The Sabrina Merage Foundation Helps Send Jewish Students in Cuba to Sunday School

JDC Entwine, The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee’s young adult engagement platform, facilitated a fundraising campaign to raise the funds to send Jewish students in Cuba to Sunday school. In total, the campaign raised more than $13,000, which included a matching grant of $5,000 from the Sabrina Merage Foundation. It costs $190 per year to send one Jewish student to Sunday school, so this campaign resulted in nearly 70 children in Cuba’s Jewish community that will now attend Sunday school!

Cuba’s Sunday school programs are vital to the strength and continuity of the Cuban Jewish community and key to developing Jewish leaders. Every Sunday morning there are religious school classes for more than 180 students in Cuba. Sunday school is one of the few places Cuban Jews can go learn more about their Jewish roots, develop their Jewish identity, and spend time with Jewish peers. At school, students come together to studying topics ranging from Jewish studies, religious festivals, and learning Hebrew to studies on Israel, biblical studies, and computer skills. Each student is also provided milk and lunch which is crucial and offer much-needed nutritional support.