JNF

doing at least half of the
work,” she said. “I’m excited
about this place. It has
such potential.”
Shatz added that much
of the credit goes to its
young and energetic Mayor
Michael Biton.
She cites the fact that
JNF is funding a major
national park set to run
through the city and that
its Housing Development
Fund, through which lots
of new homes are already
planned, is evidence of the
town’s positive change.
Being a part of a task
force is much more than
writing a check – it’s a serious
commitment where
one can truly establish a
connection to the people
of Israel and see the fruits
of one’s labor.
Penny Rosen and her
husband, Stephen, who
serve on the Fire and Rescue
Task Force, have developed
a deep bond with Israel
and its people through
their work with Jewish National
Fund.
The couple dedicated a
new fire station in Mitzpe
Ramon. She emphasized
that she “feels with every
fiber of my being that
America is the home of
my heart and Israel is the
home of my soul. I’m only
complete if both countries
are doing well.”
This fire station, Yerucham
River Park and other
completed projects around
the country implemented
by task forces are examples
of the lay leaders’ major
contributions to the land
and people of Israel. Had it
not been for their foresight
and dedication, most of
these projects would not
have broken ground.
This is especially true
when it comes to housing
and infrastructure.
Jeff Schwartz, head of
the Housing Development
Fund Task Force, believes
JNF is Israel’s only major
player making strides to
populate these underdeveloped
areas. “The Israeli
government is not interested
at this point in expanding
areas where there isn’t
a lot of population.
“JNF has the opportunity
and the resources to
take on these areas the government
won’t subsidize,”
he explained. “We were
in Nahal Oz [a kibbutz on
the Gaza border] before
the government was. They
don’t need our support as
much now, but there are
other communities in the
middle of nowhere [that]
if we didn’t support them,
they wouldn’t exist, and
they’re growing... We carry
the ball and do the hard
stuff.”
For Jewish National
Fund stakeholders, philanthropy
is not a one-way
street. For many, there is no
greater satisfaction than
seeing one’s return on investment.
Beckie Fischer, who
heads JNF’s Arava Task
Force, experienced this
firsthand with the opening
of the Danielle A. and
Irving J. Grossman Medical
Center, located in the
Central Arava, south of the
Dead Sea basin.
“I was summoned to
New York City by [JNF
CEO] Russell [Robinson].
He described a 40-year-old
clinic in the Central Arava,
which was not adequate.
He asked if I’d put together
a task force to address
issues residents face living
in the Central Arava,” she
recalled.
Within a year, she assembled
a 35-person group
of doctors, lawyers, educators
and psychologists
to revamp the clinic from
the ground up. The Arava
was in dire need of a stateof-the-art
facility to meet
basic medical needs, and
provide services such as
prenatal care and emergency
treatment.
“The first time I walked
through the medical center,
that Jewish National
Fund made possible, it
was extremely emotional.
The [previous] clinic that I
saw was dilapidated,” she
explained. “It was very
impactful to walk through
this brand new center,
which would now enable
young people to move back
– the goal of Blueprint Negev.
[Grown-up] children
[from the area] wanted to
come back. They wanted
the Arava lifestyle – real
tranquility.”
When stakeholders give,
that philanthropy usually
comes from somewhere
personal, and for the Rosens
joining the Fire and
Rescue Task Force carries
deep emotional significance.
Since the Ma’alot Massacre
in 1974, when 31 Israelis
were killed, it has been a
dream for the Rosens to do
something for the northern
Israeli town. The dream
will finally come true this
Passover, when Jewish National
Fund will hold a corner-stone
laying ceremony
for a new firehouse, which
is being funded by the couple
– their second.
The station will be dedicated
in loving memory of
their son Adam, who died
at 32.
“Jewish National Fund
makes your dreams happen,”
Rosen said.
It is fitting, then, that
as the Jewish People celebrates
70 years of self-determination,
this dream
and others continue to be
realized across the Jewish
homeland.
■
List of JNF Task Forces
Arad Task Force
Arava & Eilot Task Force
Arts and Entertainment Task Force
Baseball & Softball Task Force
Be’er Sheva Task Force
Fire and Rescue Task Force
Green Innovations Task Force
Housing Development Fund Task Force
Israel Independence Experience Task Force
JNF Taskforce on Disabilities
Kiryat Shmona & Upper Eastern Gailiee Task Force
MAKOM Task Force
Mitzpe Ramon Task Force
National Water Task Force
Project Wadi Attir Task Force
The Gaza Envelope Task Force
Western & Eastern Galilee Task Force
Yerucham Task Force
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