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Sasha Rogelberg | Staff Writer
L ast week, Elvera Schwartz celebrated four years working at
Jewish Relief Agency, a volunteer-led nonprofit supplying food
and other necessities to those in the Philadelphia area who
need it.

As the organization’s director of communications and technology,
the 28-year-old Bala Cynwyd resident is responsible for getting the
word out about JRA’s volunteer opportunities and events. Because
the nonprofit relies heavily on volunteers, Schwartz’ job is vital.

Most recently, JRA hosted a food-packing event as part of Jewish
Federation of Greater Philadelphia’s Community Mitzvah Day to
celebrate Israel 75.

Schwartz is also responsible for running JRA’s volunteer manage-
ment system, which a volunteer created 20 years ago and was
updated during the pandemic. The system now allows volunteers
10 APRIL 27, 2023 | JEWISH EXPONENT
to sign in on their phones upon arriv-
ing at JRA’s Northeast Philadelphia
warehouse and use their online
accounts to easily access their delivery
routes. Volunteers can give real-time
feedback to JRA staff using the system.

“We’re really, a very small staff, so
making things quicker, faster, easier —
it’s really important for us so we can
focus on some of these more time-con-
suming projects, like making sure that
every person in the community, and
especially Jewish community, who
needs food, has food,” Schwartz said.

The cause is personal to Schwartz. Born
in Philadelphia to Ukrainian immigrants,
Schwartz grew up hearing the stories of
her family’s struggles in the former Soviet
Union and the United States.

“My dad was not shy to tell me
stories when they first came here,”
Schwartz said. “He would end up
standing on Roosevelt Boulevard and
selling flowers off the boulevard, trying
to make some extra cash.”
Schwartz’ parents fled Kyiv’s antisem-
itism and arrived in Philadelphia in 1994
with Schwartz’ 5-year-old sister and
just two duffel bags in tow. Schwartz’
great-aunt sponsored the family. When
the family welcomed Schwartz to the
world a year later, she was dubbed a
“welcome-to-America gift.”
The family struggled in the early
years in the U.S., waiting in line for
welfare and food stamps.

When Schwartz was first introduced
to JRA as a volunteer in 2018, she
learned that many of the organization’s
6,000 clientele in about 3,400 house-
holds were Russian and Ukrainian
refugees. She had an epiphany.

“I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, if JRA
existed in 1994, when they came over,
my family would have definitely been
receiving food boxes,’” Schwartz said.

Schwartz believes her parents strug-
gled so she and her sister didn’t have
to, but the lessons of survival were still
passed down.

“Nothing is handed to you.” Schwartz
said. “You have to work for what you
want.” Having spent her childhood in
Southwest Virginia, Schwartz didn’t have
a strong knowledge of Judaism or sense
of Jewish community. She was one of
four Jewish kids at her high school, and
her parents’ experience with antisem-
itism in Ukraine meant the family’s
relationship with Judaism was fraught.

The first-generation Ukrainian-
American decided to stay close to
home and matriculated at James
Madison University in 2013, where
she studied communications. As a
freshman wanting to connect with her
Jewish heritage, Schwartz attended a
Chabad dinner, where she sat across
from her now-husband.

Over her college years, her love for
Judaism grew, and, in 2015, Schwartz
served as the communications intern
for the Religious Action Center of
Reform Judaism in Washington, D.C.,
before heading back to Philadelphia.

While working at Jewish Heritage
Programs at the University of
Pennsylvania, Schwartz was introduced
to Rabbi Menachem Schmidt, who
co-founded JRA with Marc Erlbaum
in 2000. He encouraged Schwartz to
spend a day volunteering with JRA to
distribute food. Schwartz had lived in
the city for six months and was eager
for opportunities to make friends.

When Schwartz walked into the
warehouse that first day, she immedi-
ately was drawn to the organization.

“I was just overwhelmed with how
homey it felt in that space,” she said.

“Looking around and seeing so
many Jewish individuals in the space
… already connecting with all these
people on this level, was just very
moving for me.”
Schwartz spent her first day at JRA
dropping off boxes of food to about
10 community members, where her
speaking Russian came in handy. When
a communications position opened up
at the nonprofit a few months later,
Schwartz didn’t hesitate to apply.

“I really felt like this was my commu-
nity,” she said. “These are my people.

This is what I want to do.” ■
srogelberg@midatlanticmedia.com Courtesy of Elvera Schwartz
Elvera Schwartz



editorials
The Not-So-Small Mouse That Roared
T he political organization named “No Labels” has
been around since 2010. It is not directly affi liated
with any political party, and its leadership claims it
has no intention of creating a new one. Instead, No
Labels’ goal is to bring warring members of Congress
together to discuss and implement practical solutions
to problems.

No Labels, founded and led by veteran political
fundraiser Nancy Jacobson, decries political
partisanship. It faults Republicans and Democrats for
unprincipled party allegiance. No Labels’ watchword is
bipartisanship — and it promotes what it believes to be
common sense, “centrist” solutions to issues like the
economy, immigration, energy, climate and a host of
others. No Labels touts several bipartisan successes,
including help in the recent passage of the Biden
administration’s infrastructure bill.

