These are all our Young Families and Community-wide events listed here for your convenience. JUF Young Families programming is enriched by the diversity of our participants. We know each family is ...

As "People of the Book," Jewish communities have long relied on stories to infuse daily life with meaning and structure. Just as adults turn to books, instruction manuals, and stories for guidance, we ...

Yonatan Yogadovsky, director of the Magen David Adom (MDA) international department, speaks to participants of a JUF mission about the role of the MDA. (Photo by Yonit Schiller) Since October 7, JUF's ...

Wade Bacon outside the Wrigleyville celebration of his conversion to Judaism. In August, my friend Wade Bacon completed his conversion to Judaism. Wade has been married to Rebecca (Weinstein) Bacon ...

October 7 had a profound impact on Chicago area Jewish day schools and high schools. Shortly after the devastating attacks, school communities rallied and brainstormed about how they could help ...

Just as Americans used to ask, "Where were you when JFK was shot?" Israelis will forever remember where they were on Saturday, October 7, 2023. As hard as it is to believe, we are now one year after ...

"I was so confused at what anxiety was at the time, so I really didn't know what was going on," he said, as he reflected on the summer of 2022. Tepper is now a seventh grader at Deerfield's Caruso ...

These chairs, symbolizing each of the hostages taken on October 7, have stood outside of Am Shalom Congregation--no matter what the weather--for nearly a year. In this most challenging year, local ...

Alona Russo enjoying time at Camp Chi over the summer. (Photo courtesy of IDF Widows and Orphans Organization) Alona Russo lost her father, Uri, on October 7, while he was defending Kibbutz Kfar Aza.

UIUC students gather at an on-campus vigil in the aftermath of the October 7 attacks. After several years of negotiations, Hillel International, Illini Hillel, and JUF have reached an agreement with ...

Wendy Platt Newberger has hosted countless of Israeli families in her Chicago home through the years. So, when she learned of an opportunity to host a family from Kibbutz Holit for a week this past ...

Project management consultant Marisa Douenias and her dog, Poppy— a 13-year-old Pomeranian-Chihuahua mix— moved to Israel from Chicago, in the wake of October 7. (Photo courtesy of Nefesh B’Nefesh) ...