Rabbi Haim Dov Beliak
Friends of Jewish Renewal in Poland
ph 310-286-9991
www.JewishRenewalinPoland.org
RabbiBeliak@JewishRenewalinPoland.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 15, 2022
Humanitarian Aid for Ukrainian Refugees in Poland
We wish Barbara Cook success in her mission to bring support and practical aid to women and children refugees fleeing into Poland from the war. Mrs. Cook’s determined effort to aid the people of Ukraine is an inspiring banner for other individuals to gather around in order to help and raise up the image of humanity. Barbara Cook is a child of survivors who originally lived in the Krakow region. In a passionate expression of her humanitarian and Jewish upbringing, Barbara connects her need to reach out to help in this time to the experience of her father and grandfather during the Holocaust.
San Francisco’s local Fox news interviewed Mrs. Cook here.
Friends of Jewish Renewal in Poland and its communities of synagogues in Poland, Beit Polska, helped with the arrangements and will aid in the distribution of the clothes throughout the Ukrainian refugee community. The chair of Beit Polska, Mr Marek Jezowski and members of Beit Polska progressive synagogues associated with the World Union for Progressive Judiasm and European Union for Progressive Judaism are planning to meet Mrs. Cook at the Warsaw Chopin Airport. Sonja Guentner, the Chair of the EUPJ, turned to Mr Jezowski to make the connections in Poland. The hope is that the clothes will help the recipients normalize their situation through finding professional attire. The clothes that Barbara is transporting are specifically intended to help women feel appropriately dressed for interviews and work and the children’s clothes were collected for school and nursery. The overall goal is that these refugees can start step on to the first rung of the ladder of sustaining their lives.
Civil society across Poland has mobilized to provide the basics of food and shelter as the war refugees have gathered. Dozens of organizations, local and from around the world, have convened on the borders offering food, medicine and referral services. Poland has received almost 1.5 million people in the initial two weeks of the war. FJRP and Beit Polska continue to address the needs of the war affected group and to update a list of their projects under implementation every few days.
March 13, 2022 10th of Adar II, 5782
To Whom it May Concern
Please accept this note as a formal confirmation that Mrs Barbara C Cook is a private individual who has collected gently worn clothes mainly for women and children from her family and friends. The clothes are intended as work attire for adults and school/nursery clothes for the children. This is entirely a humanitarian gesture from San Francisco residents dedicated to the Ukrainian Refugees in Warsaw so that they may start work and begin to move on with their lives. There has been no commercial or financial transaction involved and this project is based entirely based on donations and goodwill.
She has 20 pieces of luggage, containing the clothes, which will be given to the refugees. and Barbara’s journey begins in San Francisco on Tuesday 15th March, going via Munich, landing in Warsaw on Wednesday 16th at 12.50pm. She will return to San Francisco on Friday 18th March.
Arrival Flight to Warsaw LH1604 arr 12.50pm 16th March 2022
Departure Flight from Warsaw UA 9424 dep 7am 18th March 2022
Barbara will be met by Marek S. Jezowski, Chair, Beit Polska & Beit Warszawa at Warsaw Airport (+48 501-646-566) on arrival, who has arranged the on bound transfer of the clothes directly to the refugees of all denominations. Mr. Jezowski and Mrs. Cook will deliver the clothes to Jewish Community of Warsaw, Twarda 6, 00-950 Warsaw tel. +48 22 652 28 05
Throughout this project Barbara has been supported by both The World Union for Progressive Judaism and also The European Union for Progressive Judaism and on their behalf, I can confirm that all of the above statements are true and accurate and that we are very grateful for Barbara’s hard work and dedication.
Respectfully,
Rabbi Haim Dov Beliak
WhatsApp +1310-592-8960
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