West European Jewish Leaders Hold Parley on Key Welfare Problems

The creation of three commissions to study and act on key welfare problems of Jewish life in Western Europe were announced today at the first meeting of the Standing Conference on European Jewish Community Services here.

The Conference was organized in November 1960, at the annual overseas meeting of the Joint Distribution Committee which was attended by Jewish leaders from 14 West European countries. Astorre Meyer, president of the Milan Jewish Community, presided at the meeting here today.

One of the commissions will deal with personnel. Under the chairmanship of Claude Kelman, vice-president of the United Jewish Welfare Funds of France, the commission will seek to enlist and train personnel for Jewish institutions being rebuilt after the Nazi destruction.

Another commission, headed by Chaim Perelman, head of the Brussels Jewish Community, will deal with community centers and vacation camps. The third commission will be directed by Jules Jefroykin of Paris. It will devote itself to inter-community communication and will publish “Exchange,” a quarterly issued in English, French and German by the Standing Conference.

Other organizations represented at the meeting included the Central British Welfare Fund, the Yugoslav Federation of Jewish Communities, the Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities, the Swedish Community, the Copehnagen Jewish Community, and the Jewish Social Work Foundation of Amsterdam. Other Jewish communities represented were those of Brussels and West Berlin. Charles Jordan, European director of the JDC, attended the conference.