WJR supports ‘Voron's House’ in Moldova, a children’s home for street children and orphans.
Moldova is one of the poorest countries in Europe. It is home to 24,000 Jews living in some of the worst conditions facing any Jewish community.
Moldova is entirely landlocked. The country’s economy depends heavily upon agriculture. Petrol, coal and natural gas are all imported, primarily from Russia. Moldova has an adult illiteracy rate of 1.6%. 22% of the population lives on less than $1 a day, and 63.7% lives on less than $2 a day.
Predominantly, WJR provides humanitarian aid and basic welfare support such as food, medication, clothing, shoes, toys and bedding across Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union, as well as sustaining and renewing Jewish and non-Jewish life in the communities there.
Voron is the name of the man who built and now runs the safe haven at ‘Voron’s House’ – providing children with shelter, love and education. Gifts in Kind (GiK), a unique project coordinated by WJR, sources and collects donations of new and nearly new goods to send abroad. Through this programme, WJR has provided the children at Voron’s House with clothing, shoes and quilts, as well as food such as lentils, which will survive the journey from WJR’s warehouse in Neasden and provide the children with a decent source of nutrition.
WJR has been providing support and assistance through its GiK programme for many years. Last year, GiK raised the equivalent of £3.5m in goods.
Gathering goods from individuals, families and communities, GiK also relies heavily on manufacturers and wholesalers across the UK for bulk supplies of items.
Before stock becomes un-saleable, WJR ask that it be given away – rather than be destroyed at great expense and needless waste. Further, those that donate to charity are eligible for significant tax relief of the full value of the donation.
Poortman Ltd (International distributors of quality pulses and edible seeds) is a major WJR supporter. To date they have donated almost 45,000kg of a mixture of different pulses to GiK. In total, the goods were worth over £42,500 and were sent to Moldova, Belarus and Romania, supporting thousands of people. They were given to care homes for the elderly, special needs facilities, individuals and families as well as community centres. The majority of the GiK recipients survive on pitiful incomes, with little or no state support. WJR’s food programmes offer a critical lifeline.
Andrew Jacobs, Poortman Ltd’s chief executive responded to an emergency appeal for people in Moldova who were suffering with the huge increase in food prices and shortages following a severe drought.
Andrew said: “By the summer of 2007, Poortman had donated all our end of lines to WJR, but a couple of months later an emergency appeal for Moldova was bought to my attention. I was aware of the severity of the drought due to our active business in the region, so we purchased a truck load of Yellow Split Peas which would make nutritious soup for Moldovans and represented the “best value” foodstuff.”
Roz Bluestone, Overseas Projects Executive for WJR, said: “We are so grateful to Poortman Ltd for their contribution to GiK. Fortunately for us, the thought of droughts and famine is unthinkable, but for the people we help, it is a harsh reality. The ongoing donations from Poortman have provided thousands of people with a critical lifeline. Part of WJR’s ‘Spring Clean’ campaign is looking to source non-perishable food produce in bulk to send to deprived communities abroad.”
Other examples of donations include an international toy manufacturer, Danbar, that to date has donated over £80,000 worth of soft toys, remote control cars, games, squeezy pillows and more.
WJR food produce donations need to be at least one year from their expiry date and requires the appropriate certification.
visit the website www.wjr.org.uk
