(Jewish Group) Challah for Ukraine fundraiser rises rapidly in East Bay
Four women in the sisterhood at Beth Chaim Congregation in Danville have raised more than $4,500 for Ukrainian aid and relief by doing something that was already part of their weekly routine: making challah.
The Challah Bake fundraiser began when Fran Birnbaum, 79, saw what was going on in Ukraine and she wanted to do something, she said. Beth Chaim’s brotherhood recently had its own fundraiser to benefit Ukraine’s Jews, through the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee; they raised $500.
“We thought, let’s try,” Birnbaum said. “Maybe we can get more.”
So in early April, Birnbaum reached out to three other women in the sisterhood who liked to bake, and they agreed to start after Passover. Birnbaum put out the call for orders: The plan was they would make 25 challahs, for a minimum donation of $20 each. Donors would pick up their challah at the synagogue on May 1, after religious school let out.
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