Business Network aids orphanage

By AMY R KAUFMAN

article created on: 2009-03-15T00:00:00

Even in the midst of the recession, 130 people from the Portland and Vancouver business communities enjoyed a sumptuous kosher banquet and top Hollywood entertainment while they donated generously to a Ukrainian orphanage and needy Vancouver families, at the Jewish Business Network’s annual dinner at the Vancouver Hilton Feb. 7.

Celebrity comedian Mark Schiff, who tours with Jerry Seinfeld and has appeared on the Jay Leno and David Letterman shows, kept the audience laughing for a full hour with his original Jewish humor.

In the most dramatic component of the evening, the attendees communicated directly with the children and principal of the Good Family Orphanage in Odessa, Ukraine, via computer video conferencing. The Jewish orphanage, which is the home of 56 children, was the focus of the evening’s fund-raising.

Rabbi Shmulik Greenberg, founder of JBN, said funds raised at the annual event supply provisions and health care not covered by the orphanage’s budget. For example, he said JBN recently learned that a 13-year-old girl at the orphanage requires corrective surgery for a cleft palate. At the February banquet the group raised $8,100 on the spot to cover the girl’s care. The total raised was about $36,000, he said.

Greenberg said the idea of supporting the work of an orphanage originally came from JBN member Constantine Cheredayko, owner of Sinai Contractors.

Cheredayko, who came to the United States from Uzbekistan in 1997, said, “I was thinking about Russia because a lot of people are struggling there right now, especially orphanages. I thought we could pick an orphanage somewhere and raise money, and it would let them know that God still loves them and helps them.”

He said he had found it fulfilling to give to orphanages privately, so he suggested to Greenberg, “Why can’t we do something like this in the community?”

The auction items surrounding the room were a part of the evening’s charitable effort, which fulfills the Torah’s teaching that “when two people get together for fun or to network, a third person should also benefit,” said Greenberg. “We created the business network not just to network but also to be able to do something good.”

He said JBN is a non-religious organization that attracts businesspeople throughout the region. Membership is free. About 35 members typically attend the breakfast monthly meetings, where they assess the needs of the Jewish community, discuss the budget, and find ways to improve community life. The meetings often feature a speaker.

Julian Levi of Regal Greetings, who has been a member of JBN since its inception in 2006, said, “We’ve been seeing new people at every single meeting. … I was approached by a person who yelled at me, ‘Why didn’t you tell me about this group? I want to be a part of it.’ Lots of businesspeople don’t know about it, and when they find out, they want to come.”

Levi said the breakfast meetings have featured speakers such as Vancouver Mayor Royce Pollard and Scott Campbell, publisher of the Columbian.

Corporate sponsors of the February event included Tonkon Torp LLP; U.S. Trust—Bank of America Wealth Management; Nutrition Now; Vancouver Business Journal; RSV Construction Services, Inc.; Barnett Investment Research; and Subotnick Packaging, among others.

JBN’s next meeting is set for March 18, at 7:30 a.m. at the Marshall House, 1301 E. Evergreen Ave. in Vancouver. For more information, visit www.thejbn.org.