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United Jewish Appeal - Federation of Jewish Philanthropies of New York, Inc (UJA-Federation of New York) is the largest local philanthropy in the world. Headquartered in New York City, the organization raises and allocates funds annually to fulfill a mission to “care for those in need, strengthen the Jewish people, and inspire a passion for Jewish life and learning.”

UJA-Federation cares for New Yorkers of all backgrounds and the Jewish people worldwide. The organization provides funding to support a network of more than 100 health, human-service, educational, and community-building agencies and dozens of grantees in New York, in Israel, and 60 other countries. These community-based organizations offer a multitude of services to combat poverty, help the elderly age with dignity, promote Jewish identity and renewal, strengthen connections between the Jewish people worldwide, care for people with disabilities and special needs, and stand in support of the people of Israel.

UJA-Federation creates initiatives and funds programs to respond to emerging issues as they develop. In 2009, as a response to the Great Recession, UJA-Federation launched Connect to Care in cooperation with its beneficiary agencies and local synagogues. This initiative includes seven multiservice centers in the five boroughs of New York, as well as Long Island and Westchester. Each center offers financial, legal, emotional, and spiritual services for those devastated by the economic downturn who find themselves in need for the first time.

UJA-Federation, as it is known today, was created from the 1986 merger of the United Jewish Appeal (UJA), established in 1939, and the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies of New York, a predecessor organization of which was established in 1917. In 2007, UJA-Federation celebrated its 90th anniversary and its role in responding to the major events of the 20th and 21st century. Since 1948, UJA-Federation has invested $1 billion to improve the quality of life for millions of Israelis and to help 3 million Jews from all over the world immigrate to Israel, known as “making aliyah.”

UJA-Federation announced total revenue for the 2010 fiscal year at $180.7 million, including $136.1 million for the 2010 Annual Campaign, $39.3 million in planned giving and endowments, and $5.3 million in capital gifts and special initiatives. The annual campaign remains the cornerstone of UJA-Federation resource development efforts, articulating the need to care for all within one’s community.

Leadership On July 1, 2010, Jerry W. Levin was appointed UJA-Federation’s president, the top volunteer position, and Alisa Robbins Doctoroff was appointed chair of the board. Serving in the top professional position is John S. Ruskay, who has been executive vice president & CEO since 1999.

History 1917: With 3,637 separate agencies serving the New York Jewish community and competing for resources, Felix Warburg leads a group of community leaders to streamline services and philanthropic efforts. Twenty-four organizations sign the charter creating the Federation for the Support of Jewish Philanthropic Societies of New York City (Federation), but soon more join. In its first year, Federation distributes $2.2 million to fund:


 * 20 childcare agencies
 * 9 institutions working with at-risk children
 * 19 hospitals
 * 9 agencies dedicated to the relief of the sick and needy
 * 19 community centers
 * 4 camps
 * 1 home for elderly Jews

1920s: The first generation of Jewish immigrants enters old age, straining the resources of charitable organizations. The Home for Aged and Infirm Hebrews, one of the Federation’s charter agencies (now Jewish Home Lifecare), helps respond. In one year, it houses a total of 345 seniors, many suffering from chronic diseases.

1929: Federation raises more than $5 million in contributions.

1930: Even as the economy suffers during the Great Depression, Federation develops and grows, with beneficiary agencies like the Crippled Children’s East Side Free School, today’s Camp Oakhurst, making the joys of childhood accessible to all children.

1931: In the depths of the Depression, Federation mortgages its 47th Street headquarters to raise an additional $200,000 for programs and services.

1934: Federation Employment Services (FES), predecessor of F.E.G.S. Health and Human Services, helps Jews find employment and develop vocational skills. The Foster Home Bureau and Hebrew Orphan Asylum, predecessor of the Jewish Child Care Association of New York, house 600 refugee children from Germany.

1939: United Palestine Appeal and the fundraising arm of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee unite to create the United Jewish Appeal. UJA raises $124 million to help rescue 162,000 Jews from the Holocaust. One third of these funds come from the New York Jewish community.

1942: Manhattan and Brooklyn federations merge to better serve growing populations.

1945: American Jews raise $35 million for UJA and $10 million for other overseas agencies to help settlement of displaced persons in Palestine.

1948: American Jews contribute over $200 million to the young State of Israel. Federations send staff and volunteers to help with the absorption of 685,000 immigrants and refugees.

Late 1940s – Early 1950s: Operation Magic Carpet rescues Jews of Yemen, along with 225,000 Jews from North Africa and Arab countries in the Middle East.

