Alliance of Swiss Jewish Care Organizations Verband Schweizerischer Jüdischer Fürsorgen (VSJF)

The Alliance was founded in 1925, and known since 1936 as the Schweizerische Zentralstelle für Flüchtlingshilfe, it became the central aid agency for Jewish refugees fleeing from Nazi Germany. Until 1939, the Alliance organized primarily the transit of refugees. After the start of the war, the organization and financing of the temporary residence of Jewish refugees in Switzerland became its primary objective. The financial means were provided by the Swiss Jewish community as well as by American Jewish aid organizations, primarily American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee(or "Joint"), the HIAS (Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society), and the HICEM (HIAS-ICA-Emigdirect). In 1943 the Alliance was renamed the Verband Schweizerischer Jüdischer Fürsorgen (VSJF). Between the years 1933 and 1945, the Alliance took care of approximately 23,000 Jewish refugees, such as survivors from the concentration camps Bergen-Belsen and Theresienstadt as well as children and teenagers from Buchenwald. The activities carried out by the Alliance during these years included representing the interests of the Jewish refugees before the Swiss authorities, the procurement of clothing, medical care, the reunification of families, the provision of housing, the search for missing relatives, vocational training with view towards eventual emigration, and lending support in filing reparation claims against Germany and Austria during the postwar period. Jewish refugee dossiers with biographical data for individuals who were getting support and care provided by the Verband Schweizerischer Juedischer Fürsorgen (VSJF). The dossiers include documentation and correspondence regarding entry and leaving the country, family relatives living in Switzerland and abroad, legal status, aid provided, accommodations, educational programs, health problems, internment in labor camps, professional occupation, legal processes, Jewish property and restitution matters, etc.; VSJF office files during period of years 1944-1979: protocols, minutes, correspondence; Lists of refugees: 1944-1950; various documents of the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS) and American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (the Joint), 1955-1980. Copyright Holder: Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich. Archiv für Zeitgeschichte - Archivleitung