With regulations being lifted and then reinstated, these past few weeks have been very confusing for most Israelis. Trains and busses were running one day and cancelled the next, businesses opened and then closed and when schools reopened, many students were put into mandatory quarantine shortly after. But one thing that you can count on is that Meir Panim is working twice as hard to ensure that their clients receive the food they need regardless of the ever-ch...

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, Meir Panim has had to work twice as hard to ensure that no one in Israel goes hungry. All around the world economies have been hit and many people are struggling to make ends meet. This has been especially true in Israel, with over a million Israelis unemployed in April, and an unprecedented unemployment rate of 27.6%! A recent government survey shed some light on how the public has been ...

Meir Panim has dealt with many obstacles throughout the course of the pandemic. The demand for meals has tripled, surplus food from hotels and event halls are no longer being donated and above all, Meir Panim’s Restaurant-Style Soup Kitchens have been unable to serve as a center for clients to connect with our staff and volunteers as they sit down for a much needed meal. So how does an organization dedicated to feeding ...

Israel is starting to reopen, but Meir Panim has yet to feel the impact. Before Coronavirus, Meir Panim received surplus food from hotels, restaurants, and event halls. These venues are either still closed or operating at a much lower capacity, leaving little surplus food for them to donate. Meir Panim has had to fill the gap by purchasing and cooking...

The summer months have begun with good news in Israel as the government continues to ease restrictions and reopen its economy. Many of whom have been unemployed for months are getting back to work and adjusting back to normal life. Additionally, many of the restrictions that inhibited Meir Panim’s ability to care for the needy are being lifted.    This week, Israel has granted all restaurants to reopen which mea...

Israel is slowly starting to loosen up its restrictions, businesses and schools are beginning to open and some employees are able to return to work.  After almost three months in quarantine, we are finally able to reopen our After School Neighborhood Youth Center in Neviim! However, there are still restrictions that we are enforcing in our Centers to ensure that it’s a safe atmosphere. All teens have to wear masks and t...

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, there have been regulations to self-isolate, practice social distancing and some were forced into mandatory quarantine. These past few months have taken a toll on everyone, so news that Israel is relaxing some restrictions, was of course welcome. While social distancing rules are still in place, citizens in Israel are now able to travel away from home. Our staff at the Ben Gurion Youth Center in Sderot were quick to take advantag...

Throughout the State of Israel, IDF soldiers are treated like family and looked after by grateful residents. They are not viewed merely as anonymous military figures, but as sons and daughters, husbands and wives, mothers and fathers. Israelis deeply appreciate the sacrifice made by IDF officers, and this gratitude is especially pronounced around Yom Hazikaron and Yom Haatzmaut (Israeli Memorial Day and Independence Day). This profound sense of gratitude was compounded this year because of th...

Yom Hazikaron (Israel’s Memorial Day) is always the most solemn day on the calendar in the Jewish State. Residents throughout the State of Israel would ordinarily visit military cemeteries to honor the 23,816 IDF soldiers and victims of terror, who paid the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of the safety and security of the Jewish People. This year, the Coronavirus has prevented this hallowed tradition from taking place and the Israeli government has closed military cemeteries on Yom Hazikaron to ...