MBD and Yeedle in Miami for the JGifts Mission: An Evening That Reverberates Across South Florida
Thursday night, the king (and his son, the prince) of Jewish music took to the stage at Chabad Russian Center for the Kumzitz of the summer. Nearly 400 attendees reveled in an evening of music and masterful production, to benefit one of South Florida’s quietest yet most impactful organizations: JGifts.org. The program began with a warm buffet, as both longtime and first-time donors connected and reconnected over the monumental mission of “Feeding Family Dignity.” As attendees moved between carving stations and cocktail bars, the warm glow of the stage screens cast everything in a soft, pinkish light.
That intersection between food, comfort, and warmth is where JGifts makes its mark. As Rabbi Yossi Raskin, the organization’s chief shliach puts it, “You cannot imagine how many of your friends and neighbors we help rise over the shame of poverty. And that’s the whole point! That you don’t know.” JGifts takes the dignity component of its mission seriously. After many years and refinements to the model, Rabbi Raskin arrived at his signature “double blind” charity model: JGifts works closely with the Rabbis in each community they help, in a way that leaves both JGifts and their beneficiaries complete strangers to one another.
In a line, JGifts discreetly delivers grocery gift cards to families struggling with temporary financial hardship—whether due to job loss, illness, mental health disruption, or a simcha in the family. These cards, distributed before major chagim, enable families to shop like everyone else at the register. No one knows the difference. And that’s what makes JGifts so different. Back at the event, attendees got a literal front-row seat to the mission. They watched a raw, poignant film of the deeply personal journey undertaken by Rabbi Yossi Raskin and His wife Nava. A cancer diagnosis. A business that fell to pieces because family came first. A rags-to-riches-to-rags-again story that launched them on a mission to be there for Jewish families in the throes of poverty.
The film was interrupted by the evening’s headliner stepping onto the stage. Mordechai Ben David, joined by Rabbi Raskin’s eldest son, revived an MBD classic, Daddy Dear. It punctuated the storyline in creative excellence, and left many watering eyes in the crowd.
While the event itself was not billed as a fundraiser, many attendees were inspired to pledge their support then and there. As Rabbi Raskin says, “I wanted to give sponsors a nice evening. A chance to come out and come together. It was heartwarming to see that our mission itself did all the talking, and that so many offered their generous assistance on the spot.”
Now, in the weeks leading up to Rosh Hashana, comes JGifts’s real main event: raising half a million dollars for over 500 struggling families throughout South Florida. Every dollar donated goes directly into a recipient’s gift card, as Rabbi Raskin separately engages sponsors to cover key administrative costs. Says Raskin, “There is no better time to give than at the start of a new year. Nothing sweeter than family dignity. No greater gift, to yourself and to your fellow Jew, than the quiet, dignified support to go into Rosh Hashana with their heads held high. I invite you to visit JGifts.org now. Every dollar makes a difference. Every dollar feeds family dignity.”
JGifts is the most discreet, respectful way to support families facing financial hardship. Its ‘double blind’ approach to charity preserves beneficiaries’ self-worth, while empowering them to rise again and
