In response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Stephen Wise Temple Senior Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback has initiated a series of Wise Webinars. Entitled “Conversations About Ukraine,” these webinars are designed to educate and inform. They feature Rabbi Yoshi speaking with experts on international relations, foreign policy, the human cost of the invasion, and the relationship between Russia and Ukraine.
Conversations About Ukraine: Rabbis Yoshi Zweiback, Matthew Gewirtz, and Sydney Mintz are joined by Jonathan Ornstein of JCC Krakow
On Monday, March 21, our Rabbi Yoshi Zweiback was joined by co-sponsor Rabbi Matthew Gewirtz of Congregation B’nai Jeshurun in New Jersey, and Rabbi Sydney Mintz of Temple Emanu-El in San Francisco, to host Jonathan Ornstein, the Executive Director of the JCC of Krakow. Our panel discussed the disturbing parallels between the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the early days of World War II. It is a particularly salient analogy, given that Ornstein’s years-long mission in Krakow has been to rebuild the Polish Jewish community that was decimated by the Holocaust.
Our panel goes in-depth to discuss the human toll of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the resulting refugee crisis that is spilling over into neighboring Poland, and how JCC Krakow is working to support those displaced by the crisis. Ornstein discusses a wide range of programs his center is spearheading, including his their work with NGOs to help refugees escape. Recently, they were able to bring over 1,000 people out of Ukraine on 29 buses.
The help the JCC is providing, though, is not limited to just the Jewish population. They are providing housing to hundreds of those fleeing the fighting, creating parenting safe spaces for parents and children, offering information centers that serve 500 people per day, and offering psychological counseling to those affected by the trauma.
For more information about the Wise community’s response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, visit https://wisela.org/ukraineresponse/
In advance of our next Wise Webinar, we are also partnering with CBJ and Congregation Emanu-El to raise funds for Operation Orange Wings, a program by United Hatzalah of Israel to bring aid to Ukraine and evacuate fleeing refugees. Please learn more and donate here: https://israelrescue.org/WiseUkraine.
