It is hard to believe that it was only four weeks ago today that the Eaton fire began and forever changed our community. From the beginning, our Jewish Federation has worked hard to provide dignity and humanity to those directly impacted and affected by the fire. This has included providing immediate financial assistance to help them deal with the loss and begin the complex and challenging tasks ahead for them. And, at the same time, doing what I can to help avoid potential headaches that may arise from support efforts.

Like everyone else, I've also spent a lot of time trying to figure out how our Jewish Federation can provide additional support. Shortly after the fire began, our former Camp Director, Aimee Miculka (formerly Schwartz), reached out with an idea of something that was helpful for her after she and her family lost their home in the Marshall Fire back in 2021. She shared with me how meaningful it was to get back some of the Judaica she lost and be able to return to observing Shabbat with their family.

During our conversation, she suggested we do a Judaica Match program rather than our Jewish Federation coordinating a "traditional" Judaica drive where people drop off or send us Judaica they don't need (or want any longer). Aimee introduced me to Meryl Suissa, who, like Aimee, is based in Colorado and is a Jewish matchmaker, physician assistant, and the founder of the Marshall Fire Community Facebook Group and the Los Angeles Fire Community FB Group.

I am excited to share that with Meryl and Aimee's help and guidance; we launched a Judaica Match program for our community last Thursday. We contacted the over 70 Jewish households we are aware of that were affected by the fire and asked them to share a list of the Judaica they lost, along with photos they may still have of the Judaica. This information is being sent directly to Meryl and Aimee so they can compile a master list of items. They will then work with Jewish individuals and groups nationwide to attempt to match someone who lost their items with someone who wants to donate those same items. This effort is open to ANYONE who wants to participate. For those who wish to participate and help replace the Judaica items lost, please complete this form.

Our Jewish Federation will continue to serve as the local entity behind this effort, as our Monrovia office will be where locally "matched" items can be either dropped off or picked up.

I am proud that this is one more way our Jewish Federation continues to help those affected by the fire and help them replace their Judaica in a way that allows them to maintain some dignity for receiving this kind of tzedakah from people across the country who want to help.

Let us know if you have any questions or would like to learn more about this unique opportunity.