War-time Financing of Jewish Social Work Discussed at Welfare Conference

The question of the financing of Jewish social work programs in 1943 was discussed here at a two-day conference of the East Central States Region of the Council of Jewish Federations and Welfare Funds which concluded yesterday. The meeting was attended by more than 130 Jewish welfare leader from nineteen communities in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, western Pennsylvania and western Ontario.

More than 300 war chests have been organized to-date throughout the country and many organized Jewish communities are confronted with the problem of joining the local war chests or continuing independent fund-raising campaigns, it was pointed out at the conference. The agreements effected by the Jewish welfare funds of Cincinnati. Detroit and Flint, Mich. in joining their local war chests were analyzed and discussed for clarification of local communities. Cincinnati and Detroit entered the war chests under “Lump sum” agreements and will have complete autonomy in budgeting for their beneficiary agencies, Special provision will be made in these communities for local and national civil-protective agencies which were not included in the war chest.

Jewish social welfare agencies must intensify their collaboration, locally and nationally, with governmental and voluntary activities to meet effectively America’s mounting war needs, Harris Pearlstein, president of the Jewish Charities of Chicago, told the conference. He emphasized that “Jewish community planning against a backdrop of war points up the inter-relationship of Governmental and general welfare work with our Jewish communal endeavors, “and declared that greater inter-group cooperation in social welfare was not only a war-time objective but would be an integral part also of post-war social work programs.

Insider Sobeloff, executive director of the Jewish Welfare Federation of Detroit, stressed that while fund-raising was important in Jewish community planning it was secondary in important to the aims and validity of the causes and programs financed. He pointed cut that such organizations as War Chests and the United Jewish Appeal were fund-raising devices and were of importance only in relation to the programs they sustained.

Abraham Sere, president of the Jewish Welfare Federation of Detroit, asserted that “the community planning agency must encourage and expedite the adaptation of the existing social services to the demands and conditions created by war. Walton Strauss, president of the Jewish Community Council of Erie, Pa., and chairman of the conference program committee, stated that the central community agency ” must mobilize all community resources to meet new needs resulting from the war effort and must coordinate the activities of the Jewish community in these fields with these of the general community.”

Joseph C. Hyman, executive vice-chairman of the J.D.C, reported to the delegates on the current status of overseas, refugee and Palestine programs. “in three years of war the agencies which receive their income from the United Jewish Appeal the joint Distribution Committee, the United Palestine Appeal and the National Refugee Service have spent $45,000,000 to bring assistance to an average of 1,500,000 people annually,” he reported, Other speakers included E.J. Schanfarber, president of the United Jewish Fund of Columbus, Ohio, Joseph M. Bern, president of the Cleveland. Jewish Welfare Federation and Gustatave Kann, president of the United Jewish Fund of Pittsburgh.

Jerome N. Curtis of Cleveland was reselected chairman of the East Central States Region. Walton Stores of Erich and Julian Krolik of Detroit were elected vice-chairman, Other officers named were Samuel Mueller of Indianapolis, treasurer, and Jacob H. Kravits, secretary.