world Israeli Survivors Organization aims to sustain Israeli Holocaust survivors through food, social programs. Daniela Berkowitz Special to the Jewish News R ecent statistics find that poverty and loneliness plague Israel's 192,000 Holocaust survivors, a population that is dwindling and in dire need of support. One in four Holocaust survivors lives below the poverty line; and one in three lives alone, according to data released in January from the Foundation for the Benefit of Holocaust Victims in Israel. About 70 percent of survivors require aid to pay for basic necessities like food, medication and clothing. The foundation reports that 10,000 Holocaust survivors have no living family, and countless survivors say that they are not in contact with any relatives. Two- thirds of survivors are over age 80, and 40 percent are over age 86. The internationally recognized date for Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day, falls on Monday, April 28. Of the several charities in Israel aiding Holocaust survivors, Meir Panim instills dignity, respect and relief to many of the country's neediest residents. The organiza- tion serves all people, regardless of ethnic- ity or religious background through food and social service programs. "It's refreshing that we are able help Israelis from all walks of life said David Roth, president of American Friends of Meir Panim. "We know that there is a great need for poverty assistance across many sectors of Israeli society, so we try to target as many of those in need as pos- sible:' While Meir Panim does not have spe- cific data on the people who receive its services, the organization does provide aid to countless Holocaust survivors through- out the country. Dozens of Holocaust survivors par- ticipate annually in Meir Panim's unique "Kulam b'Seder" Passover campaign. The project links up hosts offering a seat at a Passover seder to a guest in need. Project coordinator Shalom Cohen said that over the past several years, most inquiries come from people who feel lonely around the holiday and find it difficult to celebrate the holiday without family or friends to lean on. Dozens of Holocaust survivors partici- pate each year. "This is a sensational program that has an overwhelmingly positive response. Last year, we received nearly 10,000 inquiries and paired 2,000 guests and hosts for Passover:' Cohen said, adding 46 April 24 • 2014 Two men eat at a free restaurant. that the outcome was slightly larger this year. "Each request gets VIP treatment. If someone calls and requests an Iraqi meal, we find him an Iraqi family. If someone has children aged 4 and 7, we look for hosts with children around the same age. People sometimes want to visit a new neighborhood, so we search to find the right place for them. Whatever guests or hosts request, we try to meet their needs:' Cohen oversees the 10 coordi- An elderly man gets a meal at a Meir Panim free nators who manage the Kulam restaurant. b'Seder hotline in the months prior to Passover. The staff asks several questions about hosts and guests school donated food and clothing for him to gather information to make appropriate because we knew he was not so well-off. "shidduchim" (matches). Hosts are encour- It was so special for us to take him in for aged to invite their guests to meet the fam- seder, for Shabbat and for the last couple ily prior to the seder so that they feel more of days of Passover. He warmed up to our comfortable. family so well and was wowed by our food "When there is a place in the heart, and the company:' she said. there is a place at the table, enough food Many participants recalled being and a complete ability to help others:' amazed at how the convergence of dif- said Osnat Beny, who hosted 25 guests at ferent perspectives yielded a profound her home last Passover through Kulam sense of unity and togetherness. "We b'Seder. "That Passover was very moving. have countless stories of people who We had so many guests sitting around our continue the relationship and the connec- long table, which was filled with festive tion beyond Passover; Cohen said. "This foods and surrounded by laughter. It was program fosters deep connections between so special and everyone enjoyed it." strangers in a way that is unimaginable:' There was a feeling of togetherness and Feeding The Surviving Hearts family, Beny described. One of the guests, she said, specifically stood out. He was the Asher, a Jerusalem resident who lost his security guard stationed outside her chil- parents at Auschwitz, spends his days beg- dren's school. "For years, the parents at the ging for money at one of the city's busiest intersections. Daily, he earns between 50 and 60 shekels from the small change people donate, he estimated. For Passover and Rosh Hashanah, Asher is one of the 2,000 people who receive prepaid food cards from Meir Panim. The organiza- tion works with social workers across Israel to hand-deliver prepaid cards filled with 250 shekels to needy individuals and families who can use them at major Israeli supermarket chains to purchase food and household items. The cards are made with revolutionary technology that tracks purchases, blocking their use for alcohol or cigarettes, but still grant- ing recipients the flexibility to customize their purchases. "These food cards change the way many of Israel's neediest families cel- ebrate the holidays:' said Roth. "These cards give our impoverished neighbors a chance to buy the products they want and need, giving them the dignity to make their celebrations special and joyful:' Upon receiving a food card from Meir Panim, Asher said, "This is going to save my holiday. I'm going to use this to buy myself one chicken, some fruit and vegetables. If I'm able to, I'd like to buy something new for my apartment:' In addition to the special holiday pro- grams, year-round Meir Panim branches across Israel serve at least 300,000 free meals out of restaurant-style soup kitch- ens, which also prepare meals-on-wheels for delivery to an additional 125,000 people. Aryeh Goldstein, the head of opera- tions at the Meir Panim Free Restaurant in Jerusalem, said that many of the people his branch services are Holocaust survivors. While Meir Panim does not ask questions of its guests or keep records, some people open up and share their life stories. A regular at Meir Panim's Free Restaurant in Jerusalem, the soft-spoken Menachem retells his childhood memo- ries of school in Poland. With a smile, he laughs about how incredible it is that his grandchildren and great-grandchildren are studying in schools in Israel, espe- cially after he survived the terrible condi- tions of the Holocaust. "Meir Panim gives me great assistance and support:' he said quietly. "They try to take care of us through food and other ser- vices. Meir Panim is such a blessing:' ❑ For more information about Meir Panim's special outreach and relief efforts, visit meirpanim.org.