municipality and the owners of Hangar 11, who donated their prime location for the event.

"This fair was a big boost, both morally and financially, for businesspeople who have seen their businesses drastically decline as a result of the never-ending Kassam rocket attacks," said Danny Dahan, Chairman of the Sderot and Gaza perimeter communities Chamber of Commerce.

"I could not have hoped for more warmth and generosity than what we received during the fair," said jewelry maker Ahinoam Golan.

During the upcoming Passover vacation, the Jewish Agency will give some 2,500 children respite from terror and take them on field trips, to amusement parks and to nature reserves throughout Israel.

Critical activities undertaken by the Jewish Agency to assist the region's residents include: 

• giving more than 12,000 children the opportunity to enjoy respite activities in the center and north of the country
• supporting small and medium businesses in the region facing financial ruin as a result of the situation
• training some 300 educators to work with children living through the trauma
• providing over 200 victims of Kassam attacks with financial assistance through the Fund for Victims of Terror 
• providing supplemental educational activities for more than 2,000 pupils
• renovating more than 100 bomb shelters in the region
• granting more than 500 scholarships to students studying in the Sapir Regional College (near Sderot) to ensure their academic continuity and the college’s continued operation
• taking more than 2,500 children on outings and adventures during the upcoming Passover vacation