In addition, the German government recently agreed that eligible Jewish survivors of Nazi-controlled ghettos in World War II who worked “without force” are now entitled to receive both German Social Security payments and the Ghetto Fund one-time payment of €2,000. Previously, eligible survivors were not entitled to receive both, but Claims Conference negotiations have resulted in a change to German law on this issue.

Ghetto survivors who have not yet applied to the Ghetto Fund or the Ghetto Pension should do so at once. There is no deadline to apply for the Ghetto Pension or the one-time award of €2,000 from the Ghetto Fund.  The “Ghetto Fund” is administered by Germany’s BADV federal office. The basic prerequisites for the payment are that the survivor (1) was forced to live in a ghetto in an area that was occupied by Germany or allied to it and (2) performed voluntary work.

Ghetto Payments Amendment of 2011
Recent changes to German law now allow eligible Jewish survivors of ghettos who worked “without force” and for some form of remuneration to receive both German Social Security payments and a one-time payment of €2,000. Previously, eligible survivors were not entitled to receive both.

The fund’s one-time payment of €2,000 was created to acknowledge ghetto survivors who had been rejected for German Social Security payments and it came as a response to intense international pressure spearheaded by the Claims Conference.

For information on criteria and how to apply: http://www.claimscon.org/index.asp?url=badv

PLEASE NOTE: THESE ARE NOT CLAIMS CONFERENCE PROGRAMS. CLAIMANTS MUST APPLY TO THE RELEVANT GERMAN GOVERNMENT OFFICES LISTED ON OUR WEBSITE.

Mirella Schreiber, JFS SOS coordinator, is available to answer questions and provide information about the application process. Please contact her at (720) 248-4640 or mschreiber@jewishfamilyservice.org. The application and instructions are available on the JFS Web site.

Ghetto Payments Amendment of 2011

Recent changes to German law now allow eligible Jewish survivors of ghettos who worked “without force” and for some form of remuneration to receive both German Social Security payments and a one-time payment of €2,000. Previously, eligible survivors were not entitled to receive both.

German government Social Security pensions, widely known as “Ghetto Pensions,” have been available since 2002 to Holocaust survivors who were employed for some form of wages during their internment in Nazi ghettos annexed to the Third Reich. The law, formally known by its German acronym of ZRBG, was enacted in June 2002.

The fund’s one-time payment of €2,000 was created to acknowledge ghetto survivors who had been rejected for German Social Security payments and it came as a response to intense international pressure spearheaded by the Claims Conference.

The one-time payment of €2,000 is known the “Ghetto Fund” and is administered by Germany’s BADV federal office.

For information on criteria and how to apply: http://www.claimscon.org/index.asp?url=badv

PLEASE NOTE: THESE ARE NOT CLAIMS CONFERENCE PROGRAMS. CLAIMANTS MUST APPLY TO THE RELEVANT GERMAN GOVERNMENT OFFICES LISTED ON THE CLAIMS CONFERENCE WEBSITE.

Mirella Schreiber, JFS SOS coordinator, is available to answer questions and provide information about the application process. Please contact her at (720) 248-4640 or mschreiber@jewishfamilyservice.org. The application and instructions are available on the JFS website.

About Jewish Family Service of Colorado

Founded in 1872, Jewish Family Service of Colorado is a nonsectarian, nonprofit human services agency serving metro Denver and Boulder, helping seniors age in place, providing mental-health counseling to individuals and families in distress, offering training and placement services to those with barriers to employment, and providing crisis intervention and food to people in need. Every year, JFS benefits more than 20,000 people of all ages, faiths and incomes. For more information, call(303) 597-5000 or visit www.jewishfamilyservice.org. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

JFNA CEO Jerry Silverman

DENVER, CO — The 2011 General Assembly of The Jewish Federations of North America wrapped up today with a rousing call from JFNA President and CEO Jerry Silverman for the participants to go out and keep working towards “a vibrant and fresh future for the Jewish people.”

Silverman said the GA has been “the singular platform for current and emerging thought leaders” for eight decades, and urged the Jewish community to make room for young Jewish leaders in MASA and Taglit-Birthright to become activists and advocates in every community.

