Abigael’s on Broadway, a prestigious kosher food joint in Midtown Manhattan where, for 25 years, active Jewish agents have brought mayors, members of Congress and other high-profile patrons, announced in May that it would not reopen. developing a list of kosher eating places that have closed.
“Unfortunately, COVID 19 has also wreaked havoc on the places to eat industry,” Abigael’s leader Jeff Nathan wrote in his ad. “With all those months lost, it’s no longer practical for us to follow the big projects we had. “
Jewish establishments supported largely through participation quotas, adding schools, synagogues, camps and CCCs are at risk, with tens of millions of Americans without paint, not only service personnel, but also administrative staff such as bankers and even doctors. many of these establishments will have difficulty paying their bills.
“While the camp has operated prudently and financially responsiblely for many years, tuition and fees account for more than eighty-five percent of our income,” a Jewish summer camp in New York State, Ramah in Berkshires, in early July told a $100,000 fundraising request. “Since March, we have implemented significant cost reduction measures. Once the resolution was taken to cancel the camp, we made more budget cuts, adding the elimination of several posts throughout the year and a widespread pay cut for the rest of the staff throughout the year. Despite these significant budget cuts, our commitment to pay tuition has left Ramah Berkshires in a precarious position. “
Museums, which charge fees, rent facilities and raise funds to generate income, are also in trouble.
“This crisis has forced us to make very complicated decisions for the museum’s survival,” said Jack Kliger, executive director of the Jewish Heritage Museum in New York. Announcing the dismissals in June of approximately 40% of its staff, he described the existing scenario as an “existential crisis. “
The National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia, which opened with fanfare in 2010, filed for bankruptcy on the eve of the pandemic and has since laid off two-thirds of its staff.
Synagogues are also undergoing dramatic changes. Some synagogues require the faithful to report legal waivers before attending in person. Synagogues have expanded their video distribution offerings, adding study rooms and, in the case of non-Orthodox synagogues, worship.
“People are at home, aspire to the community, aspire to stability, aspire to compassion, and connect in a much larger number than ever before,” said Amy Asin, vice president of congregational reinforcement at Union for Reform Judaism.
With shuls now online, the faithful are no longer limited to synagogues in their neighborhood; can be attached anywhere. While this would possibly mean more festival for the faithful, there is also an advantage: synagogues that are physically remote can collaborate and pool resources for co-amphitrions or systems such as invited academics.
“Small congregations in several states can do so; the challenge is time zones,” Asin said. “Geography is no longer an issue because of the pandemic. “
The wonderful challenge facing synagogues is economic. Even before the coronavirus arrived, some puppies were struggling. The currency crisis will be accentuated if synagogues see relief on the gains of members who cannot afford their dues and a drop in profits from major parties. tickets given the challenge in person this year. If this happens, expect an increasing number of synagogues to merge with others in your domain or sell your buildings and move to rented premises.
Union Temple “is not big enough, large enough, or well funded as a congregation to do what we dreamed of doing on our own,” the leaders of a reformed Congregation in Brooklyn this spring wrote in an announcement that they were in crisis. Another nearby synagogue, the Beth Elohim Congregation.
The charitable foundations that American Jewish life would possibly be one of the few that would emerge most powerful from this experience. As Jewish organizations struggle to raise enough cash for their core activities, the handful of giant foundations that each distributes tens of millions of dollars a year to Jewish reasons would likely end up exerting an even greater influence on the agfinisha of ordained Jewish life.
At the beginning of the crisis, some of the largest foundations came here in combination to announce the creation of a $91 million Jewish Community Response and Impact Fund to provide emergency grants and interest-free loans to “maintain the infrastructure of Jewish life in the United States. States. “”
Initially, attractive foundations, adding the Aviv Foundation; Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation; Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation; Jim Joseph Foundation; Maimónides Fund; Paul E Foundation. Singer; Diane foundation and Guilford Glazer; and the Wilf Family Foundation – each contributed $5 million or $10 million. To date, the fund has provided $20 million in loans and grants, with another $20 million in preparation. Beneficiaries come with teams from camps, day schools, CCCs and educational institutions. The fund also provides cash for local Jewish journalism (JTA’s parent organization, 70 Faces Media, is among the beneficiaries).
Most importantly, about a hundred Jewish teams received at least $500 million in government-guaranteed loans in the early months of the pandemic, but that money is already running low and now many of the beneficiaries of that budget are making drastic cuts.
Meanwhile, coronavirus has made fundraising mechanisms in the United States much more complicated: fundraisers cannot meet with donors in person, and millions of gala and dinner occasions cannot be held. it’s probably more complicated, too.
Of course, it is not just the establishments that suffer; Many other people and families are in trouble. Between March and June, New York’s largest Jewish charity, the UJA Federation of New York, allocated $2. 65 million to provide food aid, compared to the $1 million it usually spends in a calendar year. The additional cash was used to accumulate inventory in the pantry and to send ready food to remote seniors and confined hospital workers at home.
“Sometimes there is a sense that Jewish communities have no problems with lack of confidence in food,” Adam Hertzman, marketing director of the Greater Pittsburgh Jewish Federation, recently told JTA.
The most devastating effect of the pandemic was the loss of life due to COVID-19, although it is not known precisely how many American Jews killed the coronavirus, the geographical knowledge of the New York Department of Health, and anecdotal reports of the Jewish funeral. societies, Haredi Orthodox newspapers and funeral homes imply that the number is considerable.
For now, American Jews are preparing for an unprecedented holiday season, where most of them can enter Zoom Rooms than crowded shrines.
In the long run, said Hasia Diner, a professor of American Jewish history at New York University, is highly unlikely to have an effect on this crisis.
“We don’t know how long this is going to last. In a smart sense, this is the worst thing that’s going on right now,” Diner said. However, he noted, “I have a tendency to see crises as moments of creativity and expansion. “that closing moments. “