Cedarhurst-based One Israel Fund is targeting Israel's needs

One Israel Fund, a Cedarhurst organization is tackling specific Israeli needs. Scott Feltman, Hewlett resident and executive vice president, said that the group’s initiatives have been heightened since the recent conflict in Israel.

“Our organization is nothing like it was prior to Oct. 7,” Feltman said.

He has a small staff of two full-time employees in the United States and two in Israel, as well as two part-time employees in the U.S. and Israel. The typical year includes a few projects and fundraising, last year totaling $3 million. However, since Oct. 7, the organization has collected $2.5 million to fund relief and support services in Judea and Samaria.

The organization studies the specific supplies in demand in those regions of Israel through communication with security directors and rapid response teams, Feltman said.

“We work in a very organized and sufficient matter and we know exactly what our priorities are,” he said.

Recently, the One Israel Fund staff has been “spread thin,” according to Feltman. Due to the influx of donations for Israel from grassroots groups, many pieces of equipment have gone to waste due to not meeting defense regulations, including armored vests, placing more of a burden on Feltman’s organization to provide proper supplies for communities.

“We are getting the equipment out there,” Marc Provisor, One Israel Fund’s director of security projects said. “It may not be as fast as people want. We’re working with the supply chain, but we’re getting the equipment to the right places and we’re getting out the right equipment. And we’re going to keep doing that, because that’s what we’ve been doing and that’s what we do.”

Since the organization’s start in 1994, they have provided Judea and Samaria with medical, security, community, recreational and educational support by working directly with civilian response teams.

One project put on hold since the Hamas attack is the development of the Binyamin Medical Center, set to provide urgent care to 45 underserved Israeli communities.

“It’s on hold right now because there’s no construction almost anywhere,” Feltman said. “Supplies are hard to get because supplies have been taken to the army, Jewish labor has been called up.”

Instead, the One Israel fund is continuing to provide security supplies like they have in the past.

“Our motto in the organization is to be proactive,” Feltman said.

Treasurer Jay Kestenbaum, a Lawrence resident, has been a donor to the organization since its inception.

“Because of the relationship we’ve had with many of these communities over the years, we’ve hear first hand from their own administration, from the mayors of the town, from the local security forces, what they actually need,” he said.

Feltman went to Jerusalem on Oct. 23 and was set to return on Oct. 31.

“My security team begged me not to come and the areas that we deal with are kind of intense right now,” he said. “I couldn’t hold back.”

Since spending time with his staff in Israel, Feltman has been moved by the community response.

“In the states I see all the anti-Israel rhetoric and it’s almost like I feel safer here than I do there,” he said. “The level of unity in this country right now is at an all time high. Everyone here has united and this country has had plenty of divisions. You don’t see any of that.”