Champaign-Urbana Jewish Federation

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Welcome to the Champaign-Urbana Jewish Federation

Fostering a vibrant Jewish future at home and abroad and assisting broader humanitarian activities since 1929.

Jewish Life and Learning

CUJF engages our dynamic and diverse community with educational resources and community events to appeal to different interests, backgrounds, and ages throughout the life span.

Support for Our Most Vulnerable

As Jews, we have a responsibility to care for the needy in our community, as well as to support our members during their most vulnerable times. CUJF is there with information, referrals, and financial assistance when needed.

Community Giving

Together, we are stronger. CUJF serves as a central mechanism for raising and allocating funds to local organizations as well as supporting Jewish organizations and initiatives in Israel and throughout the world.

  • Education

    From PJ Library at 6 months of age, to Gift of Israel for young adults, CUJF sponsors a wide range of educational resources for Jewish youth. For the greater CU community, we support local teachers with resources and training to teach about the holocaust, as well community outreach projects on Jewish culture and history.

  • Humanitarian Aid

    Supporting our members during their most vulnerable times is perhaps our most important contribution to the community. Financial assistance to get through a difficult period, educational and advocacy support for new Americans, or bereavement support and respectful burial for the indigent, CUJF is there in times of the greatest need.

  • Engagement

    Movies for teens? Israeli Folkdancing? Film Festival? Senior programs? CUJF strives to offer our community a range of opportunities to engage with others who share their interests or offer different perspectives. Events are always open to everyone in the community, across all affiliations and backgrounds.

  • World Connections

    No matter where we live, we are all part of one global Jewish family. Through our community contributions to the Jewish Federation of North America, we support global Jewry in 70 countries around the world. CUJF also provides direct support to eight specific educational and humanitarian programs in Israel.

News & Upcoming Events

 

Cultivating Hope in Anxious Times. Special Shabbat Services

November 9, 9:00 am @ Sinai Temple

Sinai Temple is hosting the Interfaith Exploration with Torah study and Egalitarian Traditional Minyan service, followed by Kiddush lunch and a panel discussion Beyond Tolerance, Part II.

 

Cultivating Hope in Anxious Times. Performance by Ted & Company TheaterWorks.

November 10, 3:00 pm @ Lincoln Hall Theater

I'd Like to Buy an Enemy 2.0: The Fear Version Performance by Ted & Company TheaterWorks. A comedy exploring how fear and "othering" give rise to Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, and racism. 

 

School Day Out

November 11, 8:30 am @ Sinai Temple

Rabbi Jody will provide programming for kids in elementary school (K-5th grade): art, movement, quiet time/movie, snacks, and activities related to the idea of giving thanks. Please send a bag lunch, a board game and a book. Contact Rabbi Jody for more information. RSVP to educator@sinaitemplecu.org

 

The secret of Solidarity: Helping Jews in the Holocaust

November 13, 7:00 pm @ Lucy Ellis Lounge, 1080 Foreign Languages Building

Lecture by Mark Roseman (Indiana University). Email jewishculture@illinois.edu for more information.

 

Antisemitism: Historical Perspectives

November 14, 4:00 pm @ 4th Floor, Levis Faculty Center

A panel discussion on antisemitism featuring Peter Fritzsche (History) and Mark Roseman (Indiana University), moderated by Harriet Murav (Comparative and World Literature).

 

The Penny Dreadful Players Performance of Arthur Miller's Broken Glass

November 16, 7:00 pm & November 17, 4:00 pm @ Illini Hillel

CUJF, Illini Hillel and Penny Dreadful Players present performance in honor of the anniversary of Kristallnacht. Cocktail and dessert reception at 6:00 pm on November 16.

 

Preparing Agriculture for Global Climate Change

November 19, 11:30 am @ Sinai Temple

CHAI Seniors Program invites you to lunch followed by talk presented by Dr. Lisa Ainsworth. Please RSVP by Thursday, November 12, 2019. Contact CUJF office by calling at (217) 367-9872 or emailing cujf@cujf.org.

Interested in CUJF?

 

Join Our Mailing List

Get news of interest and information about events and resources throughout the CU Jewish community! Click here to sign up.

 

 

CUJF Publication Deadline

The deadline for CUJF’s weekly email blast is Wednesdays at 3:00 pm for publication on Fridays at noon. Tell us about your services, your events, and your good news! Email us at communications@cujf.org.

 

 

Call for Volunteers

 

Be a part of planning and executing the 2020 Jewish Film Festival! This year’s fest will be held in February and we need help selecting films, identifying speakers and planning a red carpet.

 

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Champaign-Urbana Jewish Federation relies on the time, talent and hard work of volunteers to help with all aspects of the organization’s important work, from stuffing envelopes to planning parties. 


A number of our committees are in need of more members, including: 

  • CHAI Seniors

  • Nominations

  • Film Festival

  • Events

  • Outreach


For more information on committee members or other ways you can help strengthen our small but mighty Federation, please contact Rebekah Noven, board President, at novenfamily@gmail.com or (312) 286-7134.

Download 2019 November Calendar