Dulzin Says UJA Campaign is Doing Relatively Well. but Recession in U.S. Making Itself Felt

Jewish Agency Treasurer Leon Dulzin said today that although the 1976 United Jewish Appeal in the U.S. was doing relatively well, some $500 million in pledges to Israel by world Jewry had still to come in. He waid he was confident the money would eventually be made available to Israel because Jews who made commitments rarely defaulted. He noted that in the last five years, only three percent of American pledges have gone unredeemed.

Speaking to Jerusalem Post staff members, Dulzin, who just returned from a coast-to-coast UJA speaking tour in the U.S., said the American recession was making itself felt in the drop in pledges by big donors and in the wide gap that still remains between 1974 pledges and cash payments. He stated, however, that the new campaign was making good progress, especially among small and middle-range contributors, He said younger people were coming to the fore in fundraising and leadership in the U.S. and often displayed a higher personal commitment and deeper personal identification than some of the older generation.

Dulzin complained of an inadequate Israeli information effort in the U.S. “We are slow and way behind,” he said, “There is almost no information coming out of Israel and Jews in America are very confused, Israel’s policies are not clear,” he said.