A program providing hot Shabbat meals to a total of about 500 elderly Jews in small towns ended when the sponsor was no longer able to support it.  Mr. Romanov is hopeful that Viktor Pinchuk will assume responsibility for it in the near future.  It is very important for these individuals to socialize with each other, as well as consume nutritious food, Mr. Romanov noted.

The regional office expects about 3,000 people to participate in Pesach seders, said Mr. Romanov.  The office will rent premises and provide all food and other items.  However, it has become too expensive to bring in foreign yeshiva students to lead the seders so that task will be assumed by local yeshiva students.  Mr. Romanov and others have long observed that such Pesach trips seemed to be more important to the foreign yeshiva students than to local seder participants; few foreign students speak Russian or understand the local culture, and a large number of local Jews now know how to lead seders.  Mr. Romanov himself con-tinues to train local leaders in Jew-ish tradition and practice.

Igor Romanov instructs leaders of small communities, above, at a session in the Golden Rose Choral Synagogue in Dnipropetrovsk.  He also is seen in the photo at right.

Both photos: Chabad of Dnipropetrovsk.

Communal events, such as seders and other programs, have become much more expensive in recent years, noted Mr. Romanov, as landlords have increased rental fees of premises in response to increased charges for utilities, especially heating and water.  Small communities cannot afford to stage these programs, he said, so the burden falls increasingly on the regional office.

A casualty of the current economic crisis, Mr. Romanov acknowledged, is a program providing Jewish education classes twice weekly to youngsters in small towns.  The regional office, he said, can no longer afford to pay the teachers.  The regional office also is distributing fewer printed materials on Judaism and Jewish life.

Many wealthy Jewish businessmen who previously supported the Jewish community have major financial problems, stated Mr. Romanov, and have curtailed their financial contributions.  However, he noted, some middle-class Jews, who may have been intimidated by their wealthier peers in the past, have now stepped forward and are donating hundreds of dollars, if not thousands.  In general, concluded Mr. Romanov, he remains optimistic.  He believes that the Jewish community will recover its strength.  The crisis has brought people together.

37.  Oleg Rostovtsev is a media specialist whose primary client is the Chabad Jewish community in Dnipropetrovsk.  He previously also served as media director for Chabad in Ukraine as a whole, but that portfolio was closed when the office of the Chabad Chief Rabbinate in Kyiv was closed.  Mr. Rostovtsev does occasional work outside the Chabad community as well.

His major responsibilities for Chabad in Dnipropetrovsk include the community website (http://djc.com.ua),[67] a community newspaper, a weekly television show, and the production of various compact disks for the community.  The television show, Alef, is shown twice each week on a regional network, and attracts several hundred thousand viewers for a program of interviews with local Jews, information about Jewish holidays, Jewish current events, and news from Israel.  Because of its large audience, it attracts significant advertising.  Mr. Rostovtsev observed that the economic crisis has forced Jewish newspapers in many other cities to cease publication.

Oleg Rostovtsev, left, directs media services for Chabad in Dnipropetrovsk.

Photo: the writer.

From his interviews in the Jewish community, Mr. Rostovtsev perceives increasing anxiety generated by the economic crisis.  Divisions (разделения) are beginning to appear within the Jewish population.  Older people, he said, become very emotional when speaking about the curtailment of services by the hesed.  They are very worried about basic sustenance.  Many younger people, continued Mr. Rostovtsev, are unemployed.  Young adults who don’t work but receive stipends for attending the STARS program or other Torah study groups are more affluent than those who are employed.  No one, he said, has confidence in the short-term future, which he defined as six to 12 months.

Consonant with the views of others, Mr. Rostovtsev does not perceive any apparent increase in antisemitism.  However, he said, general xenophobia is increasing; people seem more tolerant of racism, he continued, and antisemitism may well emerge from this wide-ranging intolerance.

Ordinary crime also has increased, stated Mr. Rostovtsev.  People are generally more aggressive as they react to unemployment, credit problems, and foreclosed housing.  Alcoholism also is growing.

Uncertainty also is taking a toll.   It is difficult for him to envision future media needs, he continued, because he doesn’t know if resources will be available for further development of the media infrastructure or if community programs will continue to operate.

