Met Council is proud to announce it was selected to receive a grant from The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) through the Center for Advancing Holocaust Survivor Care. When combined with matching funds, this award will enable $100,000 in new programming for survivors.

JFNA launched the Center for Advancing Holocaust Survivor Care in the fall of 2015, following an award from the United States Department of Health and Human Services for up to $12 million over five years to advance innovations in person-centered, trauma-informed (PCTI) services for Holocaust survivors in the United States. PCTI care is a holistic approach to service provision that promotes the dignity, strength, and empowerment of trauma victims by incorporating knowledge about the role of trauma in victims’ lives into agency programs, policies and procedures.

Of the more than 100,000 Holocaust survivors in the United States, nearly one-quarter are aged 85 or older, and one in four lives in poverty. Many live alone and are at risk for social isolation, depression, and other physical and mental health conditions stemming from periods of starvation, disease, and torture.

Met Council’s Holocaust Survivor Program is a multi-faceted program that assists Holocaust Survivors with services such as emergency financial assistance, kosher food package delivery to their home, holistic case management, short-term counseling and social events. The funding from JFNA will allow Met Council to reach the most isolated and at-risk segment of the survivor population and work to reconnect them using PCTI approaches.

“We are grateful to JFNA for their generous support for our Holocaust Survivor Program,” said Judah Zellermaier, Met Council’s Director of the Holocaust Survivor Program. “We at Met Council are committed to supporting the survivors in our community and have been for over 40 years. These Holocaust Survivors have experienced the worst that life has to offer, and it is our responsibility to support them and help them thrive.”

“It is critical that we deliver these lifesaving and life-enhancing services to Holocaust survivors. The past two years of this federal grant program have shown the deep impact that person-centered, trauma-informed services can have on Holocaust survivors. We are grateful to partner with the government to augment this work,” said Mark Wilf, chair of JFNA’s National Holocaust Survivor Initiative.

The Center for Advancing Holocaust Survivor Care promotes these innovative service delivery models together with the expertise of partner organizations including the Network of Jewish Human Service Agencies and the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany. The grant money is a combination of federal dollars and philanthropic dollars raised by Jewish Federations as part of JFNA’s National Holocaust Survivor Initiative, which has raised $45 million to support the survivor community.

Met Council is a proud partner of UJA-Federation of NY.

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