UJA, Symbol of American Jewish Unity Is
Citadel of Strength for Jewry Overseas'
By MOSHE SHARETT
Chairman, Jewish Agency for Israel.
The Silver Jubilee of the United Jewish Appeal. is,.a landmark,.
an opportunity and a challenge.
It is a landmark attesting to the solidity and permanence of
an organization unique in scope, character and achievement._
American Jewry is a citadel of concentrated strength ,for the.
Jewish people throughout the world. By its very size . and full freedorn -
of self-assertion it is destined to play a decisive role in shaping Jewish .
life in Diaspora. The significance of its sup-
port for the struggling, rapidly growing and
problems-ridden State of Israel cannot be
overestimated.
Yet that great community, by virtue of
its historic evolution, has never adopted an
all-embracing organizational framework. It
has forged no constitutional instrument for
united action at a national level. But it has
rallied, with a most impressive manifestation
of unity of purpose, to the banner of the
UJA that became the focus of its coast-to-
coast unity. Cutting across all ideological and
denominational barriers, this focus radiates
Moshe Sharett
its stimulation to all corners of American
Jewish life, elicits an active response to the call of duty everywhere
and harnesses the energies of the entire community to a common
endeavor.
What constitutes the vitality of this organization is that
adherence to it entails not an absract profession of faith but an
act of concrete performance. Yet it would be shallow to relegate
the function of the UJA to a mere technicality of signing and
collection of checks. Without a strong emotional appeal penetrat-
ing deep into the soul of a Jew, without an imaginative vision,
reaching into the distant future, the stupendous record of the
UJA would have never been achieved. The UJA is not a collec-
tion box. It is a cause. By contributing to it you dedicate your-
self to a high purpose—you identify yourself with a historic
effort, you take part in the shaping of a future.
After the initial attempt at coping with the refugee problem
in the wake of World War II came the spectacular emergence of Israel
—an epoch making event which in its turn brought forth that messianic
tidal wave of immigration.
Transplantation, integration and rehabilitation. proved long-
drawn-out processes. Gradually, the realization grew that the Jewish
communities of 'the free world are in for a prolonged and concerted
effort of free-gift financing if they are not to miss the chances of
rescue and if they are to offer those saved the opportunity of rebuild-
ing their lives on solid foundations.
- Immediate relief, chanelled through the Joint Distribution Com-
mittee, cannot certainly be provided on a repayable basis.
Nor can the 'functions undertaken by the Jewish Agency, such
as transportino the immigrants, taking care of them at the initial stage,
assisting in their
b housing, settling them on the land, which in many
cases had at first to be reclaimed and developed, ever be financed
by normal investment capital.
The Israel Bonds Issue and private investment capital complement
the work done by the UJA. They are no substitute for it. Without the
groundwork laid by the UJA, they would have been inconceivable.
They build upon the foundations laid by the UJA—foundations which
must continue to be laid as long as a mass immigration of impecunious
people continues to flow and the need for developing the land's latent
resources without the expectation of a financial return persists.
By now it is patent that the range of UJA's work is to be
measured not in terms of years but of decades—of decades to
come. The 25th anniversary is an important milestone—it is
by far not the journey's end. From this point of vantage long
vistas extending into the future must be envisaged. As long as
there are Jews oppressed by spiritual bondage or vegetating in
material misery, the work of the UJA will not be done. If only
their rescue is attainable these communities must be salvaged
and brought over, settled and integrated. The process takes
time, but as long as it is a life-giving one, its length must be
matched by patience and perseverance.
The celebration of the UJA's 25th anniversary, so fittingly
inaugurated in Israel by the advent in October, 1962 of the most
authoritative Study Mission that has ever visited this country, is a
great opportunity for taking stock of these historic realities in terms
of a long range program and the compelling tasks of the moment.
Allied Jewish Campaign Chairmen,
Henry Wineinan, 1926
Nathan M. Gross, 1929
Henry Wineman, 1930
Aaron DeRoy, 1931
Aaron DeRoy, 1932
Aaron DeRoy, 1933
Henry Wineman, 1934
Henry Wineman, 1935
Fred M. Butzel, 1936
Abraham Srere, 1936
Henry Wineman, 1937
. Fred M. Butzel, 1938
Fred M. Butzel, 1939
Henry Wineman, 1939
Fred M. Butzel, 1940
Henry Wineman, 1941
Fred M. Butzel, 1942
(War Chest), 1943
(War Chest), 1944
(War Chest), 1945
Nate S. Shapero, 1946
Fred M. Butzel, 1947
Maurice Aronsson, 1948
Louis Berry, 1949
Louis Berry, 1950
Harvey H. Goldman, 1950
Julian H. Krolik, 1950
Abe Kasle, 1951
Abe Kasle, 1952
Irving W. Blumberg, 1953
Harvey H. Goldman, 1953
Irving W. Blumberg, 1954
Harvey H. Goldman, 1954
John E. Lurie, 1955
John E. Lurie, 1956
Max M. Fisher, 1956
Max M. Fisher, 1957
Max M. Fisher, 1958
Irwin I. Cohn, 1959
Leonard N. Simons, 1959
Irwin I. Cohn, 1960
Paul Zuckerman, 1961
Paul Zuckerman, 1962
Charles H. Gershenson, 1963
Our
Blessings
To The
JA
Individually and as a firm . . . as participants
in the great humanitarian functions of the
Allied Jewish Campaign and its sponsoring
organization, the Jewish Welfare Federation
. .. we humbly reaffirm our devotion to our
campaigns' major beneficiary, the United
Jewish Appeal.
For 25 years, during the most crucial period in
history, UJA has labored to relieve want, to
resettle hundreds of thousands of dispos-
sessed Jews, to assist in creating homes for
them in Israel... May the hands of the UJA
leaders be strengthened, and may the con-
tinuing activities, with the aid of a loyal
Detroit constituency, bring to fruition the
aim of putting an end, for all time to come,
to the homelessness of the needy and to the
want that has called for the supreme effort
in which we have been privileged to partici-
pate in our wonderful community.
Paul and Helen Zuckerman
Velvet Peanut
Products Company