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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

A look back at 2015

By B'nai B'rith

January 7^th, 2016

Helping the cuban Jewish community

In 2015, the B’nai B’rith Cuban Jewish Relief Project led four missions to Cuba. With fifty participants—most of whom traveled to Cuba for the first time—B’nai B’rith was able to carry down over 2,000 pounds of much needed donations of medicines and medical devices, clothing, and religious items to help meet the daily needs of the Jewish community of Cuba and their neighbors.

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

20 years of service

2015 concluded B’nai B’rith’s 20th anniversary of service to the Cuban Jewish community, with visits to nine different communities across the island, stretching from Havana to Guantanamo.

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

TZEDAKAH PROJECT

Through our partnership with the B’nai B’rith Maimonides Lodge in Havana we continued our support of the flagship Tzedakah Project, providing direct pension assistance to 120 elderly Cuban Jews across the island. We also supplied material support to a variety of initiatives, including air conditioning units provided to the island’s only Shoah exhibit and the Guantanamo Jewish community center.

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

Executive Leadership Delegation

For the first time in the history of the Cuban Jewish Relief Project, B’nai B’rith hosted an Executive Leadership Delegation led by then-B’nai B’rith President Allan J. Jacobs, Executive Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin, and then-Senior Vice President Ira Barfield. This high-level delegation met with local B’nai B’rith and Jewish community leadership, as well as the Cuban office of Religious Affairs, to discuss the evolving activities and needs of the community.

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

Diplomatic encounters

The Executive Leadership Delegation also had the great pleasure of meeting privately with U.S. Ambassador Jeffrey DeLaurentis, and Canadian Ambassdor Yves Gagnon. They discussed a wide range of issues including challenges facing the Cuban Jewish population, the changing nature of the U.S.-Cuban relationship, and the interests of Israel in Cuba.

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

U.n.'s kimberly mann joins the b'nai b'rith mission

This year, the B‘nai B‘rith Cuban Jewish Relief Project also had the pleasure of welcoming Kimberly Mann, chief of education outreach in the U.N. Department of Public Information, to our December mission as she toured Cuba’s only Holocaust exhibit on the island.

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

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The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

Mann offered a presentation to the Jewish community and trip participants, explaining the breadth and depth of her work as the manager of The Holocaust and the United Nations Outreach Programme – a position she’s held since the program was established in 2006. Mann’s done tremendous work developing networks and programs to improve and impart Holocaust education to communities across the globe.

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

B'nai b'rith already has several missions planned for 2016

While Cuba and the United States continue to mend their relationship, B’nai B’rith continues our tradition of cooperation with the Cuban Jewish community, contributing vital assistance to ensure that the needs of our brothers and sisters in Cuba are met.

For more information on ways to get involved in the Cuban Jewish Relief Project or for mission registration, please contact us at cuba@bnaibrith.org or click here to visit our website.

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

The Cuban Jewish Relief Project

© 2026 B'nai B'rith

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