JCA Today

CEO Message

We are delighted to bring you our August newsletter after a slight sabbatical for JCA Campaign 2023. We were pleased to reach an incredible $11m by EOFY. Despite challenging economic times, almost 3,000 households in our local Jewish community felt that donating to JCA was a priority. We still have lots to do to achieve our 2023 target of $15.8m, but we wanted this edition to recognise the efforts of so many in the last six months and as always, to thank you for your support.

In this edition, we acknowledge our youngest and oldest donors, both amazing community members, and we celebrate donors who have just passed the 30 years of giving milestone. Mazel Tov to all; we are blessed to have you.

We proudly support 25 organisations that provide meaningful programs and services in our community daily. We thank them for helping us with our essential fundraising by having promoted JCA within their communities and explaining JCA’s campaign is their campaign. Shalom went above and beyond this year, and we give them special mention.

It was also my turn to provide a recipe for Nosh Nook, and I have supplied something which reflects my South African and Sephardic braai heritage, Peri Peri Chicken. I hope you enjoy it as much as my family and friends have.

Lastly, some concerns have been raised about a recent article in the media suggesting that JCA funds may have been used for Stand Up's Kol Halev initative. Let me assure you that any implication that we have funded a political campaign is false. In this newsletter we have included a statement that we hope will answer any concerns that you may have.

Best regards,

Alain Hasson
CEO JCA NSW/ACT

P.S. If you are interested in joining the JCA team in a purposeful role, please get in touch with us or check out the opportunities in more detail here.

Monthly Mensch(es)
Our Youngest & Oldest Donors

From the tiniest hands to the wisest hearts, our incredible journey at JCA is only possible due to our donor's unwavering support and generosity. Today, we take a moment to extend a special thanks to this year's youngest donor, 6-year-old Hannah Gofman and this year's oldest donor, Lenny Lipman, aged 102. These individuals showcase that when it comes to giving back to the community, every person, no matter their age, plays a crucial role in enabling us to impact countless lives in our local Jewish community positively.

Hannah Gofman, age 6, has just begun her philanthropic journey. This junior champion donated her tzedakah to us, and with this small gesture, she has ignited big dreams and embodied the Jewish values of Tikkun Olam. We hope this can inspire other young community members as they are future philanthropists, and their kindness will undoubtedly create change.

Lenny Lipman, aged 102, has stood by our side and supported JCA for more than 30 years; his unwavering commitment to our local Jewish community demonstrates the importance of giving back.

Lenny and Hannah, you are the reason why our Jewish community remains strong & vibrant.

P.S. If there is a young person in your family that is interested in fundraising like Hannah, please email us at [email protected] and we will send them a JCA Tzedkah box so they can get a head start on their philanthropic journey - click here for instructions.

Celebrating 30 Years of Giving
Decades of Community Support

Many of our donors have been giving to JCA for over 30 years, an incredible legacy for which we are very grateful. As a new addition to the newsletter, we will recognise donors who celebrate 30 years since the anniversary of their first donation, thus entering this '30 Club'.

Mazel Tov to the following people celebrating 30 years since their first gift to JCA in the month of August. Your loyalty and commitment to our local Jewish community is incredible.

Belinda Epstein-Frisch

Louise Sussman

Michele Kangisser

Marie Manstoff

Sylvia Kohn

Kitty Gassner

Jeanette Milston

Andrea Ruttenberg

Judy Seeff

Janine Barton

Ofira Singer

Kevin Bloch

Sharon Ivany

Lianne Graf

Jacqui Scheinberg

Shirley Politzer

Judy Kaye

Barbara Mann

James A Silverton

Elizabeth Lipton

Evelyn Freeland

Beverly Solsky

Member Mention
Shalom

Throughout our 2023 campaign, our 25 supported member organisations came together to showcase the importance of giving back to community. We want to thank all our member organisations for contributing to this incredible milestone we have reached. Still, we would like to spotlight Shalom, whose outstanding support of JCA's 2023 Campaign cannot go unrecognised.

