Jewish Federations and Welfare Funds to Hold Assembly in New Orleans

The 26th General Assembly of the Council of Jewish Federations and Welfare Funds will take place in New Orleans, November 14-17, it was announced today by Herbert R. Abeles of Newark, president. It will be the first assembly to be held in the South in 16 years, Mr. Abeles said. The last one was in Atlanta in 1942.

With more than 675 advance reservations at this date, attendance at this year’s assembly will be the greatest in the history of the Council. The delegates will take part in more than 25 workshop sessions which will deal with Jewish responsibilities at home and overseas, including fund-raising and budgeting for Jewish needs in 1958, advancing health and welfare services, building community leadership, improving community education and strengthening community organization and community relations.

Mr. Abeles declared that the assembly will take place this year in an atmosphere of urgency and optimism. “For the second year in a row our campaigns have achieved impressive gains, 13 percent over 1956 and 35 percent over 1955,” he declared. “The emphasis at this year’s national meeting will be to extend the gains of 1956 and 1957. We will have to provide for a continuing tide of immigration to Israel, and for vastly increased needs at home. It will take our very best combined thinking and planning to hope to meet these responsibilities.”

The General Assembly is the annual meeting of the 225 federations, welfare funds and community councils which comprise the CJFWF. These member agencies represent some 800 communities throughout the United States and Canada and annually raise more than 90 per cent of all Jewish philanthropic funds for overseas, national and local services. As the governing body of the Council, the Assembly will review its activities in 1957 and will determine its policies and programs for 1958 operating in behalf of the communities collectively.