La'Aretz In The News
Oct 31, 2024
In a statement, Shelly Pitman, founder and CEO of the La’Aretz Foundation, one of the event’s partner organizations alongside Israel’s Ministry of Defense, spoke to the collective strength of the Jewish people. “We stand united as one people. As we continue to recover and defend our nation as one, we do so not as individuals, but together,” Pitman said, adding that the community honors the memories of the fallen by “forging a future grounded in unity and resilience.” Her words highlighted a commitment to remembrance while also focusing on the future, grounded in strength and resilience.
Oct 30, 2024
More than 600 people attended the event, which the Israeli Consulate General in New York co-organized with the Israeli-American Council. The Israeli Defense Ministry and the La’Aretz Foundation also partnered on the event.
Samerano, the former hostage Mia Shem and Avi Harush, the father of fallen Israeli soldier Rif Harush, addressed attendees at the event, which was held five days after the anniversary on the Hebrew calendar of Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023 massacre in southern Israel.
Oct 30, 2024
Israel's Knesset on Monday passed a bill barring the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) from activity within Israel, a move that was welcomed just a few hours later -- at Manhattan's Park East Synagogue at an October 7 commemoration ceremony -- by Ayelet Samerano, whose son Jonathan, 21, was murdered on Oct. 7 and his body taken by an UNRWA employee from Israel to Gaza in an UNRWA vehicle.
Oct 29, 2024
More than 600 people attended the event, which the Israeli Consulate General in New York co-organized with the Israeli-American Council. The Israeli Defense Ministry and the La’Aretz Foundation also partnered on the event.
Oct 29, 2024
More than 600 people attended the event, which the Israeli Consulate General in New York co-organized with the Israeli-American Council. The Israeli Defense Ministry and the La’Aretz Foundation also partnered on the event.
Oct 29, 2024
With an initial donation of $70,000 from private Jewish donors, as well as one organization — all of whom asked to remain anonymous — SmartAid will provide 200 kits containing basic hygiene items, such as toothbrushes, soap, rehydration salts and solar lights, to some 6,000 people, said the organization’s founding director, Shachar Zahavi.
Oct 7, 2024
Raising money with the help of the non profit La'Aretz to build a new community for 500 families...
Sep 27, 2024
The sold-out event served as a fundraiser for La'Aretz Foundation to rebuild the Sdot Negev region and help a therapeutic farm. Chef Eyal Shani’s new Malka NYC kosher restaurant in the Dumbo section of Brooklyn, N.Y., celebrated its grand opening on Sept. 23. The sold-out opening evening served as a fundraiser to rebuild the Sdot Negev region in southern Israel, along with a therapeutic farm...
Sep 26, 2024
Chef Eyal Shani opened another location for the "Malka" Hachshara restaurant - in Brooklyn, New York. On the occasion of the opening of the restaurant, Shani hosted an event to raise funds for the construction and restoration of the Sdot Negev Regional Council in cooperation with the Laretz Foundation. Since October 7th, the Laretz Foundation has provided financial assistance to 300 Israeli families who were left without government assistance, provided scholarships to 172 students serving in the reserves and assisted 70 applicants for aliyah to return to Israel...
Sep 26, 2024
Malka NYC Hosts Grand Opening Of Dumbo Location To Support La’Aretz’s Efforts To Rebuild Southern Israel
Chef Eyal Shani’s brand-new Malka NYC kosher restau- rant in Dumbo celebrated its grand opening on Sept. 23, a remarkable gathering for the Jewish community. The sold- out opening evening served as a fundraiser to rebuild the Sdot Negev region in South- ern Israel, along with a thera- peutic farm...
Sep 17, 2024
“The real thing I want to do in my life is to show the light that is coming out of kosher food — it doesn’t have to be a dark cuisine or limiting,” he said. “That is the reason why I continue to create a new kosher cuisine, and one of the best places to do it is in New York. It is filled with Jewish people.”...
May 13, 2024
Oct. 7th gave La'aretz Foundation renewed purpose
If you’d have asked Shelly Harel Pitman on Oct. 6, 2023, she’d have told you that her fundraising days were on pause. The most important thing in her world was her 2-month-old baby. On Oct. 7, everything changed in an instant. Having already formed the nonprofit La’aretz Foundation one year earlier with her husband, Mike Pitman, the couple — both of them from Israel — quickly decided to fundraise for victims of the terrorist attack and subsequent war effort...
May 10, 2024
Started a year before to help people move to Israel, La’aretz Foundation pivoted to help individual families affected by Oct. 7
Shelly Harel Pitman, co-founder and executive director of the organization, tells eJP that she didn't think the foundation had much of a future, but Oct. 7 gave them renewed purpose and 'since then, we’ve kept growing'.
If you’d have asked Shelly Harel Pitman on Oct. 6, 2023, she’d have told you that her fundraising days were on pause. The most important thing in her world was her 2-month-old baby. On Oct. 7, everything changed in an instant. Having already formed the nonprofit La’aretz Foundation one year earlier with her husband, Mike Pitman, the couple — both of them from Israel — quickly decided to fundraise for victims of the terrorist attack and subsequent war effort...
April 4, 2024
‘The Women Behind the Reserves’ Photo Art Exhibit Opens in Soho
On March 26, La’Aretz Foundation hosted an art exhibition at the Eden Gallery in Soho. The exhibit, entitled “The Women Behind the Reserves Project,” was in honor of the Israeli women of IDF Air Force’s Unit 669, who have shown extraordinary courage and strength, both on the battlefield and on the home front...
