Temple Adas Israel Holds Fundraising Drive For Ukraine

In the days following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as the destruction grew more widespread, the numbers of casualties rose, and displacements swelled from a stream to a torrent, members of Sag Harbor’s Temple Adas Israel began looking for ways to help.

“The photos we are seeing are horrifying,” said the temple’s co-President Ron Klausner, “and this is not going to end tomorrow.”

After discussing the matter, the congregation’s leaders decided to do a temple-wide appeal for donations. “We put out an email and said, ‘Let’s see if we can raise $18,000,’” Klausner said. “In the first hour we raised $11,000 from more than 50 participants.”

Klausner added that the figure $18,000 was chosen because of the significance of the number 18 to Jewish people. The 18th letter in the Hebrew alphabet is “chai,” which means life.

“We were amazed that in two weeks we raised more than double that amount,” Klausner added. “It’s heartwarming and made me feel proud of our congregation. We are small, about 275 members, half of whom are here only in the summer, but they have a strong connection to the temple.”

With more than $36,000 in hand and with the United States offering to take in up to 100,000 refuges, Klausner said the congregation would like to sponsor a family but that it wanted to first distribute the money it has already raised to a number of Jewish relief organizations.

He said donations are being made to United Jewish Appeal’s Joint Distribution Committee, which makes humanitarian donations around the world; the World Jewish Congress, which has ties to Jewish communities; and Hebrew Union College, which has a fund for needy Jews.

“Ukraine strikes a nerve for many of us because many of us have roots in Ukraine,” Klausner said, noting that his own ancestors were forced to leave Ukraine and Belarus during pogroms in the early 20th century.

Klausner added that the relief drive has its roots in “Tikkun olam.” “We believe the world is broken and we have a moral responsibility to help fix the world,” he said.

“Every year, during Passover, we teach our children and recite our history,” Klausner continued. “We were slaves in Egypt, and we will never forget that. And we are always hoping to achieve freedom, not only for ourselves but for others.”

Donations can be made by visiting the temple’s website, templeadasisrael.org and indicating the donation is for Ukraine, or sending a check to Temple Adas Israel, P.O. Box 1378, Sag Harbor, NY 11963.