War on Ukraine: The Approaching Anniversary
Happy Bittersweet Anniversary
1 year later: A Home Away from Home for 1,066 Refugees & Orphans
It has been nearly a year since the unspeakable happened, and heartbreakingly, the devastating war in Ukraine is still raging on, leaving millions of people struggling to survive. The Tikva children’s orphanage in Odesa was a sanctuary for over 300 orphans, but when the war erupted, they, along with the families and elderly of the Odesa community, were forced to flee with nothing but the clothes on their backs.
It was a heart-wrenching experience, but through the help of Klal Yisroel, along with the tireless efforts of the Vaad Hatzalah, they were able to find respite in Neptun, Romania and solace in each other, clinging to the hope of a better tomorrow.
Now, with 1,066 members, the community is on the move again. It’s bittersweet to say goodbye to a place that became their sanctuary, but it’s high time for them to find a place to call home. B’chasdei Hashem, a beautiful complex has been secured, and with the help of compassionate donors, it is being transformed into a comfortable sanctuary for these vulnerable families.
The Tikva community will find a new home in nearly 200 furnished apartments located in Bucharest’s Aqua City, a beautiful and newly constructed residential complex. The apartments consist mainly of two-bedroom units and 10 larger apartments for larger families.
This isn't the home they come from, but it will provide them with much-needed stability
— at least for a while. It's almost as good as home.
Grab the opportunity to transform hundreds of Jewish lives! www.charidy.com/BringThemHome
The Children and Infants Orphanages
In addition to the apartments, we were able to secure proper orphanages for girls, infants, and boys. The girls and infants will be housed on the top two levels of the renovated building, while the boys will be located in portacabins or in a rented villa close by.
Portacabin Schoolrooms
Tikva’s community schools will be housed in joined portacabins and mobile cabins, as they were in Neptun. The boys' school will be situated between the dining room and the orphanages, with the girls' school located 50 yards away in a parking lot adjacent to the complex’s guard booth. The portacabin company has already received the schools’ plans and is able to complete all the necessary work within two weeks.
HELP US PROVIDE FOR THE ORPHANS IN OUR CARE!
WWW.CHARIDY.COM/BRINGTHEMHOME
Vital Community Resources:
Other vital community resources already exist in and around Aqua City, including a large supermarket located next door and a significantly smaller supermarket, a pharmacy, and a bank located on the ground level of one of the residential buildings. Although it will require renovation, a Mikvah is in operation and is located 15 minutes from the complex by car.
The infrastructure elements will be housed in an area dedicated exclusively to this community, and a converted three-story office building will meet various communal needs on each of its 650-square-meter floors.
A large showroom, located across from the office building, is being cleared to accommodate the communal kitchen, bakery, and dining room, with a target finish date of the first weeks of March.
Tikva is also working with two human resources firms to help community members find meaningful employment and is negotiating with moving companies to arrange the upcoming communal move.
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With over 200 apartments, dorms, classrooms, lunchrooms, shuls, and amenities needing renovation, there is still much work to be done. However, with every nail hammered and every paintbrush stroke, the light of hope grows brighter.
Join us as we welcome our Ukrainian brothers and sisters into their homes in Bucharest, Romania. With your help, we can provide these refugees with a smooth transition to a new beginning, in a setting where they can regain a sense of belonging - a place almost as good as home.
Please contribute generously by donating at www.charidy.com/BringThemHome or calling:
(718) 540-5736
Checks can be mailed to:
Tikva Childrens’ Home
8 Henderson Drive
West Caldwell, NJ 07006
Our tax ID # is 22-3779212
VIDEO UPDATE: Exodus Ukraine / Feb 15, 2023
Watch: Match made in Odesa!
It has been a year since the conflict in Ukraine began and its effect on the people, particularly children, continues to be felt. The constant mobility and lack of access to proper education and basic necessities have forced them to grow up all too quickly. But, despite the challenges, a beautiful celebration emerged.
On a beautiful day in Romania, two residents of Tikva Children's Home, Maksim and Alla, became chosson and kallah in a heartwarming chuppah ceremony. Maksim, also known as Avraham, had been a part of the Tikva family since he was just three years old. His early years were marked by extreme poverty and hardship, as he lived in a tiny apartment with 20 family members in Belgorod-Dnestrovsky town. The apartment had no water or electricity supply, and the family had to cook food on a wood fire inside the house.
Despite these challenging circumstances, Maksim persevered, and when he joined Tikva, he found a safe and nurturing environment to grow up in. The yeshiva's educational system provided him with the tools he needed to succeed, from kindergarten all the way up to university. Through hard work and dedication, Maksim emerged as a confident and accomplished young man, ready to take on the world.