The GA reminds us of our collective strength as a Jewish people. But despite all we have to celebrate, there is so much more we can do, and we have to do it,” said Silverman.

l-r: Wayne Firestone, Ami Eden, Peter Beinart, Julie Bernstein

There were several great sessions today, including “Israel: Have We Lost That Loving Feeling?,” a panel with Peter Beinart (yes, the author of the scathing essay in the NY Review of Books last spring); Julie Bernstein, Associate Managing Director, JFNA/JCPA Israel Action Network; Wayne Firestone, President and CEO, Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life; and nimbly moderated by Ami Eden, CEO and Editor-in-Chief of JTA.  The audience had a very broad mix of elder statesmen to college students, and featured a very lively discussion of variations on the theme “can we love Israel without loving the government and its policies?”

BJN will have more stories and pictures over the next few days as we catch our collective breath. Meanwhile, here is a photo collage of day two from BJN photographer Bruce Shaffer:

Ambassadors Oren and Shapiro held an onstage dialogue, led by former IDF and Israeli government spokesperson, Col. (Ret.) Miri Eisen. The discussion touched on everything from the diplomats’ shared heritage of American Jewish summer camps and youth groups to their joint dream that, as Oren put it, the time is not distant from “that day when Dan and I can witness a signing ceremony” at the White House for a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians.

There were many intense and diverse topics covered at today’s GA session: integration of the Haredi and Arab-Israelis into the mainstream of Israeli society (two different sessions); Welcoming Interfaith Families (which featured Denver/Boulder’s Stepping Stones program, featuring Rabbi Steven Foster); and the Jewish Futures Conference, exploring trends and new approaches to Jewish education, which included Boulder’s Chidush Program materials, just to name four sessions.

We continue to be surprised and proud at the number of Boulder community members attending the GA.  Here are some of today’s pictures from Bruce Shaffer, David and Cheryl Fellows:

Here are Bruce Shaffer’s pictures from Sunday night’s Matisyahu concert:

In addition to soundbites, many of the tweets today included links to videos, websites, slideshows and other resources online. These links should work in the display below – if it starts with http:// you can click on it and it will go to additional content. This is one of the most-used features of Twitter – the ability to share a link with others (similar to sharing on Facebook). The link in the first tweet is to a video that was played during the session – and we’ve added it at the bottom of this article (after the tweet sections) – enjoy!

The first section is “meta” – the social media from a session on social media. After that are tweets from the session on Jewish Futures, cosponsored by 18 Pomegranates Foundation. We look forward to comments from other attendees!

The opening Plenary session featured Rabbi Elie Kaunfer, the GA’s scholar in residence, who asked the question “What is Jewish continuity about, if not to continue Torah and Torah values?”  Kathy Manning, Chair of the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA)’s Board of Trustees, talked about the GA’s theme as the original Jewish social network: “Social connections are one of the things that bind us together as Jewish people” and drive us to be a part of something deeper, the Jewish need to show care and compassion for Jews in need.

Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz also spoke at the opening plenary, and lauded the vital role of the Jewish Federations, saying “the amazing work you all do embodies the notion that the world will be a better place when each of us does our own small part to make a positive impact.”  Together the Congresswoman and JFNA have launched Jewish American Heritage Month, challenged insurance companies who denied life insurance for people who travel to Israel, promoted breast cancer education for young women, supported the over 125,000 elderly, low-income Holocaust survivors in the US so they can live in dignity, and led the effort to build a Jewish Chaplains memorial in Arlington National Cemetery.

She also praised the Obama administration’s commitment to the special relationship between the U.S. and Israel, pointing to how the administration has increased foreign aid during a challenging budget era. But she also emphasized bipartisan backing for Israel, saying that “Democrat or Republican, we can all agree on the importance of strong U.S. support for Israel.”

The GA continues through Tuesday in Denver.

Pictures from our photographers covering the GA (Bruce Shaffer and David Fellows):

We’re using the Storify tool again to organize the tweets by session – thought that might be a little easier to read/follow.

For those of you who are also at the GA, we look forward to your commentary as well! Which session did you attend? What were your reactions?

Here is a quick compilation of news from the last day or so – including tweets, a link to the Occupy Judaism Facebook page, and links to related articles on the web.

(Not sure how to “read tweets”? if it starts with “http://” then it’s a link to something on the web. It’s safe, we checked it.)

Could it be the birth of a new movement? No one knows – but it’s amazing to watch it sprout.