About - Shalom Corps

Vision:

Shalom Corps was founded in 2020 as a global Jewish volunteer movement, dedicated to meaningful service and social responsibility as an expression of Jewish values and love of humanity.

Mission:

Shalom Corps’ mission is to empower a global Jewish volunteer network involved in meaningful and significant volunteerism that engages participants in Jewish service-learning experiences.
Shalom Corps believes that authentic, needs-driven service can have a transformative impact on vulnerable populations around the world, and on young Jews looking to make a difference.

Create opportunities for valuable and meaningful volunteering experiences.
Recruit volunteers from around the world and connect them to their Jewish identity.
Develop a dialogue between giving and receiving.
Adapt a support system for volunteer program operators.
Create a space for inquiry, discovery, and dialogue.
Strive for impact for a better world.

Values:

As long as there is suffering in the world, we have a responsibility to act
Every action has the means to fix a piece of the world
All of humanity is connected by kinship
Love of humanity is expressed through acts of kindness
Every good deed impacts the world in immeasurable ways

Objectives:

To connect all Jewish volunteers to a global movement that empowers them through Jewish values.
To facilitate volunteer programs, in partnership with global organizations, that provide relief and support to underprivileged populations.
To significantly increase the number of Jewish youth volunteering, both locally and globally, through Jewish frameworks.
To strengthen existing service programs through increased investment in Service Learning, educational staff, and alumni programs.
To initiate and develop new programs that are relevant to currents needs.
To implement standards and assessment criteria which ensure that new and existing programs are conducted ethically and efficiently.
To raise public awareness of the meaningful work done by Jewish organizations and their volunteers.

Avraham Schurder

Chief Financial Officer

For 30 years Avraham has led companies to success. As a senior audit partner at KPMG, he assisted clients in transforming their financial results to business and managerial aids. Avraham has become a mentor to a wide variety of small and large organizations, private and governmental, local and international (from all sizes). Avraham loves working with people and never wants anyone to leave the room without a smile on their face. He joins Shalom Corps because he feels he’s spent most of his professional life helping businesses and industrial clients. But with Shalom Corps, he now has the opportunity to serve the Jewish people, which he says provides much more satisfaction. He also says he loves working with a great team.

Sharona Shir

Program Director

Sharona Shir is responsible for executing all programs at Shalom Corps excluding North America, including the ongoing daily contact and guidance with our partners in Israel and around the world. Sharona Shir previously worked as a Project Manager at the Education Department at the WZO, Marketing B2G at Habima National Theatre, and worked as a Project Manager for several Nonprofits that are focused on informal education. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Communications from the Open University of Israel and her Master’s degree in History of American Jewish Studies from the Ruderman Program at Haifa University. Sharona Shir lives in Tel-Aviv.

Shira Gilad

Economist

Maria Youssim

Chief Operating Officer

Maria serves as Chief Operating Officer at Shalom Corps. Maria has vast experience in international development and humanitarian action, as well as a familiarity with the Israeli ecosystem in these fields, after serving as a project manager at the Society for International Development Israel Branch (SID-Israel) for the past four years. During her time at SID-Israel, Maria worked closely with governmental agencies, NGOs, private sector companies, and academic institutions to identify, implement, and advance policies that deepen Israeli engagement in and contributions to developing nations. Additionally, Maria built courses, seminars, and lectures to build the capacity of the Israeli ecosystem, as well as executed small and large conferences to raise awareness among the public and decision-makers. Previously, Maria worked for the Council for Higher Education (CHE) as an academic accreditation and Humanities Fund coordinator, where she assisted the accreditation process for new and existing academic programs in the studies of humanities, education, and social sciences. Maria was also responsible for the Humanities Fund, a joint initiative of CHE and the Yad Hanadiv Foundation designed to formulate policy and act to save the humanities field, as well as the New Campus initiative, an introductory program to the world of entrepreneurship and innovation in academia. Maria holds a bachelor's degree with a double major in Statistics and International Relations and a master's degree in European Studies, both from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. CONTACT: maria@shalomcorps.org

Jessica Horst

Project Manager

Jessica is responsible for program coordination and community management, as well as communications and media at Shalom Corps. Previously, she worked for an international research and policy institute promoting peace education, as well as in public relations and Israel studies in Washington, DC. Jessica is a passionate volunteer for the Society for International Development Israel Branch and lends a hand at various community activities around Israel. She holds an MPH specialized in Emergency and Disaster Management from Tel Aviv University and a BSBA in Sustainability and Organizational Strategy, with a minor in Communications, from American University. CONTACT: jessica@shalomcorps.org

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Leadership