By 
Marina Moldavanskaya
Baltimore-Odessa Partnership Coordinator
Hundreds of people gathered this Saturday night for a wonderful event in Odessa – Party for Charity. This party combined both fun and philanthropy and featured three local DJs.
The project was created by Hillel student Kate Gilenkova for the Youth Leadership Project Metsuda. Her project is aimed at collecting money for children-at-risk. They plan to host seven parties a year, raising money from the entrance fees. During the summer, a group of children will have an opportunity to have a week holiday on the sea at a recreation center. Kate always dreamed of helping people and she finally had the opportunity to contribute to the world movement of philanthropy.
Metsuda, a program of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, engages a select group of participants from across Ukraine in a year-long combination of training seminars and a community service project. Metsuda cultivates strong alumni connections and invites graduates back to oversee proposed community projects by current participants.
The Associated, working in conjunction with its primary overseas service providers, the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI) and the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) allocates roughly one-third of its Annual Campaign budget to Israel and Overseas initiatives like Metsuda in Odessa.