No Labels has attracted the active involvement of
some very recognizable “center-leaning” political names,
including former Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.),
former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, and
Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.). It has also started to
attract some signifi cant donations.

It is against this backdrop that No Labels prompted
a tremor in the presidential sweepstakes earlier this
month when it announced a $70 million plan to put a
candidate on the ballot in all 50 states for the 2024
presidential election. No Labels has not identifi ed its
candidate. In fact, it says it doesn’t have a candidate
at this time. Rather, it claims that the 50-state ballot
project is an “insurance policy” in case Democrats and
Republicans both nominate “unacceptable” candidates
next year.

Although No Labels won’t come out and say it, the
handwriting is on the wall. No Labels has condemned
Donald Trump and Joe Biden as extreme or overly
partisan and does not appear willing to endorse either
one in the coming election. If Biden and Trump are both
nominated, No Labels will back someone else. And No
Labels claims a centrist candidate could prevail in some
40 states and win a three-way election.

The track record of third-party candidates is not
good. And it is not likely that a No Labels candidate
could win in a national three-person race. But
there is a real possibility of a serious No Labels
candidate playing the spoiler role — and therein
lies the rub.

Democrats are threatened by the No Labels move and
recognize that a third-party, centrist candidate would
almost certainly draw nervous or anti-Trump voters
away from Biden. If that happens in states like Arizona,
where Biden won by a slim margin in 2020, the overall
result could be aff ected. Republicans are less agitated
but recognize that a third-party, centrist candidate could
tip the balance on an issue like abortion, which would
draw votes from Trump and help Biden.

No Labels says it will wait until its planned April 2024
convention to see who the Democrats and Republicans
nominate before it declares its next steps. In doing so,
No Labels has achieved what appears to be its real
objective — forcing Democrats and Republicans to
think more carefully and strategically about who they
nominate and what their party platforms will be.

No Labels may not be able to win the presidency, but
it may be in a position to have a signifi cant impact on
who does. ■
Needless Provocation
United States Congress
H ouse
Speaker Kevin
pause on fi nal consideration of
McCarthy (R-Calif.) will
the judicial reform proposal. Yet,
lead a bipartisan congressional
shortly after that concession,
delegation to Israel next week.

Biden told the press he would not
The visit — in honor of Israel’s
be inviting Netanyahu to the White
75th anniversary — should be
House “in the short term.”
cause for celebration in the Jewish
Netanyahu feels slighted. He has
state, hopeful anticipation in the
been back in offi ce almost four
pro-Israel community and a timely
months and still hasn’t been invited
opportunity for Israel’s leadership
for a photo op at the Biden White
to reassure American leaders
House. So, in vintage Netanyahu
and rekindle what is perceived to
style, he turned to Republicans to
be a waning U.S. interest in the
help him fi ght Democrats. In this
Middle East.

case, he is using McCarthy, the
But that’s not going to happen.

fl edgling speaker of the House,
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy
Instead, Prime Minister Benjamin
to respond to Biden’s perceived
Netanyahu plans to use the visit
interference and slight.

to settle a score with President Joe Biden. In doing so,
McCarthy has his own problems. He holds the
Netanyahu will likely alienate even more members of coveted speaker position but is struggling to fi nd his
the Democratic Party.

footing. He limped through 15 ballots to be elected
Biden and a rising number of Democrats in Congress and, in the process, sold his soul to his party’s extreme
have expressed concern about Israel’s controversial right wing. The razor-thin but ideologically divided
judicial overhaul plan and other policies. That chorus majority held by Republicans in the House has not
of opposition — largely in support of hundreds of been able to move forward on several major measures,
thousands of Israelis who have taken to the streets including border security and a budget plan. Fractured
in peaceful yet powerful protest — helped sway Republican leadership is struggling with debt-limit
Netanyahu to announce a soon-to-expire Passover issues. And they are having diffi culty gaining traction in
promised investigations of all things Biden.

Leadership of a bipartisan delegation to Israel seemed
like the perfect opportunity to elevate McCarthy’s profi le.

That was made even better — at least for McCarthy —
when Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, a Netanyahu ally,
announced that McCarthy will address the Knesset,
only the second time a House speaker has been invited
to do so.

The last time was 25 years ago, when Newt Gingrich
led a similar bipartisan delegation to honor Israel’s 50th
anniversary and was invited to speak by then-prime
minister Netanyahu. The Gingrich invitation was widely
viewed as Netanyahu’s confrontational response to
demands being made by then-President Bill Clinton
for Israeli concessions in talks with Palestinians and
criticism of Netanyahu’s eff orts to rally Republicans to
oppose Clinton’s demands.

Now, a new speaker, a new president, but the same
Netanyahu. Although Israel should unquestionably welcome and
honor the McCarthy delegation, we don’t see the point in
using the visit to incite discord or resentment. Netanyahu
is already at the center of multiple controversies. He
doesn’t need more criticism or hurt feelings from
Israel’s most signifi cant ally, and he certainly shouldn’t
use the McCarthy visit for needless provocation of the
U.S. president. ■
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