Friends of JCC Budapest connects people in North America and around the world with the vibrant Jewish community of Budapest through partnership, shared values, and real relationships. We work alongside JCC Budapest to strengthen Jewish life in Hungary and deepen ties across the global Jewish world. Through visits, conversations, and long-term collaboration, Friends help turn curiosity into connection — and connection into lasting impact.
Friends of JCC Budapest is grateful for the strong support of individuals and communities across North America. Primarily in the United States, Friends of JCC Budapest engages supporters in 65 towns, cities, and communities. Friends in each of these locations are truly that — friends — and we are so thankful for their contributions, which enable Friends of JCC Budapest to support the efforts of Hungarian Jewish life through JCC Budapest. In FY 2025, we added 70 new friends. We hope to add you to the growing community of donors and supporters in this upcoming year.
Partnerships: Friends of JCC Budapest truly believes that our communities strengthen one another, even when miles apart. It is why we partner with JCC Budapest to build meaningful and lasting community-to-community partnerships with cities and towns in the United States. Notably, JCC Budapest partners with the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County, the Jewish Federation of San Deigo, and the Jewish Federation of Greater Dallas. Within these partnerships, we’re connecting teens through summer programming, families through holiday celebrations, and seniors through on-the-ground educational programming. Mutual partnerships are key to building engaged Jewish communities and we’re thankful to be able to do so with so many wonderful communities in the US.
dan@friendsofjccbudapest.org
Dan Alpert is the founding Executive Director of Friends of JCC Budapest, where he connects North American Jewish communities with Jewish life in Hungary through partnership and engagement. With extensive experience in global Jewish leadership and community building, Dan focuses on strengthening transatlantic relationships that sustain and grow Jewish life in Budapest.
marcell@jcc.hu
Marcell has served as Director of JCC Budapest — Bálint Ház since 2020 and has been deeply involved in Hungarian Jewish community life since his teens. With a background in informal Jewish education, cultural leadership, and international Jewish networks, he brings long-term local insight and a strong European perspective to the JCC’s work.
We welcomed 30 + friends to visit Budapest, meet our community members, and join the unique celebrations of the milestone of our 30th birthday. Highlights included city tours, meeting with local dignitaries or diplomats, Judafest and of course the 30th Anniversary gala. Our community is stronger because we have members and supporters from around the world!
On regular visits across the United States, Marcell and Dan share the story of Jewish revival in Hungary and build lasting relationships with Jewish communities nationwide. These trips spark new friendships, deepen meaningful partnerships, and strengthen the support that sustains JCC Budapest’s work.
While this map highlights our U.S. connections, our community of Friends extends well beyond it — including committed supporters in Canada, the UK, and other parts of the world. Together, these relationships strengthen the global Jewish community and the ties that connect us across borders.
The Steering Committee plays a vital advisory role, reporting to and making strategic recommendations to the JCC Board. This ensures that the Friends of JCC Budapest continues to thrive and create meaningful impact.
Members are invited to join this dedicated group of supporters and gain access to operational insights, financial updates, tailored program opportunities, and the chance to actively participate in key decision-making processes.
All across Hungary, Judaism is being reborn. At the international Shabbat dinners I sometimes host here at JCC Budapest, travelers, expats, and community members tell stories about how they learned they were Jewish. They are remarkable to hear.
Take Andras, who once told us about walking into his grandmother’s apartment, answering the phone, speaking to his unknown uncle from Israel, and finding out that his grandparents’ real names were Chaim and Malcha. That’s how he found out he was Jewish. And now he’s the director of Budapest’s Jewish theater.
Then there was Tomi’s story. His parents found out they were both Jewish when they went to see “Cabaret.” During a scene depicting antisemitism, his father squeezed his mother’s hand. She turned to him and asked, “Are you Jewish?” “Yes,” he replied. “Me, too,” she answered. They had been dating for months.
In the many years I have now spent in Budapest, these stories are both commonplace and strikingly recent. Sometimes, I think that the stories should have been from long ago and far away, but they are not. How could this be from my lifetime?
Hungary’s Jewish community was nearly wiped out, but we, the global Jewish community, did not let that happen. We stood by them as they woke up. And we supported them as they stayed in Budapest, a city with a Jewish legacy of 12 Jews who won Nobel prizes, as well luminaries of photojournalism, computer languages, and film.
It is now time to build a Jewish future. I believe that there is no more powerful and wise investment in this future than your gift to JCC Budapest. Hungarian Jews show us something precious about ourselves, something we must never forget in America and Israel: When we love and support each other, there is no adversity we cannot overcome.
On Passover, we say “Dayenu! It would have been enough!” But would it have been enough? I don’t think so. In modern Hungarian terms, we can say we did support the survivors as they came back to Budapest. And we stood by them while they regained their balance. And we built camps, programs, and institutions during the communist darkness. But now, we can help gather the sparks of that great legacy and illuminate the whole Jewish world.
That will be enough.
I hope that you will join me in supporting them.
Sincerely,
Rabbi Michael Paley
Senior Scholar, JDC