Mr. Rostovtsev perceives the Menora Center, now under construction, as a very hopeful sign for the Jewish community.  “У нас будуще,” he said.  (“We have a future.”)  Jews will exist in Dnipropetrovsk, he continued.  The Jewish community will exist, and Jewish life in general will exist.  Overall, he stated, he is an optimist.  He observed that many people scoffed at the size of the Golden Rose Choral Synagogue, believing that it would never attract many people.  Yet it is full on Shabbat and the Jewish community needs more space for its various activities.

National and International Organizations

38.  The Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI; Sochnut) office in Dnipropetrovsk serves a large area in central and southeastern Ukraine.  It is headed by Reuven Grinberg, who also serves as education shaliach.[68]   Aliyah(emigration to Israel) is increasing and an “atmosphere of aliyah” exists among several sectors of the local Jewish population, asserted Mr. Grinberg.  The increased interest in aliyah, he said, is fueled both by the economic crisis in Ukraine and the creative programs that JAFI has developed to encourage aliyah.

Reuven Greenberg, right, is the new head of Jewish Agency operations in Dnipropetrpvsk.  He previously was a successful JAFI education and youth emissary in the city.

Photo: the writer.

Both Taglit (birthright Israel) and the five-month MASA program are attractive to young people, said Mr. Grinberg.  Taglit often motivates young Jewish adults to consider MASA, especially the MASA “Master” program that offers concentrations in computer technology (with Microsoft certification), business, public relations/advertising/media, personnel management, or alternative medi-cine/massage.[69] 

Aliyah is appealing to lower middle class and working-poor families who find that their salaries purchase much less now due to high inflation, said Mr. Grinberg.  Even some individuals whose employment seems more stable and more lucrative are seeking information about aliyah, he continued.  The Dnipropetrovsk office has scheduled a number of day-long seminars that inform candidates of various aliyah and absorption programs that meet their needs.  He acknowledged that the recent war in Gaza and the defense situation in southern Israel deter some individuals from completing the aliyah process.

Mr. Grinberg believes that about 50,000 people in Dnipropetrovsk are eligible for immigration to Israel under provisions of the Israeli Law of Return.  However, he observed, only about 10 to 20 percent of these people are active in the Jewish community.  The biggest problem for him and his associates, he continued, is finding those Jews who are not active in any aspect of Dnipropetrovsk Jewish life.  New people come to the synagogue almost every day, he said, and the Jewish day school also is beginning to attract new families.  JAFI youth activities attract almost 100 people on a regular basis and as many as 500 on holidays and for special events.  JAFI sponsored three different Taglit trips to Israel last year.  However, he noted, JAFI funding is so precarious that they will be able to offer only one Dnipropetrovsk Taglit group in 2009; further, no money is available for Taglit follow-up activities.

Hillel and the Israel Cultural Center also attract young Jews, he acknowledged.  Some former JAFI madrichim (youth leaders) are establishing their own youth/young adult groups, supported by subsidies from the Genesis Philanthropy Group in Moscow.[70]  Mr. Grinberg believes that the emergence of additional Jewish youth/young adult groups is a positive development because young people will have more options for Jewish affiliation.  JAFI itself sponsors a young leadership group that encourages participants to develop their own organizations.

JAFI financial difficulties have forced ulpans to charge fees to participants, said Mr. Grinberg, a development that has contributed to the reduction in the number of regional ulpans from 13 to five.  (Three of the five are in Dnipropetrovsk itself.)  Many individuals who wish to study Hebrew in preparation for aliyah simply cannot afford the $10 monthly fees, especially pensioners and people who live in small towns, Mr. Grinberg observed.  It is likely, he said, that about 200 Jews in the region would like to enter ulpans, but they cannot afford to pay tuition.  He is now trying to raise money from people attending the Golden Rose Choral Synagogue to pay for additional classes.  With their Jewish identity components, said Mr. Grinberg, ulpans can serve as a powerful unifying force among the Jewish people.[71] 

Reuven Grinberg distributes the card shown at right (reduced in size by about one-third) in the local synagogue to raise funds foradditional JAFI ulpans.

The card asks people to help those Jews “who are trying to preserve their Jewish identification and study the history and language of their ancestors.”

The Jewish Agency managed the Russian-language distance-learning courses of the Open University of Israel, which were very popular in the Dnipropetrovsk area.  However, lamented Mr. Grinberg, this program has been suspended because its primary supporter lost substantial money in the Bernard Madoff scandal.

