Meet the 2016 Tannenbaum Prize Winner!

The Hadassah Foundation is thrilled to announce that Lilach Tzur Ben-Moshe, who does ground-breaking work with women attempting to exit prostitution, has been awarded the 2016 Bernice S. Tannenbaum Prize!

 

Tzur Ben-Moshe is the Founder and Executive Director of Turning the Tables, a Tel Aviv-based organization that provides economic alternatives to women exiting prostitution. Since 2011, Turning the Tables has trained these vulnerable women for jobs in the fashion industry. They are taught how to sew, make patterns, design clothes, and market their goods; one successful graduate has created a critically-acclaimed clothing line! The program, which is supported by the Hadassah Foundation, has enabled dozens of women to begin a new life with dignity, including a legal way to make a living.
 

"It is a great honor to accept this award from the Hadassah Foundation, which bravely recognizes the diverse challenges that women in Israel still face," said Tzur Ben-Moshe. "Tens of thousands of women and girls in Israel are trapped in the cycle of prostitution and addiction. Turning the Tables is sending the message to them and to women in general that we see them and reach out to them."

The Bernice S. Tannenbaum Prize recognizes emerging professionals who have made innovative contributions to advance the status of women and girls in Israel and the United States. Awardees demonstrate a high degree of talent, commitment, and accomplishment in their work. The prize honors Bernice S. Tannenbaum, z''l, for her lifetime of service to the Jewish People; the State of Israel; and Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America.

     
In honor of Tzur Ben-Moshe, the Hadassah Foundation has released a new video that highlights the Tannenbaum Prize winner, as well as the work of the fund.  The video can be viewed at: https://youtu.be/X7zUs86BWmI

Congrats, Lilach!

New Hadassah Foundation RFP for Israeli Organizations

The Hadassah Foundation has just announced its RFP for Israeli organizations working to empower low-income Israeli women. We are interested in social change, gender-sensitive projects that help low-income women of all backgrounds in Israel achieve economic independence. Grants of up to $25,000 will be awarded. The Foundation is particularly interested in programs that provide cutting-edge approaches to solve problems that have not been addressed previously.

Areas of interest include:
• Savings, Asset Development, and Pension Planning
• Grassroots Programs that provide resources and training
• Legal and Policy Advocacy Initiatives
• Business Development Services that help women who own businesses improve their outreach and marketing

• Workplace Discrimination

• Leadership development initiatives that increase the number of, and capacity of, women in positions of leadership.

All applications are due by 11:59 AM (ET) Thursday, July 28th.

For more information: www.hadassahfoundation.org

Grantee Spotlight: The Jewish Women's Archive's Rising Voices Fellowship

The Rising Voices Fellowship enables teen girls to use social media and blogging so they can be positioned as thought leaders in the Jewish community.  The program, which draws teen girls from across the country, includes both in-person weekend gatherings and regular on-line sessions. The girls hone their editorial skills with the help of JWA's staff as well as through a peer editing program, whereby each girl's work is edited by another member of the program. Fellowship alumna Eliana Gayle-Schneider, pictured above, explains how this JWA program has influenced her:

"JWA's Rising Voices Fellowship has played a tremendous role in shaping the Jewish feminist lens through which I now view the world. Rising Voices has taught me an immense amount, not just about feminism and Judaism, but about leadership and what it means to use writing as a tool for change.

The Rising Voices empowered cohort is truly like no other. We represent the full spectrum of the Jewish community; from modern Orthodox, to the classically Reform. Some of us go to shul, some to temple, some to synagogue, but we all go to rallies for income equality. Some of us write about the pop stars and fashion; others write about Emma Goldman and dreams of becoming Orthodox rabbis. But all of us have one thing in common: we are feminists. I am a member of an extraordinary and powerful group of young women, we are intellectual and passionate--and yes, we are feminists. Hearing one another's stories, I now understand how important it is to really own this badge of honor. To name what I have always known myself to be: a Jewish feminist.

For me and so many others, feminism and Judaism have never gone exactly hand in hand. While this is something I have tried to explore independently, the process of discussing these matters with my Rising Voices peers adds a new layer of depth. Whether in monthly webinars with the entire group, or simply texting my peer editor in Massachusetts, I feel connected to young women across the country who share my passions. The Rising Voices Fellowship bridges geographical gaps and provides an important venue for the developing young female voice. I've had the awesome  privilege of working side by side with my amazing, passionate RVF peers, digging deep and writing about the issues we care so deeply about--feminism, Judaism and finding our place in both of these worlds.

Rising Voices Fellowship is helping each of us to make a difference in so many important ways. We are a group of young women who are on the cusp of big transitions. We are en route to college, imagining our next steps in the world. Rising Voices Fellowship helps us to explore issues about our own identities as Jews and as women; providing us with the tools we will need to grow as feminists and as activists. 

The voices of teenage girls, and more specifically those of Jewish teens, are nearly invisible from the public's view. By raising our empowered teenage voices, we tackle issues from sexism to ageism. Rising Voices allows for twelve truly unique young women from all over the country to think critically about our lives, our country and our culture. The Fellowship allows for each of us to learn from one another. Although this satisfaction is certainly a remarkable result, the means for making a difference is not in the individual process of writing, but in putting our thoughts and opinions out into the world; through blogging."

Shaping Future Leaders of the Jewish Community

The Hadassah Foundation was proud to be a sponsor of the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America's conference last week, "Ethics, Leadership, and the Jewish Future."  The conference, which attracted more than 100 attendees, including many leading figures in the Jewish community.  The conference was part of Hartman's Created Equal Project, which includes a new curriculum that looks at the nature of leadership in the Jewish community, including the role that gender plays.  Among those attending the conference were six graduate students in Jewish communal services from schools across the country. These inaugural members of the Created Equal Graduate Students Seminar
(pictured above) have studied the Created Equal curriculum in virtual sessions over the past several months. The Foundation is currently supporting the Created Equal Project, including the program for graduate students.    

Recognition for a Job Well Done!

Our grantee, the Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel, received a high honor from the Association for Civil Rights in Israel:  it was recently awarded their Human Rights Award, in memory of Emil Grunzweig.  This award was in appreciation of their 25 years of dedicated work to combat sexual violence, and for their advocacy work on behalf of its victims.  Above, the ARCCI staff receiving the award.

Mazel tov!