KAVOD-Ensuring Dignity for Holocaust Survivors this week!
Co-Founder John Pregulman and a few of his photos! The faces of KAVOD!
KAVOD
Ensuring Dignity for Holocaust Survivors
Like most of us, many families will celebrate Rosh Hashanah tonight (either in person or virtually), with a beautiful holiday dinner, apples and honey, and more. We must also recognize, however, the many Jews among us that are either alone or unable to celebrate. With this in mind, this week Righteous Crowd is supporting KAVOD, an organization that aims to serve the roughly 25,000 Holocaust Survivors living at or below the poverty line in the U.S.
Read below what Amy Israel Pregulman, Executive Director/Co-Founder shared with us this week:
KAVOD's mission is to provide aid to Holocaust Survivors who have emergency day to day needs for food, medicine and/or household goods. We serve Holocaust Survivors living at or below the poverty line in the United States.
It has been estimated that there are approximately 80,000 Survivors living in the United States and over one-third of them are living at or near poverty levels. It is unconscionable and unacceptable that these courageous people, who’ve endured so much already, are living their remaining years without basic necessities. Many are choosing between heat or food, medicine or rent.
Why did you decide to start KAVOD?
When forming our organization, it was made apparent that although there are organizations offering aid, there was a gap in aid for emergency situations. When it comes to emergency needs like groceries and medicine, these vulnerable seniors needed an additional option. Sometimes, the emergency is their day to day struggle to make ends meet. KAVOD made the commitment to fill the gap. It is also part of the mission to give 100% of all dollars KAVOD receives to the Survivors.
What has surprised you about your work?
How quickly we grew and how little the Jewish Community, as a whole knew about the issue of Holocaust Survivors living in poverty. It was in 2019 when we partnered with Seed The Dream Foundation and co-created the KAVOD SHEF (Survivors of the Holocaust Emergency Fund). In partnership with Seed The Dream Foundation, KAVOD is committed to this vital emergency effort, leveraging the dollars raised through a special philanthropic national matching initiative, and ensuring that 100% of the matching funds will go directly toward Survivor services.
Righteous Crowd is thrilled to be able donate over $2,100 to KAVOD SHEF. KAVOD SHEF exponentially multiplies the dollars (and critical services) directly aiding Holocaust Survivors.
What’s a story about KAVOD that is meaningful to you?
KAVOD began because of John's passion for taking photos of Holocaust Survivors. In the past 5 years, John has photographed over 1174 Survivors all over the US, Israel, Prague, Krakow and Tokyo. The photographs are for the Survivors and their families. There is no commercial aspect and yet, many give KAVOD permission to use their photographs on the KAVOD website and in free exhibits presented all over the United States. They feel it humanizes the issue even though none of the images reflect Survivors KAVOD serves. There is no cost for the photos or for John and Amy’s time or travel. In March of 2015, John was taking a photograph of a woman in Orlando. The individuals always wanted to feed John after they took a photo. This particular time, when she walked him to her kitchen and opened her fridge, there was very little to offer. She had a little milk, half a loaf of bread and some cheese. She was so embarrassed and yet, she said very proudly, her air conditioner broke this month. She had to get it fixed so she used her grocery money to fix it. It was that experience that brought the issue to light for John and I which led us to start KAVOD in the fall of 2015.
Righteous Crowd also supported KAVOD in 2021 under the new Righteous Crowd model.
To learn more about KAVOD, click here.