In response to a question, Mr. Grinberg said that JAFI in Jerusalem had not yet notified him about the number of JAFI summer camps that would be operated in the area in 2009.  About 300 youngsters attended JAFI Dnipropetrovsk-area summer camps in 2008, he noted.  Summer camps, he observed, are no longer free of charge; families must pay at least a portion of the costs of the camp session.

Mr. Grinberg expressed concern about the reduction of JAFI emissaries deployed in the post-Soviet states due to financial pressures.  He realizes, he said, that the posting of emissaries is very expensive because the Agency must pay not only salaries, but also housing, school fees for emissaries’ children, transportation, and other costs.  However, he continued, only Israelis can be genuine symbols of Israel.  Local people cannot transmit the spirit and pride of Israel, especially in teaching Hebrew and Jewish studies.

A JAFI youth club is located in separate premises, occupying two rooms in a non-descript building.  Known as “the Campus,” the facility is furnished with club furniture and a computer bank.  A small office has been developed in a loft overlooking one of the rooms.  JAFI Youth Activities Director Anya Masakovskaya[72] said that JAFI developed the separate site because the main JAFI center is crowded and students wanted some privacy; also, she continued, some students are reluctant to attend programs that are located in or near the synagogue, such as Hillel or STARS.  Rabbi Kaminezki supports Campus activities, she added, because he recognizes that not all Jews are comfortable in the synagogue.

The youth club does some follow-up programs for Taglit (birthright Israel) participants and organizes various informal activities, such as a stand-up comedy club and Jewish-theme scavenger hunts.  It sponsors a periodic journal and various gatherings.  About 60 youngpeople, including both high school and university students, attend its programs every week; some also use the Campus as a hangout – for meeting other people, studying, and/or using its computers.

Two young men perform a comedy routine at the JAFI Campus club.  Several dozen other young people were in attendance.  Soft drinks and snacks were provided.

 Photo: the writer.

39.  Elena Karol is Second Secretary of the Embassy of Israel in Ukraine and Director of the Israeli Cultural Center in Dnipropetrovsk.  The Israeli Cultural Center, said Ms. Karol, sponsors various classes and interest clubs for Jewish adults and children.  All of its activities have some connection to Israel.  Nativ, formerly known as Lishkat Hakesher, has formal responsibility for the Center.

One new club, she stated, responds to the requests of local businessmen who would like to build business ties with Israeli businesses.  The resulting business club promotes such trade and provides related information about commercial opportunities in Israel, Israeli banking and business law, and other pertinent matters.  The Israeli Cultural Center also sponsors a Women’s Club and, in May, will host a conference on women in business.  Successful women entrepreneurs from Dnipropetrovsk and from Israel will speak at the conference.  Ms. Karol believes that the prevailing culture in Ukraine suppresses many women.

The Israeli Cultural Center also sponsors clubs for children and adolescents and does pre-absorption counseling for local people who are preparing for aliyah.  The Center brings Israeli culture to Jews and other local people, said Ms. Karol; it sponsors Israeli film festivals, art exhibits (with reproductions of Israeli art), lectures by Israeli professors, and lectures about Israel.  Many local Jews, she said, are familiar with gefilte fish and Hava Negila; she hopes to raise their understanding of Jewish and Israeli culture to a higher level.  Many of these activities are staged in smaller Jewish population centers as well as Dnipropetrovsk, she added.

In addition to sponsoring its own activities, the Israeli Cultural Center provides meeting space for other Jewish groups.  For example, Project Kesher often meets at the Center.  (See below.)

Ms. Karol acknowledged that Avigdor Lieberman’s patronage of Nativ has generated increased funding for the organization and that it is in better financial condition than many other Israeli organizations.  She directs some Nativ resources into collaborative programs with other groups so as to help them fulfill their missions.

40.  The Project Kesher group in Dnipropetrovsk has three separate sections, the largest of which enrolls approximately 50 Jewish women, 25 to 30 of whom are consistently active, said Ella Sidorenko, a Project Kesher leader.  This primary section convenes twice monthly on Sundays at the Israeli Cultural Center, which provides meeting space, light refreshments, and occasional speakers.  The agenda for this cohort includes interethnic understanding with other groups in the city, women’shealth, family relationships, and children’s education.  Ms. Sidorenko said thatmembers of this group meet frequently with Project Kesher women from other cities.  Most participants are over 40 years of age.

Ella Sidorenko is a leader in the Dnipropetrovsk Project Kesher group.

Photo: the writer.