07 December 2006 ORT JET takes off in Australia A helping hand is being extended to struggling businesspeople in Sydney with the official launch there of ORT JET Jewish Entrepreneurial Training. World ORTs Coordinator in Australia, Natalie Elkaim, has forged a partnership with local institution The Jewish House to bring together experienced businesspeople who can donate their time and expertise to others who need it. Ms Elkaim told the 500 guests at The Jewish Houses annual Gala Dinner including Israeli Ambassador Naftali Tamir and representatives of major corporations such as Qantas, Macquarie Bank and Investec that ORT JET would offer holistic support to Jewish entrepreneurs and professionals. It will provide access to mentoring as well as transfer of business skills, business development guidance and networking opportunities. All of this is provided by the generous donation of peoples time and skills, she said. In line with ORTs philosophy of Educating for Life and The Jewish Houses philosophy of People Helping People, ORT JET Australia will help entrepreneurs attain security for themselves and their families long into the future and in so doing increase the pool of communal wealth that can be shared with those in need. The Jewish Houses Rabbi Elozer Gestetner and Natalie Elkaim. Gary Cohen, Co-President of The Jewish House, said that ORT JET would provide an opportunity for his organisations many supporters in the business community to meet a critical, though often hidden, need. Were seeing a growing number of cases in which business-related problems lead to other problems including alcoholism and even suicide, Mr Cohen said. The Jewish House has had the desire to find a more preventative and creative way to deal with this for some time. He said that there had been a very positive response to the ORT JET initiative. Businesspeople can see the exponential effect in what this does, Mr Cohen said. They like to see wealth and value creation as against crisis intervention where it may be too late. And they like to be able to contribute personally rather than just give money. The Jewish House provides round-the-clock emergency accommodation, self-help programmes, education and counselling services for families and individuals undergoing severe emotional and social stress and crisis. World ORT, founded in 1880, is the worlds largest Jewish education and vocational training non-government organisation with some 200,000 beneficiaries Jewish and non-Jewish in 58 countries. The Australian ORT office is located at Level 6, Suite 608, 185 Elizabeth Street, Sydney 2000. Telephone: 02 9267 2363.