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Survivors of Riga Ghetto Make Final Grant

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Bequest supports Yad Sarah’s Dental Services for impoverished Holocaust survivors

The Society of Survivors of the Riga Ghetto – in their final official act as a group before disbanding due to their members’ passing and age – have contributed $30,000 to Yad Sarah, along with donations to two other organizations. The gift to Yad Sarah, Israel’s largest volunteer-staffed organization, will support the organization’s dental clinic, which serves a disproportionate number of Holocaust survivors free of charge. The gift will be acknowledged with a dedication plaque at a ceremony at Yad Sarah on Yom HaShoah, April 24, 2017.

“After years of support for Yad Sarah, we are very grateful, and powerfully moved, that the Society of Survivors of the Riga Ghetto have extended their hand in this final act of generosity to assist their fellow Holocaust survivors and other Israelis in need,” said Adele Goldberg, Executive Director, Friends of Yad Sarah. “After enduring the unimaginable, the Society of Survivors of the Riga Ghetto have made a tremendous mark on their community around the world. We are honored to carry on the legacy of this remarkable group through Yad Sarah’s work.”

Last year, Yad Sarah served more than 6,000 people through its dental clinic, including, through its mobile dental unit, more than 2,000 who are homebound or live far away on Israel’s periphery.

The plaque will memorialize not only the society’s gifts, but its remarkable story. From an estimated 50,000 Jews who lived in or were sent to Riga, fewer than 700 survived, and those who joined the society are now no longer alive, or too advanced in years to continue the organization’s activities.

The final bequests also benefit Yad Vashem and Friends of the Israel Defense Forces.

“We are very proud that our organization’s legacy will live on through these projects, which will support our fellow survivors and other Israelis in need, protect the memory of the Holocaust, and strengthen the State of Israel,” said Rene Herrmann, a Riga survivor and vice president of the society.

Lore Oppenheimer, the society’s president, said: “Our group experienced unspeakable horrors. Yet, we came from the darkness of the Holocaust determined to spread light, kindness and tolerance in our world. This gift helps to accomplish that goal.”

About Friends of Yad Sarah:

Friends of Yad Sarah is the U.S.-based support organization for the largest volunteer-staffed organization in Israel, providing a range of free or low-cost health and home care support services that save the Israeli economy several hundred million dollars each year in hospitalization and medical costs. Founded in 1976, Yad Sarah currently offers more than 20 programs through 100+ branches across the country, with 6,000 volunteers bringing help and hope to more than 400,000 people last year alone.

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