FOOD PARCELS FOR WOMEN, CHILDREN, AND THE ELDERLY

PKI delivers food to women and families in Ashkelon, Ashdod, Petach Tikva, Ramat Gan, Haifa, Jerusalem, Modiin, and Dimona. Many of these households do not qualify for government assistance because they are temporary transplants from Ukraine and may have children in Israeli hospitals.    

GIFT CARDS

PKI has started purchasing gift cards to enable women to buy things like warm clothes and hygiene products.

MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN IN RUSSIAN

PKI leaders and consultants are providing six programs a day to help women keep themselves and their families safe and calm. The first program of the day incorporates physical exercise and the others offer a variety of trauma experts, meditation and practical techniques. PKI is also providing online art and storytelling programs for children and sending volunteers to staff in-person programs to entertain and calm children.

FIRST AID KITS

In the rush to get to bomb shelters, there are many simple injuries that can be addressed with first aid kits which recent immigrants/refugees do not own. Skinned knees, cuts from broken glass, etc. are routinely treated at home. 

Project Kesher Israel (PKI) was founded in 2009 by PK-trained leaders who had made aliyah, immigrated to Israel from post-Soviet states to develop Jewish women leaders, grow pluralist Jewish communities, and advocate for civil society. PKI’s early programs addressed the immediate needs of the Russian-speaking community (RSC)  - financial literacy in Israel, Jewish education, and learning how to live in a diverse society, adjusting to their new life in a new place.

PKI’s main areas of advocacy, based on the need in the RSC in Israel, include: Jewish pluralism and issues of Religion and State, e.g. freedom of marriage, conversions, divorce in Israel and more, gender violence, eldercare, and pension reform, and financial literacy. PKI is a rare pluralist Russian-speaking organization, offering information on a wide spectrum of ways to lead an authentic Jewish life. PK presents pragmatic programs in which Jewish values inspire social activism. This link between spirituality and reality offers a vision that speaks to many Jewish women. With Jewish values and gender equality as their compass, they motivate their community to improve the lives of women and girls.

Today, PKI represents the interests and agenda of Israel's RSC (Russian Speaking Community) in the media, with workshops and classes that are in high demand throughout the country. We continue supporting women at the grassroots level in the fight for Safety, Respect, and Equity in their communities. On a national scale, PKI's leadership can be seen in: Irep - the state and religion organizational focus group with the most prominent civic activists from Hiddush, Itim, Houpot, Hillel, Kolot, Israel Hofsheet and more; The Lobby of the Million partners, ANU Museum partners, the Forum of Russian speaking organizations (founding member); fruitful collaborations with Generation 1.5, Itach Maaki, NCJW, local city councils and more.

The target population for this program is Jewish Russian-speaking women in Israel ages 20-50 who made aliyah in the last 5 years. 80% of this group is married with children. Their activism is largely maintained over the internet and they organize nationally- coordinating and attending gender violence protests and pride celebrations, for example. 

CRITICAL NEEDS

The Russian-speaking community (RSC) in Israel faces a plethora of challenges including a language barrier (26% of the 1.5 million Russian speakers in Israel do not speak Hebrew), harmful anti-immigrant stereotypes and discrimination, a new political structure, economy, and culture shock. In order for women from the RSC to succeed in Israel, they need a professional network, classes and training in Russian, and a supportive community. When women are given the tools and language to address the systemic inequalities they are facing, they immediately begin to work on solutions. Russian immigrants had limited access to Jewish life and culture before coming to Israel, which is another major cultural barrier to integration in Israel. 

PKI provides programs for women in the Israeli Russian-speaking community (RSC), in which Jewish values, feminism, and pluralism are catalysts for social activism. Graduates of PKI’s leadership programs inspire their peers and families to improve their own lives and their society.  PKI’s main areas of advocacy include: Jewish pluralism and issues of Religion and State, (freedom of marriage, conversions, divorce); gender violence, gender equality and women’s health. PKI offers women immigrants a wide range of educational opportunities to learn about leading an authentic Jewish life-- in Russian.

This is innovative because the RSC is a vastly under-resourced population in Israel, with tremendous potential to impact the future of the country. Armed with information, knowledge, confidence, and a network, women immigrants in the RSC in Israel can bring their communities along for social action programs across Israel. 

Project Kesher Israel is welcoming hundreds of Ukrainian refugees into their community. PKI is supporting four weekly emotional support groups as well as programs on Jewish education, women's leadership, and feminism. One recent program was a walking tour of Tel Aviv for 30 participants led by Zeev Volkov, born and raised in Odesa, and PKI Executive Director Rabbi Olya Weinstein.  

PKI has supported 500+ Ukrainian immigrants and refugees from the LGBTQ+ community. As same-sex marriage was not recognized in Ukraine, many couples are unable to register as a family while applying for immigration to Israel, causing many individuals to be unable to gain citizenship or stay in Israel with their loved ones and children. PKI and the Tel Aviv LGBTQ Center have collaborated to host weekly emotional support groups, provide legal services, and set up a hotline for those who need urgent assistance. Rabbi Olya Weinstein has recruited top attorney Nicole Maor to represent Russian-speaking LGBTQ couples -- a huge step forward for this community as they face these immense challenges.

Preparing for the High Holidays

On Monday, a group of Ukrainian immigrants who recently joined Project Kesher Israel met with Rabbi Olya Weinstein to discuss the upcoming Jewish holidays that most of them will celebrate for the first time in Israel. Read more.

Hebrew Course for Refugees in Israel

Project Kesher Israel is offering a three month Hebrew course in Petach Tikva for Ukrainian women refugees. Read more.

Supporting LGBTQ+ Ukrainian Immigrants

Project Kesher Israel Executive Director Rabbi Olya Weinstein and Tel Aviv LGBTQ+ Center volunteer Evit Kado were invited to speak on an international Telegram channel that broadcasts to Russian-speaking LGBTQ+ communities in Israel. Read more.