It is with great pleasure that Chamah honors Rabbi Yechiel Z. Eckstein, the founder of the IFCJ.

Prior to founding the Fellowship in 1983, Rabbi Eckstein served as national co-director of inter-religious affairs for the Anti-Defamation League. In the early days, Rabbi Eckstein broke new ground with groups that had formerly had no contact with Jews -leading him down the path towards creating the Fellowship. As a result, the Fellowship produced programs having tremendous impact on Israeli society, especially in the alleviation of poverty and the emigration and resettlement of Russian and Ethiopian Jews.

Rabbi Eckstein resides in Chicago and Jerusalem. His work with the Fellowship has garnered endorsements from leading Israeli and Jewish leaders.

We at Chamah are very grateful to Rabbi Eckstein and the Fellowship for their generous support of our humanitarian programs in Russia feeding the hungry and elderly and providing life-saving medications to the ill.