Their dedication and efforts have made a significant impact, from their interactive and innovative stand being one of the highlights of our communal event to their consistent presence on social media and several dedicated emails supporting our 2023 campaign and projects such as Cookies for Community across all their programs. Shalom's unwavering support is a testament to our mission of nurturing and strengthening our local Jewish community. Well done, Shalom; we are very grateful.

This year Sydney Jewish Writers Festival, powered by Shalom, returns from 23 – 27 August 2023. SJWF welcomes you to explore our theme of 'Identity'.This year the Sydney Jewish Writers Festival program has three streams of exceptional writers, poets, musicians, playwrights, comedians and thinkers who promise to challenge us to explore our theme of identity from every angle.

Shalom invites you to bring your curiosity, your ideas and your voice to the conversation and our festival. Headlining the event is the inimitable David Baddiel, British comedian, author, screenwriter, and television presenter will join us for a week of events exploring his books Jews Don't Count and The God Desire. Click HERE for more information and to book.

Nosh Nook
Alain's Peri Peri Chicken

"My recipe is peri peri chicken and I need to give credit to Stella Cohen’s Sephardic Table cook book. Her book and recipes connect me to my family’s heritage of Rhodes and being a Saffa I LOVE peri peri chicken."

- Alain Hasson, CEO JCA NSW/ACT

Ingredients:

Chicken

1x 1.5kg+ plus chicken (butterflied)

Marinade

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
4 grated garlic cloves
1 heaped teaspoon sweet paprika
1 heaped teaspoon smoked paprika (or hot if you want extra kick)
1 teaspoon dried oregano.
2 teaspoon sea salt

*Preferable to marinate chicken overnight but minimum 4hrs

Method:

Basting

3 bird’s eye chillies and 3 fresh chillies
3 garlic cloves

Crush/blitz chilli and garlic together.

Then add:

1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 preferably fresh bay leaves
2 tablespoon whisky (optional)

Best result must be done on barbecue.
Sear skin side down for 10-15minutes then flip and cook till cooked through. Baste regularly.

Coming Up In Community

B'nai B'rith

Calling For Writers

Buy tickets HERE

Mount Sinai College

Open Week 21-24th August

Bookings are essential, click HERE. Register now for 2025

Maccabi NSW

Maccabi Life Pilates with Robyn Goldin

20^th August – North Shore: Book HERE

MegaCamp – Sports Camp for kids during school holidays

YK – Y2 26^th -27^th September 2023 - Book HERE
Y3 - Y6 4,5,6^th October 2023 - Book HERE

Students & Our Focus
The future of local Jewish community

Jewish Education is a critical sector for JCA. Ensuring a Jewish Education pathway is available to all students regardless of economic, social, or geographic circumstances is a high priority.

The 2025 JCA Strategic Plan identified several improvement areas;

· Develop philanthropic education programs for younger community and schools.

· Stimulate innovation by underpinning new programs that uplift and include all in the community.

· Create symbiotic programs and initiatives to enhance community understanding of JCA & member organisation ecosystem.

Earlier this year, Amy Goldman-Kaplan joined the JCA team as Education Innovator. She is responsible for working with Jewish Day Schools, BJE and BPJE to develop engaging and educational JCA programs for junior and high school students.

Amy is originally from the UK, where she began her career designing educational programs for art galleries, museums, and theatres. Since moving to Australia, Amy has developed and delivered many programs within the Jewish community. She is an experienced high school art teacher whose passion for innovative and transformative Education led her to train and work as a Montessori teacher, which she excelled in for over a decade.

Amy's innovative work spans many areas and demographics. One of her passions is nurturing leadership in young people, which has led her to participate in a long list of initiatives within the Jewish and broader community.