April 3, 2024
Miami’s Eden Gallery spotlights courage of women in Israel since October 7th
Miami’s heart of art and culture, Eden Gallery, was the stage for a significantevent to conclude Women’s History Month, “The Women Behind the Reserves Project”. Hosted by the La’Aretz Foundation, this gathering was a powerful homage to the Israeli women who have shown extraordinary courage and strength, both on the battlefield and on the homefront, following the devastating events of October 7th...
April 2, 2024
Shelly Harel Pitman: Leading humanitarian efforts through her foundation La’Aretz
Shelly Harel Pitman, aged 30, is the founder and CEO of "La'Aretz Foundation”, a philanthropic fund supporting Israelis and Jews worldwide. Shelly founded La’Aretz in 2022 with her husband Mike Pitman to assist humanitarian cases of Aliyah and return to Israel. In the first year, the Foundation, led by Shelly and volunteers, successfully aided over 100 cases of Aliyah and return to Israel, including cancer patients, the elderly, and families facing bureaucratic or economic challenges. The third year of the foundation coincided with the October 7th attack...
March 31, 2024
Soho gallery shines light on Israeli women’s wartime resilience
Eden Gallery in the heart of Lower Manhattan’s Soho neighborhood is hosting a powerful event that pays tribute to the extraordinary courage and strength of Israeli women during the ongoing Hamas war.
“The Women behind the Reserves Project,” hosted by the La’Aretz Foundation, unveiled photographer Maya Meshel’s striking exhibition capturing the profound impacts of war on Israeli women—from a soldier’s funeral to the resilience within devastated homes...
March 31, 2024
Soho gallery shines light on Israeli women’s wartime resilience
Maya Meshel's striking exhibition captures the profound impacts of war—from a soldier's funeral to the resilience within devastated homes.
Eden Gallery in the heart of Lower Manhattan’s Soho neighborhood is hosting a powerful event that pays tribute to the extraordinary courage and strength of Israeli women during the ongoing Hamas war...
March 27, 2024
Soho art gallery shines light on Israeli women's wartime resilience
"The Women Behind the Reserves Project," hosted by the La'Aretz Foundation, unveiled photographer Maya Meshel's striking exhibition capturing the profound impacts of war on Israeli women: from a soldier's funeral to the resilience within devastated homes.
Eden Gallery in the heart of Soho hosted this week a powerful event to conclude Women's History Month that paid tribute to the extraordinary courage and strength of Israeli women during the recent war. Maya Meshel's striking exhibition capturing the profound impacts of war on Israeli women: from a soldier's funeral to the resilience within devastated homes...
December 16, 2023
Mother of woman killed at music festival in Israel aims to raise awareness at Miami Beach fundraiser
A mother is on a special mission to raise awareness after her daughter was killed in Israel. Hannie Ricardo’s pain was on display Friday at an event in Miami Beach, with the goal of making a difference. “My daughter Oriya was murdered,” she said. “I’m here to talk about her and talk about the other 362 young people that were massacred in the Nova party.” Oriya was slaughtered just over two months ago at the infamous music festival in Israel, as Hamas launched their siege.
“It makes me so angry,” said Hannie. In the midst of her grief, Hannie is trying to help other families by raising money for people who lost everything in the invasion...
Israeli chef Eyal Shani opens new restaurant as benefit for Israelis displaced on Oct. 7
When Israeli celebrity chef Eyal Shani opened his new restaurant, Malka, in Manhattan on Nov. 16, it was a celebration to be sure. But the evening also carried a deeper meaning as a benefit for those forced out of their homes due to the Oct. 7 terror attacks perpetrated by Hamas from Gaza.
The nonprofit La’Aretz, which the restaurant opening benefited, is collecting money to give to those people individually, he said. “It’s a big hope that somebody’s caring about them.”...
November 20, 2023
Malka NYC’s grand opening supports La’Aretz aid efforts for Israeli families
The Jewish community in New York City celebrated the Nov. 16 grand opening of Malka NYC, a kosher culinary destination founded by the celebrated Chef Eyal Shani, whose restaurant Shmoné was recently awarded a Michelin star. The event transcended gastronomy to support the humanitarian mission of La’Aretz.
While guests indulged in Israeli cuisine and wine selections, the evening’s deeper purpose was to support the families in Israel impacted by the unfolding war in Israel. La’Aretz, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing aid to Israelis and Jewish communities globally, was at the forefront of this event...
November 17, 2023
La’Aretz: Fulfilling Humanitarian Dreams of Returning Home to Israel
In a world often plagued by bureaucratic hurdles and challenging circumstances, a non-profit organization called La’Aretz is making a remarkable impact by helping Israelis, Jews, and others fulfill their dreams of immigrating, returning, and traveling to Israel. What sets La’Aretz apart is its unwavering dedication to supporting individuals and families facing humanitarian challenges, providing them with the necessary assistance to overcome medical and bureaucratic complications that might otherwise hinder their journey home...
July 25, 2023
New nonprofit helps show the way home for those seeking to move to Israel
Sometimes going home is hard. Enter La’aretz, a new nonprofit organization with the mission to help Israelis and Jews overcome bureaucratic and financial obstacles to immigrating, returning, visiting and traveling to Israel. “There are a good amount of people that just give up on the idea of moving or returning to Israel, just because they basically have no one to ask or be assisted by,” said Shelly Harel, the organization’s founder and CEO...
January 9, 2023