ONE Family Fund


OneFamily is an Israel based philanthropic organization. OneFamily is the family of Israel's victims of militant attacks - those who have been bereaved, those who have been maimed, and those suffering from Post-Trauma as a result of terror attacks since 2000. OneFamily empowers victims to rebuild their lives, rehabilitate, and reintegrate through therapeutic assistance programs geared towards orphans of both parents, orphans of one parent, bereaved parents, widow and widowers, bereaved siblings, and wounded victims.

History

The fund was established by Marc Belzberg and Chantal Belzberg, the parents of Michal Belzberg, a 12-year-old girl who was preparing to celebrate her Bat Mitzvah in Jerusalem when she heard the news of the Sbarro restaurant suicide bombing in which fifteen people were murdered and 130 men, women and children were wounded. Michal insisted that her parents cancel the large party that the family was planned, and donate the funds to help the survivors and the families of the dead. She also asked that friends and relatives donate to the fund in place of gifts. The family rapidly turned the fund into a charitable organization that rapidly raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for victims of terrorism directed against Israel.

Organization

The group has representatives in the United States, England and Canada. The organization's board of directors includes Canadian politician Irwin Cotler, American lawyer Alan Dershowitz, and former Israeli military Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi.

Actions

The organization has distributed $34 million to more than 2,700 victims and families of victims since its founding as of December 2011.

What Good Fences Make (play)

In 2009 American playwright Israel Horovitz wrote a short play entitled What Strong Fences Make in response to British playwright Caryl Churchill's play Seven Jewish Children". Horovitz has offered to allow any theater that wishes to produce What Strong Fences Make free of royalties, provided that a collection is taken up for the benefit of ONE Family Fund.