Union Hurricane Disaster Relief Fund Tops $2.6 million
$1 million in Grants Made

As of today, the total given to the Hurricane Disaster Relief Fund topped $2.6 million. We have now announced grants of more than $1 million to disaster relief agencies, Jewish agencies and Reform synagogues that have been in the forefront of relief efforts.
In addition, the Union has agreed to underwrite for two months the salaries and benefits for fulltime employees in the four Greater New Orleans Reform synagogues. These congregations have seen a precipitous drop in income since the storm and their members, now scattered throughout the Southeast, are facing financial difficulties of their own. The Union will continue to work with other agencies to determine ways to keep these synagogue viable for the future, but we must respond to their requests to help them make payroll and meet their immediate needs at this time. Thankfully, the response to our disaster relief appeal has been overwhelming, and we are able to provide assistance to both the general community as well as to our Reform community. The needs of congregations affected by Hurricane Rita will be addressed as the impact becomes clear.

Union Camps Help Evacuees

Both the Henry S. Jacobs Camp in Utica, MS, and the Greene Family Camp near Waco, TX, served as evacuation centers during the hurricanes. We urge you to read the account of activities at "Camp Rita" by Greene Family Camp Director Loui Dobin. (See the blog at http://urj.org/relief/blog/)

In addition, the Union is encouraging the 1.5 million Reform Jews in the United States and Canada to participate in other relief activities in their local communities and on the national scene. Earlier this month the Union initiated Jacobs' Ladder: A Relief Project of the Union for Reform Judaism at the Henry S. Jacobs Camp in Utica, MS. Working in partnership with the town of Utica, the Union and Jacobs Camp are operating a staging and distribution center for relief supplies from a warehouse provided by the city. The center is collecting supplies and distributing them through a number of local and regional ministries and relief centers that serve the greater Jackson community, the population of which has doubled since the storm.

Read about Jacobs' Ladder (http://urj.org/relief/jacobsladder/)

The following donations from the Hurricane Disaster Relief Fund have been made (Full descriptions of these grants are available online):

Grants Made as of September 27, 2005

Hurricane Relief Funding: $720,000
United Jewish Communities - $150,000
Jacobs' Ladder: A Project of the Union for Reform Judaism - $125,000
Enterprise Corporation of the Delta - $60,000
ACORN - $50,000
Louisiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence (LCADV) - $50,000
Children's Health Fund - $50,000
American Friends Service Committee - $30,000
America's Second Harvest - $30,000
Direct Relief International - $30,000
International Medical Corps - $30,000
Mercy Corps - $30,000
Oxfam America - $30,000
Baton Rouge Area Foundation - $20,000
House of Hope/Casa de Esperanza de los Niños - $20,000
Jewish Federation of Baton Rouge - Katrina Relief Fund - $10,000
Fourth District Baptist Association - $5,000
Reform Congregation grant: approximately $445,000

Beth Israel Congregation, Jackson, MS - $10,000
Temple Beth El, San Antonio, TX - $10,000
Congregation B'nai Israel, Baton Rouge, LA - $10,000
Beth Shalom Synagogue, Baton Rouge, LA - $10,000
Gemiluth Chassodim, Alexandria, LA - $5,000
Two months salaries and benefits for affected congregations - up to $400,000

Again, thank you for your support of the Union, its congregations and the sacred work currently underway to repair our world and aid those in need.

Robert Heller
Chairman
Rabbi Eric Yoffie
President