1953: Henry Kaufmann Campgrounds opens, becoming the first suburban outpost in the New York area whose mission is to provide recreation to New York’s Jewish children.

1957: To deal with the changing postwar social landscape in American, a comprehensive study of New York Jewry is launched. The data reveals growing needs and an evolving community. In response Federation launches “The City of Life,” a building campaign, raising $160 million for more than 300 building projects to create the face of today’s contemporary urban landscape.

1967: New York UJA raises $72 million to help Israel rebuild and ensure its survival in the future in the wake of the Six Day War.

1973: UJA and Federation join in special fundraising campaign to meet Israel’s emergency needs during the Yom Kippur War. New York Jews raise more than $100 million.

1974: Following joint efforts during the Yom Kippur War, UJA and Federation formally create a joint campaign to reflect the increasing interrelationship between local and global concerns within the Jewish community.

1984: UJA-Federation joint campaign raises emergency funds for Operation Moses, which rescues 50,000 Ethiopian Jews and resettles them in Israel.

1986: Federation and UJA formally merge to create UJA-Federation of New York.

1990: Passage to Freedom and Operation Exodus begin the dramatic rescue of some 700,000 Jews from the Soviet Union and resettle them in Israel; an additional 130,000 Jews eventually resettle in America.

1990s: UJA-Federation and the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee aid in the revitalization of Jewish life in Eastern Europe by building schools and community centers, training leaders, and building relationships between Russian Jews and other Jewish communities around the world.

1990s: As the war in the Balkans rages, UJA-Federation helps evacuate Jewish, Christian, and Muslim refugees.

1991: Civil war in Ethiopia creates further unrest, exacerbating the already dangerous position for the country’s Jewish minority. UJA-Federation funds Operation Solomon, a 36-hour emergency airlift rescue of 14,000 Ethiopian Jews to Israel.

1991: After America invades Iraq, Scud missiles are launched into Israel. UJA-Federation pledges $6 million to ensure Israel’s security and stability.

1992: In response to findings of the National Jewish Population Survey, which reports intermarriage at 52 percent, UJA-Federation renews commitment to “Jewish continuity” through education and outreach.

1998: The spread of AIDS increases along with consciousness about the disease. UJA-Federation’s AIDS initiative provides care, home hospice, and education for nearly a quarter of AIDS patients in the New York area.

1999: Reflecting globalization, UJA-Federation ends its separate domestic and overseas allocation strategy. Planning is organized around a three-pronged mission to care for those in need, rescue those in harm’s way, and renew Jewish life in New York, in Israel, and around the world.

2000: Argentina’s economic depression devastates its once-vibrant Jewish community. UJA-Federation commits $12.6 million for food, shelter, medicine and emergency cash assistance, and aliyah.

2001: Palestinian militants reignite the intifada. UJA-Federation raises emergency funds, supporting rallies (including a 100,000 person rally on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.) and organizing missions to Israel. UJA-Federation creates the Israel Trauma Coalition, bringing together, for the first time, Israeli experts and organizations to map services, identify gaps, and developing a continuum of care.

2001: 9/11. UJA-Federation beneficiary agencies immediately join relief efforts, helping form the 9/11 United Services Group, a collaboration of New York human-service agencies. UJA-Federation is also pivotal in the creation of the New York Network Agency Trauma Consortium.

2004: UJA-Federation raises $3.3 million to help victims of the south Asia tsunami.

2005: UJA-Federation raises more than $5 million to support Hurricane Katrina–related relief and rebuilding efforts.

2006: War in Lebanon. UJA-Federation raises $45 million for relief and resiliency efforts and commits to help rebuild Kiryat Shmona.

2008: War erupts in South Ossetia in the former Soviet Union. The local Jewish community is caught in the crossfire of the conflict. UJA-Federation–supported agencies provide food, water, medicine, and hospitalization to the wounded, and the opportunity for aliyah.

2009: Conflict with Gaza. The UJA-Federation–created Israel Trauma Coalition reaches out again to Israelis subject to Qassam rocket attacks and New Yorkers rally in support of Israel.

2010: UJA-Federation launches the Haiti Relief Fund.

2000 to present: UJA-Federation launches new programs and initiatives, including:


 * Jewish Healing and Hospice Alliance — a comprehensive system to help individuals and families coping with chronic illness and end-of-life.
 * Birth to Bagrut — a continuum of programs to support Ethiopian immigrants in Rehovot and Gedera, Israel.
 * Partners in Caring — an initiative that brings social workers from human-service agencies to run programs in synagogues.
 * Synergy — a program to work with and strengthen synagogues to promote the growth of Jewish life.