Ukrainians are fleeing their war-torn home country and are coming to the United States. 100,000+ of them have registered with Uniting for Ukraine, established by the Department of Homeland Security as a pathway for Ukrainians fleeing the war into the U.S. These accepted applicants can stay temporarily for two years on humanitarian parole. Ukrainians participating in Uniting for Ukraine must have a supporter in the United States who agrees to provide them with financial support for the duration of their stay in the United States. To date, the New York Metropolitan area, including Westchester County, has been selected as a destination by nearly 8K Ukrainians. 

Thanks to two generous grants from UJA-Federation of New York and Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) in partnership with The Shapiro Foundation, as well as a significant partnership with both HIAS and Westchester Jewish Community Services, WJCI will provide microgrants to Welcome Circles that qualify for matching funds which will be available in amounts up to $5,000. 

To apply for WJCI's grant money, an applicant must have formed a Welcome Circle, completed HIAS' application, and been approved to do this work and do ALL of the following:

- Have launched with a minimum of five people (over 18 years old) and not exceed a maximum of eight people who are the group's leaders.

- Committed to a minimum six-month period of support for a Ukrainian family, with the goal of the newcomer(s) achieving self-sufficiency. 

- Passed mandatory background checks, took an online knowledge assessment on the roles and responsibilities of Welcome Circles (one person in the group must complete this), and completed Code of Conduct forms.

- Submitted a "Welcome Plan" through which your group articulates how they will connect Ukrainian newcomers to support and services during the initial resettlement phase. This plan includes securing housing, accessing benefits, relating to healthcare and education, and other forms of community orientation.

The WC model is HIAS' version of the Community Sponsorship Hub's Ukrainian Sponsor Circle, with additional embedded support, resources, and training. WJCI, alongside HIAS, will support Welcome Circles by providing technical and operational resources on best practices in refugee resettlement, peer-to-peer mentoring, and Jewish resources to ground the experience and the work. In addition, WJCI's plan includes the provision of a HIAS Welcome Circle Liaison to support the launch and growth of supported Welcome Circles.

Please note the following about the application process:

- Applications are being accepted on a rolling basis. 

- WJCI Grant Committee members will evaluate applications. 

- Please allow 10-14 days to receive grant notification.

- We recognize the urgency of the Ukraine crisis and will not take long to review applications. 

- The head of the WJCI Grant Committee will be in touch if there are any follow-up questions. 

- Checks will be mailed once HIAS or another source has assigned Welcome Circle a family.

Please note that you cannot save this page once you begin filling out the application. We recommend keeping your responses in a separate document to ensure you don't lose your work.

For additional questions, please email info@wjci.org and check the Microgrants section at www.wjci.org.