In its 13th year, Voices: Chicago Jewish Teen Foundation did what it has done from the start: Helped countless people in need in Chicago and Israel by empowering teens to make a difference in their world.

For 2016-17, the teens of Voices awarded $61,916 in grants to 11 Jewish and non-Jewish endeavors, while learning first-hand the joys and challenges of raising funds and deciding how best to allocate them.

“I am beyond proud of our teen board members, who demonstrate what Jewish teen engagement can look like when given the right support and resources to do the work they care about most,” said Stephanie Goldfarb, JUF Program Director for Youth Philanthropy and Leadership. “This accomplishment is not only remarkable for a group of Jewish philanthropists at any age, but it also signifies our community’s increasing commitment to pluralistic teen engagement, and investment in our future leaders.”

Each year, a new group of Chicago-area high school students, representing a diverse spectrum of Jewish life and engagement, joins Voices 101, creates an actual foundation, assesses community needs, raises funds, requests and reviews proposals from Chicago and Israel-based charities, makes site visits and passionately debates its allocations.

In recent years, many graduates of the program have participated in a Voices Alumni Foundation, creating their own campaign and focusing on more specialized philanthropy.

JUF provides professional guidance to both groups, and an anonymous donor provides seed money or matching funds.

This year’s group of 24 students in the 101 program allocated $33,121 to seven initiatives. The 12 students in the Alumni program raised and distributed $28,795 to five efforts.

Voices 101 Grants

HIAS Chicago, Refugee Resettlement Program , $8,000

For over a century, Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society of Chicago (HIAS Chicago) has proudly provided critical aid to individuals and families seeking comprehensive immigration and citizenship services in the city of Chicago and surrounding suburbs. This Voices grant will purchase 10-15 3-month CTA transit passes for new arrivals, and provide 5-8 families with three months of rental assistance.

EZRA, JUF Uptown Café and Food Pantry Programs , $7,000

EZRA strives to alleviate homelessness, hunger, unemployment and other self-sufficiency barriers, and also offers social activities and holiday celebrations to ensure that Jews who live in poverty remain actively connected to their heritage. The JUF Uptown Café and Food Pantry programs help to feed hundreds of community members each year. This Voices grant will provide 500 hot meals and many, many bags of groceries from the food pantry.

American Friends of Hand in Hand Co-Existence Schools of Israel, $3,841

Hand in Hand creates a strong, inclusive, shared society in Israel through a network of Jewish-Arab integrated bilingual schools and organized communities. It currently operates integrated schools and communities in six locations, with 1,578 Jewish and Arab students and more than 8,000 community members.

After School Matters, $4,000

After School Matters provides Chicago public high school teens opportunities to explore and develop their talents, while gaining critical skills for work, college and beyond. After School Matters designs and delivers high quality, hands-on, project-based apprenticeship programs in a variety of content areas, including the arts, communications, science, sports and technology. This Voices grant will support apprenticeships for four teens who wouldn’t otherwise be able to participate due to financial hardships.

Soccer for Peace, $5,000

Soccer for Peace is a non-profit organization aiming to unite children of war-torn nations in their shared love of soccer. This Voices grant will support Arab and Jewish students living in Israel in co-existence with learning and play designed to build bridges between communities.

Growing Home, Farm Stand Project, $4,280

Growing Home is Chicago’s leading expert in farm-based training for people with employment barriers. By providing 25 hours per week of paid on-the-job experience and job-readiness training at its farms, plus the support to conquer issues such as criminal records, medical needs, child care and housing, Growing Home has impacted the lives of hundreds of workers, and thousands of their family members. This Voices grant will support the community good access and nutrition initiatives in the Lawndale neighborhood of Chicago, delivering thousands of pounds of organic produce to communities that typically struggle to access fresh, healthy food.

JUF, Annual Campaign , $1,000

Voices 101 is thrilled to support the JUF Annual Campaign in solidarity with the community that made our work possible!

Voices Alumni Grants

Keshet, Camp Keshet , $9,000

Keshet is the premier provider of educational, recreational, vocational and social programs for individuals with intellectual disabilities operating according to traditional Jewish values in Chicago. This grant from Voices will provide nine $1,000 scholarships to families that need financial help sending their kids to summer camp this year.

JCUA, Or Tzedek Teen Institute for Social Justice, $8,000

Or Tzedek: Jewish Teen Institute for Social Justice is a unique, Chicago-based program that provides opportunities for teens from across the country to learn about and take action on current social justice campaigns. Or Tzedek gives teens a Jewish framework to explore their social justice identities and gives them the tools and inspiration to build a better world. This grant from Voices will help offset the cost of attendance for some participants, as well as strengthen the summer’s operating budget.

ITWorks, Israel, $8,000

ITWorks is a non-profit organization established in 2006 to promote diversity in employment and enable underserved and underprivileged adults living on Israel’s social and geographic periphery to realize their professional potential and obtain financial self-sufficiency.

UIUC Hillel, Creative Soles Program, $2,795

The mission of Creative Soles is to empower people with disabilities to make an income while gaining an amazing learning experience where they can feel included and show their unique personalities through the artwork they create. This Voices grant will purchase supplies needed to significantly increase the number of artists engaged in the project.

JUF, Annual Campaign , $1,000

Voices Alumni are thrilled to support the JUF Annual Campaign in solidarity with the community that made our work possible!

Online registration is now open for the 2017-18 Voices 101 program. Here is a link .