Jchoice.Org

Yad Chessed helps families who are unable to meet their most basic needs, such as putting food on the table, heating their house in winter, repairing their car so they can get to work, or paying the rent so they won't be evicted. Parents should not have to choose between buying a needed medicine for themselves or feeding their children.

Yad Chessed was founded in 1989 to provide short-term assistance to local Jews in need who fall through the cracks. Each year Yad Chessed helps over 400 needy families with

·         Emergency financial assistance

·         Grocery shopping cards

·         Clothing certificates for families with children

·         Bonus food allocations before major Jewish holidays

·         Interest-free loans

Serving as Boston's Jewish safety net, our mission is to provide direct assistance to Jews in financial need in Greater Boston through a system of grants and loans while preserving the dignity of the individual recipient.

We need your support now because families need more assistance than we are able to provide, particularly in this period of great economic stress. We are also helping families who have never before had to ask for assistance.

Many donors tell us that Yad Chessed is their favorite charity. Here's why:

·         Rapid response – we can deliver assistance within a day if necessary.

·         Direct impact – we help real people in real need.

·         Respectful treatment – we are careful to maintain the dignity of our clients.

·         Low overhead – 99 cents of every dollar goes straight to the families we help.

We received the following letter from a two-time cancer survivor who has faced many complications including multiple surgeries. She still works as much as she can as a teacher. She made the following request:

I request assistance this summer due to losing pay because of abdominal surgery and also a decrease of summer salary. My income is diminished vastly since summer school salary is much less than regular school and only lasts 6 weeks. June 24 was my surgery and so I will be losing approximately 5 weeks of salary along with taking a decrease of income. This has made me very frightened, stressed and worried, all of which is not good for my health due to my various medical conditions.

Yad Chessed paid one full month of this woman's rent; the relief this provided is evident in her follow-up note to us:

Just wanted to thank you again for your generous help this month with my rent. This is when I knew G-d does watch over us because to me it was like a miracle to receive your phone call. It was greatly appreciated. Many clouds have been lifted. Thank you so much!

In order to protect the privacy of the families we serve, we are not able to involve volunteers in most of what we do. However, here are a few ways you can help:

a. Organize an event to raise money for Yad Chessed.

b. Spread the word: Tell all your friends about Yad Chessed and ask them to support us.

c. Come up with your own creative idea.