home page
JNF

A 120-year commitment

JNF looks back on the many miracles that occurred during 2021.

By AJN STAFF November 24, 2021, 1:00 pm Edit
Volunteers at the 2021 Green Sunday Telethon with JNF Education shaliach Yigal Nisell (far right).
Volunteers at the 2021 Green Sunday Telethon with JNF Education shaliach Yigal Nisell (far right).

In 2021, JNF continued to ensure a sustainable Jewish homeland, with a focus on developing the Negev. As Chanukah approaches, we are reminded of the many miracles that have occurred over the last year:

  • The new community of Sheizaf, developed from donations in 2018 and completed in 2020, opened its first kindergarten in September 2021.
  • In 2019, JNF raised funds for the Environmental Education and Community Centre in Kadesh Barnea which is now ready to be handed over to the community.
  • Construction of the Sderot Resilience Centre, JNF’s 2020 project, has commenced. This Centre will triple the number of children who will benefit from animal-based therapies.
  • The Vidor Artist’s Colony in Zuqim, near Israel’s Egyptian border, was completed. The project included among other things, a visitor centre and an eco-park with amphitheatre.
  • The renewal project at Vatikim River Park in Ofakim is almost complete.

JNF is gratified by the tremendous response to its second Virtual Gala marking its 120th anniversary. The community’s generosity will enable the development of Ramat Herzl, a pioneering new community. Located near other key JNF projects, it forms part of an emerging hub of innovation and education in Israel’s southern periphery.

Reflecting on JNF’s 120th birthday, CEO Dan Springer said, “As the first organisation set up by the Zionist movement to realise Herzl’s dream of a Jewish State, JNF laid its infrastructure, built its communities, greened its countryside and witnessed its birth … while also turning to Ben Gurion’s vision of a thriving Negev. This will continue to be the focus of JNF Australia, applying 21st century technologies to support the growth of existing Negev communities and the creation of new ones, such as Ramat Herzl.”

JNF continues to give back locally through Zionist education, where the JNF Education team will visit youth movements at summer camps to inject a dose of Israel awareness. JNF is also thrilled to announce that the JNF Educators Study Tour will take place in January 2022, where over 40 educators will be join by 20 teachers from South Africa to visit Israel for an immersive cultural and professional development experience.

The annual JNF Green Sunday Telethon, which aims to raise funds for security planting in Israel’s vulnerable Southern communities, will take place on Sunday, February 6 2022. JNF is calling on all year 9-11 students to participate in the Green Sunday Telethon – a special day of fun, community and solidarity which will help secure and sustain Gaza border communities.

To register for Green Sunday, visit jnf.org.au/greensunday or phone 1300 563 563

read more:
comments