Impact

Local businesses on Jerusalem Boulevard in Jaffa were, until a month ago, facing financial ruin in the wake of total street closures due to the light rail construction. However, the digital currency campaign initiated by the Tel Aviv Foundation in partnership with the Municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo and Colu, has injected some $600,000 into the local economy, drawing 4,000 additional customers to support 100 local businesses – a huge boost for the neighborhood and the livelihoods of those who live and work there.

With the recent opening of the new Beit Lessin theater came the announcement that it has been generously supported by Israeli-Peruvian donor, Baruch Ivcher. The brand new building contains two state-of-the theaters and is located on the corner of Frishman and Dizengoff streets, reflecting the centrality of Beit Lessin Theater to Tel Aviv’s and Israel’s cultural life.

Bnei Dan Park in Ganei Yehoshua in north Tel Aviv has undergone a significant upgrade, thanks to the generosity of Israeli sisters Judith Paz and Tova Piper, who generously supported new play equipment in loving memory of their parents, Penina and Zeev. The upgrade park will be inaugurated in the new year.

“Being remembered by the laughter of children” – The Geula Kindergarten was recently dedicated in memory of Geula Rabinovitz, former First Lady of Tel Aviv-Yafo and kindergarten teacher who once worked in the very same building that now carries her name. The kindergarten was donated by her son and daughter-in-law, Joseph and Mirit Rabinovitz, who traveled from Los Angeles for the ceremony.

Having seen the life-changing impact of after-school programs for children of asylum-seekers, Ed and Barbara Shapiro of the Shapiro Foundation from Boston decided to increase their generous support for after-school programs for children of asylum-seekers. They are now supporting a total of nine programs, providing over 300 children with essential educational and social support.

The Suzanne Dellal Centre for Dance and Theater recently opened a new rooftop studio and renovated rehearsal and performance spaces, thanks to the generosity of the Dellal Family. A project of The Tel Aviv Foundation with the Municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo and the Israel Ministry of Culture and Sport, the extensions were officially opened by Guy Dellal and family in memory of his parents, Zehava and Jack, in the presence of Mayor Ron Huldai. The event featured fantastic performances by Batsheva Dance Company, the Ironi A School of Dance, and the Maslool – Professional Dance Program at Bikurey Ha’Itim Center.

The legacy of the late Lou Dunst from San Diego, a longtime friend of Tel Aviv, was strengthened with the recent donation in his name to Warm Homes, an after-school program for children ages 3-7 from low socio-economic backgrounds in south Tel Aviv. Warm Homes provides a supervised and supportive environment for at-risk children to facilitate healthy development and prevent social delinquency.

The Board of the Bernard van Leer Foundation met in Tel Aviv on September 8, 2019, with program partners The Tel Aviv Foundation and the Municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo to discuss progress on future plans for Urban95 in Tel Aviv. Urban95 is the family-friendly urban design program which encourages planners and service providers to imagine their city from 95cm, the average height of a three year old to create public spaces and services that promote positive early childhood development.

Celebrating 100 years of the Bauhaus design movement in Tel Aviv, the newly-renovated Liebling Haus-White City Center opened on September 19, 2019. A joint project of The Tel Aviv Foundation, the Municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo and the German Government, the event was held in the presence of the current and former State Secretaries of the German Ministry for the Interior, Building and Community – Mr Marco Wanderwitz and Mr Gunther Adler – as well as the German Ambassador to Israel, Susanne Wasum-Rainer.

150 children started the new school year on September 1 in a brand new kindergarten, thanks to the generosity of the Maurice and Vivienne Wohl Charitable Foundation. ‘Vivienne’s Kindergarten’, built by The Tel Aviv Foundation, will provide a state-of-the-art learning environment for children ages 3-6 in the Neve Ofer neighborhood in south Tel Aviv.