Alla's story is equally inspiring. She joined Tikva just six years ago, seeking refuge from the poverty and hardship that had plagued her family. With Tikva's support, Alla flourished and went on to become a designer for a high-end Judaica company. When war broke out in her homeland, she was evacuated with the Tikva mishpacha to Romania.
It was in this safe and supportive environment that Maksim and Alla found each other. Their relationship blossomed amidst the challenges of war and the daily struggles of living in a foreign country. This week, the Tikva Family and many others were lucky to share in this couple's beautiful wedding that was a testament to the resilience of the human spirit.
Hazor'im Be’dimah, Be’rinah Yiktzoru
The nachas of witnessing these couples embark on building a new home is particularly rewarding as it comes at a time that Tikva will be relocating hundreds of refugees to a more stable environment in Bucharest, Romania. The complex in Bucharest, now under heavy renovation, will provide families with housing, schools, orphanages for boys and girls, supermarkets, pharmacies, and much more.
The resettlement of Ukrainian refugees in Bucharest is a step in the right direction and a symbol of hope for a better future, and now YOU can support this transformation!
Future home: the newly secured complex in Bucharest, Romania.
Please contribute generously to our Charidy campaign by visiting:
charidy.com/bringthemhome, or call 718-540-5736.
Tizku L’mitvos!
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Exodus Ukraine: Latest Update
by Sandy Eller / Heart.Works
One year has passed since the war started, and still, children are forced to grow up too quickly. Families are unsettled and constantly on the move, and children lack access to proper education and basic necessities. They are living in communal encampments, sleeping in dormitories and eating in communal dining areas.
However, all this is about to change. Baruch Hashem, the Tikva Refugee Organization, is set to relocate hundreds of refugees to a more stable environment in Bucharest, Romania this coming March.
There they will find respite in the setting of a super large complex, equipped with essential facilities and community resources. The complex will include living quarters, schools, orphanages for both boys and girls, supermarkets, pharmacies, and even a Mikvah, b’ezras Hashem.
I spoke with Rabbi Refael Kruskal, CEO of TIKVA, Rabbi Yitzchok Ehrman, and Ed Frankel
Chairman of TIKVA Board & Executive Committee to get a firsthand report of the latest happenings.
A year after Russia declared war on Ukraine, the images of refugees fleeing bombed out cities have faded to the recesses of our minds, with sporadic news stories serving as reminders that the military conflict rages on. But for those whose lives were turned upside down and those spearheading the rescue and resettlement efforts, the Russian invasion of Ukraine remains a high priority, even 12 months later.
In the early days of the war, Vaad Hatzalah was instrumental in evacuating Ukrainian Jews to safety, providing them with food, shelter and basic necessities. In Odessa, Tikva stepped in to fill the void, relocating its entire community to Neptun, a Romanian summer resort with the backing of United Hatzalah. Tikva community leader Rabbi Refael Kruskal, has seen many miracles as the resettlement effort has forged ahead, including Neptun’s mayor agreeing to convert an unused building into a school for refugee children.
“It turned out that it had once been a school,” said Rabbi Kruskal. “When we came in, there were desks and chairs and blackboards so we were able to get started right away.”
Odessa’s children have flourished in the Neptun school. Vaad Hatzalah CEO Rabbi Yitzchak Ehrman visited Neptun as part of a contingent that included Rav Malkiel Kotler, Rav Yehuda Svei and Rav Elya Brudny, with Rav Malkiel taking advantage of an opportunity to farher the boys.
Farhering boys during the Vaad Hatzalah mission to Romania.
“Rav Malkiel said that kids in Lakewood wouldn’t know the things these boys knew,” said Rabbi Ehrman. “People imagine that these refugees may light Shabbos candles and are barely traditional, but they are learning the same Gemara we are, the same Daf Yomi and have the same people in kollel. This is a beautiful story about our brothers and sisters.”
Rabbi Kruskal with Ukrainian Children
Tikva chairman of the board and co-founder Ed Frankel said that the community will be relocated to Bucharest, with efforts made to help the adults find jobs. He hopes that people will continue supporting the ongoing efforts and noted that people don’t understand why the refugees want to return to Odessa instead of putting down permanent roots in Israel or Romania.
“These people may be Jewish, but they are also Ukrainians, not Romanians and not Israelis,” said Frankel. “They had three or four hours to gather one bag and get on a bus. They just want to go home and get back to a normal life in a place they left behind.”
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