"Working with JCA allows me to combine my passions, Education and Community. Our communities globally are in a considerable state of change, which presents the opportunity to think about and reimagine how we live, learn, and move forward as established, connected communities in a new world. Our children will be the leaders in this new chapter of our history, and I want to ensure that as they look to the future, they feel connected to their ancient roots, Jewish values and the vibrant and diverse community they are a part of."

Job Opportunities

JCA
*Events and Engagement Manager (Part-Time)*
JCA is looking for an Events and Engagement Manager (4 days p/w) to join the Engagement team.
Click HERE to see position description.

*Relationship Manager (Part-Time)*
JCA is looking for a Relationship Manager who will be responsible for developing and nurturing relationships with donors.
Click HERE to see position description.

*Jumpstart Program Manager (FT/Maternity Leave)*
JCA is looking for a Jumpstart Program Manager (Maternity Leave) to join the Engagement team.
Click HERE to see position description.

If you are interested in any of the roles above please send a letter and resume to [email protected]

Community Security Group (CSG) NSW
CEO - Based in Sydney
Click HERE for more info

NSW Jewish Board of Deputies
Communications and Public Relations Manager
Click HERE for more info

Masada College
Jewish Enrolments and Community Engagement Manager
Click HERE for more info

Mount Sinai College
Child Care Educator
Click HERE for more info

Stand Up
First Nations Partnerships Coordinator
Click HERE for more info

Come Together Coordinator
Click HERE for more info or contact [email protected]

AUJS x Derech Eretz Trip 2024
Click HERE for more info

Download this months calendar

We have gathered together some of the exciting activities and events taking place in our community in the coming month.

Statement

Dear Members of Community,

The Jewish Communal Appeal (JCA) strongly rejects recent claims by a Journalist in the media that JCA has funded the “Yes” campaign for the Voice referendum and notes that any inference of general communal funds being used for such purposes is false.

JCA does not take political positions on any matter and never will. This impartiality is vital to the work we do and allows us objectivity in the distribution of donor funds in our local Jewish Community in NSW and ACT.

To be very clear: JCA has not and will not fund any campaign supporting or opposing The Voice.

The newspaper article containing these claims is wrong and we are taking steps to address that.

We further note:

· JCA raises funds on behalf of the NSW and ACT Jewish Community to fund services and programs in our local Jewish community.

· JCA assists 25 organisations that support the Jewish community from security and advocacy to Jewish education, culture, engagement, and outreach, aged and community care and holocaust, history, and heritage.

· When allocating funds, JCA makes careful, rigorous allocations decisions based on evidence and data provided by our member organisations.

· Last year JCA distributed $14.3m which included supporting mental health initiatives, aged care, school fee assistance and security services. We are proud that the money we have raised through you has changed lives, and in some cases saved lives.

· We review applications for funding annually and ensure funds are applied for the purposes they were requested.

· Kol Halev, who held an event with speakers from the Yes Campaign for the Voice, is a national program with support from various donors and organisations including Stand Up, Jewish Community Council of Victoria, the Australasian Union of Jewish Students (AUJS), the National Council of Jewish Women, Bnai Brith and Shalom.

· JCA had no involvement in the event and no annual campaign funding we provide was directed to the event or the Kol Halev initiative.

· JCA funds NSW resources for Stand Up - a national organisation. The resources are dedicated to running engagement programs for youth in NSW, including the Step Up B’nei Mitzvah program and the Derech Eretz volunteering program and social justice education in our Jewish day schools. These programs are focussed on Jewish engagement of young people in NSW on issues that matter to them through these clearly defined programs. Over the past three years, these programs have engaged 100s of Jewish NSW youth and taught them values of Tikkun Olam.

· Our community is proudly diverse and is made up of groups and individuals with many different views and needs. As a result, we expect a diversity of views and opinions on a range of political, cultural, or social issues of the day.

To view this weeks AJN article click HERE.

We thank you for your concern for our local Jewish community and hope the above helps to allay any concerns you may have had regarding this matter.

Warm regards,

Ian Sandler & Alain Hasson
President & CEO