The United Jewish Appeal Federation of New York is the metropolitan area's largest non-profit organization and the Long Island office, based in Syosset, is one of Long Island's largest philanthropies. There are 25 Long Island agencies that benefit from the UJA funds.

Selfhelp Community Services in Levittown, F.E.G.S. in Amityville, and Mid Island Y Jewish Community Center in Plainview, are just a few of the local organizations that benefit from UJA funding and services.

The Selfhelp Community Center provides people with the freedom to make the choice to stay at home, to be active, and to preserve their pride and independence. They offer a broad range of geriatric and home care services to people from all over Long Island. One of the services that the community center provides is home care for Holocaust survivors. The original mission of the center was to assist refugees of the Nazi persecution in establishing and maintaining themselves in this country. Since 1936 over 100,000 Nazi victims have been assisted by Selfhelp. Individuals who have lost their entire family and the life they once knew have turned to Selfhelp as their only alternative for decades.

According to Bonnie Stone, executive director of the center, each year the center thinks that they will have to close the program soon because there will be no more Holocaust survivors needing help but each year they are surprised. Stone stated, "Last year we had 500 people we never knew about contact us. They have taken care of themselves all these years and then as they get older they need help." Selfhelp offers supportive counseling, home care, financial management, and emergency assistance to Holocaust survivors. The center has adjusted their services over the years to meet the needs of this aging population.

This past week two women who survived the Holocaust spoke to the media about how they would not have been able to survive without the Selfhelp Community Center's assistance. One of these women, Sara Lew, who lost her entire family to the Nazis, spoke about the horrors she endured, stating, "The Holocaust left me such a lonely soul. I can never forgive the Nazis for what they did, for the horror they brought to my family." Now, as she has gotten older and can no longer take care of herself, she has turned to Selfhelp, which has provided her with a home aide. Lew said, "God gives us two hands, one for ourselves and one for helping others...for someone to give us a helping hand is wonderful."

Sara Weiss, another Holocaust victim, also lost her entire family and was injured, escaping from the Nazis by jumping from a train when she 16 years old. Since that time she has needed much help because of her injuries. She too has found that assistance from Selfhelp. She said that her aide from the center helps her in many ways, not the least of which is listening to her stories about the horrors she endured at the hands of the Nazis. Weiss said, "She is like a psychiatrist, I can talk to her."

This willingness to listen to the stories about the horrors is a very important part of the Selfhelp aides' jobs. One of the unique aspects of this program is that the aides are immigrants themselves, who have experienced coming to a new country and having to learn how to survive here. Through this program, while the aides help the Holocaust victims with their everyday tasks and healthcare needs, the older immigrants help the younger ones learn how to adjust to this new way of life.

F.E.G.S. specializes in mental health services and job counseling. F.E.G.S. is Federated Employment Guidance Services. When it originated, it focused primarily on finding employment for new Jewish immigrants. It has now expanded, and most of the people aided are actually not Jewish. Women are now the primary beneficiaries from the F.E.G.S. program. The Displaced Homemaker Program, which is run out of the Amityville center, helps people who have been abandoned in some way or have left abusive relationships. According to Ronnie Strongin, manager of Marketing and Communications for UJA Federation of New York, many of these people who come to the center tend to be uneducated and unskilled. The Displaced Homemaker Vocational Center trains these people in job skills and helps them find a job.

At a recent media event one of the women helped by the center spoke about how she left an abusive relationship and had no job skills. She spoke about how the vocational center turned her life around to the point that she is now the manager of a major corporation.

The Mid Island Y, the South Shore Y and other Jewish Community Centers around Long Island, that receive funding from the UJA Federation, offer various services, such as child care, holiday programs, and health facilities.

UJA provides more than $1 billion to these and other services across Long Island, New York City, and Westchester. UJA Federation network agencies are known for their high standards of excellence and responsiveness to the communities they serve. For information about needed services call the UJA-Federation Resource Line at 654-9339.