Orthodox Jewish Organizations Raise Millions of Dollars for Ukrainian Relief

The pain of the Ukrainian war is getting more palpable by the day. The one thing easing the sting is seeing the beauty of people and organizations coming together to help.

The Agudath Israel of America, an umbrella organization of Orthodox Jewish groups, has raised more than $2 million for Ukraine since the Russian invasion began.

New York City currently has an estimated 300,000 Jewish immigrants from the former Soviet Union and the largest single group of them are from Ukraine. Many other Jewish Americans have ancestral ties to Ukraine or look to it as the birthplace of Hasidic Judaism.

The leadership of Ukraine’s Jewish President, Volodymyr Zelensky has contributed to the solidarity among organizations abroad.

The Agudath Israel of America is far from the only organization stepping up to help. Others including the Orthodox Union and Chabad have raised millions more since the war began. Chabad has spent more than $12 million on Ukraine relief since the start of the conflict and nearly all of that was raised within the first week.

The money is being used to pay for food, clothing, diapers, medical supplies and buses to help people flee the country. Rabbi Moshe Hauer, the executive vice president of the Orthodox Union reiterated how desperately the money is needed. “Renting a bus, which would have been $700 a month ago, is running north of $15,000 now,” he said. “The bus rides are taking many, many times the normal amount of time to get from Point A to Point B because they have to find roads that are passable and bridges that aren’t blown up.”

For more on this story, visit nytimes.com.

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Alex Abel

Alex is an editor, writer and content creator. Most recently she served as the Editor-in-Chief of 2.0, Mishpacha’s business magazine. Before that she was the News Editor at People Style where she covered entertainment, fashion, beauty and lifestyle. She has interviewed dozens of celebrities including Sarah Jessica Parker, Kate Hudson, Melissa McCarthy, Priyanka Chopra, and Khloé Kardashian. She’s worked and created partnerships with influencers, hosted and produced videos and managed the brand’s social media accounts. Previously, she worked as an assistant editor at Seventeen. Her work has also appeared on POPSUGAR.com, People.com, Time.com, SHAPE and the website she launched, Chai on Life, which profile and highlights inspirational Jewish women.” During Hurricane Irene, she worked as a stringer for the New York Times reporting on flood conditions. She is a graduate of Binghamton University with a degree in English.