Joseph Project feeds hundreds of thousands of Israeli children
More than 627,000 Israeli children face hunger each day, and nearly one million more are on the verge of going hungry, a recent survey found.
“While media attention remains fixated on Gaza, the devastating hidden crisis in Israel grows more urgent by the day,” said Joel Chernoff, founder and executive board chairman of Joseph Project International, the largest importer of aid in Israel. “Many around the world see Israel as a prosperous, high-tech society, but the brutal financial toll of defending itself against constant terror attacks is fueling a worsening humanitarian emergency, especially for children.”
Thousands of young children, such as 6-year-old Aliyah, are at risk. Most days, Aliyah’s only hot meal comes at school, provided by a government feeding program. Her three older siblings don’t get a school meal, because the program stops after primary age.
“Sometimes I worry, not knowing where meals will come from,” said Aliyah’s mother, Noa. “It’s incredibly difficult. My children are hungry.”
The ongoing war, with many bread winners called back up to serve in the IDF, and businesses shut down, means many families are struggling. The soaring cost of living has pushed many families to financial breaking point, tipping more children over the poverty cliff. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of Israelis have been uprooted from their homes and displaced by Hamas and Hezbollah rocket attacks, and one-fifth of them have lost their jobs as a result, according to a recent survey.
“We’re doing everything we can to ramp up critical aid, including food, clothing and medical supplies,” Chernoff said. “Since the October 7, 2023, terror attack on Israel, Joseph Project International has distributed more than $26 million in aid to Israeli families — Jews, Christians, and Arabs — in desperate need of help.”
To date, the organization and its established network have distributed more than $175 million in international aid supplies from its 16,000-square-foot warehouse in central Israel. Aid arrives in giant shipping containers, funded by donors across the United States and globally. More information is available at www.josephproject.com.
–Alan Goforth
