Wyclef Jean to Meet with NY Rabbis at JNF House

Contact: Jodi Bodner • JNF Director of Communications • 212-879-9305 ext. 221 • jbodner@jnf.org

February 22, 2010 - New York, NY - Wyclef Jean, Grammy Award-winning musician, humanitarian and Goodwill Ambassador to Haiti, will be meeting with rabbis at Jewish National Fund (JNF)'s New York City offices on Monday, February 22, 2010 from 11am-12noon to discuss the crisis in Haiti and the work of Yéle Haiti, the NGO and foundation that he started.

JNF is hosting this meeting in cooperation with the New York Board of Rabbis. The meeting will take place at JNF House, 42 East 69th Street, New York, NY 10021 (between Park and Madison Aves.). Rabbi Eric Lankin, JNF's Chief of Institutional Advancement
and Education, will moderate the meeting.

Prior to the tragic earthquake in January 2010, JNF had been working with Yéle Haiti and Timberland, Inc. to address the environmental degradation of Haiti. In partnership with Yéle Haiti, Timberland is donating a portion of the price of a specific Timberland boot to support tree planting in Haiti; they are also beginning a "Trees for Haiti" campaign. JNF has been in conversation with members of Congress including Jan Schakowsky (IL), Charles Rangel (NY) and Haitian- American community leaders for the last three years to advise them on the challenge of the reforestation of Haiti.

"We are glad to share what we have learned in our 108-year history of planting 240 million trees and building 1,000 parks in Israel," said Rabbi Lankin. "We are terribly saddened by the recent tragedy of the earthquake and the loss of so many lives. We hope that the effort led by Yéle Haiti and Timberland will be successful in bringing new resources and hope to that ravaged land and comfort to its proud people."

Haitian-born Wyclef Jean is an internationaliy renowned songwriter/musician/producer, humanitarian and founder of Yéle Haiti. He was a founding member of the pioneering hip-hop group Fugees and is a prolific solo artist, crossing genres, generations and geographic boundaries with his music. He has collaborated with many talented artisits, including Bono, Santana, Whitney Houston, and Shakira.Jean is a gifted writer and producer whose seventh solo crossing genres, generations and geographic boundaries with his music. He has collaborated with many talented artisits, including Bono, Santana, Whitney Houston, and Shakira. Jean is a gifted writer and producer whose seventh solo album comes out June 2010.

Yéle Haiti, which Jean founded in 2005, is a grassroots movement that builds global awareness for Haiti while helping to transform the country through programs in education, sports, the arts and environment. Yéle's community service programs include food distribution and mobilizing emergency relief.

For more information, please contact Rabbi Eric Lankin at (212) 879-9305 ext. 264.

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Jewish National Fund (JNF) began in 1901 collecting coins in blue boxes to purchase land and return the Jewish people to their homeland. In over 109 years, JNF has evolved into a global environmental leader and become the central address for partnering with the land and people of Israel. JNF has planted 250 million trees; built over 1,000 parks and recreational areas; constructed security roads; educated students around the world about Israel; created new communities so that Jews from around the world would have a place to call home; discovered new means of growing plants under arid conditions, bringing green to the desert; and built over 200 reservoirs and water recycling centers, increasing Israel’s water supply by 10%. Today, JNF is supporting Israel’s newest generation of pioneers by bringing life to the Negev Desert, Israel’s last frontier. 

A United Nations NGO, JNF sponsors international conferences on desertification, shares afforestation techniques, and funds research on arid land management. JNF is a registered 501(c)(3) organization and continuously earns top ratings from charity overseers. For more information on JNF, call 888-JNF-0099 or visit www.jnf.org.