HIAS
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| Founded | 1881 |
|---|---|
| 13-5633307 | |
| Legal status | 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization |
| Headquarters | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States |
| Mark Hetfield | |
| Dale Schwartz | |
| Subsidiaries | Charitable Remainder Unitrust |
|
Revenue (2014)
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$39,923,260 |
| Expenses (2014) | $36,449,447 |
| Endowment | $62,944,322 |
|
Employees (2014)
|
67 |
|
Volunteers (2014)
|
25 |
| Mission | To rescue people whose lives are in danger for being who they are; to protect the most vulnerable refugees, helping them build new lives and reuniting them with their families in safety and freedom; to advocate for the protection of refugees and assure that displaced people are treated with the dignity they deserve. |
| Website | www |
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Formerly called
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Hebrew Sheltering Aid Society; Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society; Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society; United HIAS Service, Inc. |
HIAS (formerly Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society) is an American charitable organization founded in response to the late 19th- and early 20th-century exodus of Jewish emigrants from Imperial Russia. The organization assists Jews and other groups of people whose lives and freedom are believed to be at risk to relocate. Since its inception, HIAS has helped resettle nearly 4.5 million people.
According to HIAS, the acronym HIAS was first used as a cable address and eventually became the universally used name of the organization. A 1909 merger with the Hebrew Sheltering Aid Society resulted in the official name Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society, but the organization continued to be generally known as "H.I.A.S." or more usually as "HIAS", which eventually became the official name.
HIAS's web site states that the operated since at least 1891. However, through a merger, it can trace its ancestry back to the Hebrew Sheltering House Association, founded in New York the same year.Lawrence J. Epstein writes that the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society was founded in 1904; several other sources give a date of 1902.The Baltimore Sun mentioned the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society in an article published in 1882. HIAS reported its date of formation as 1881 on its annual return with the Internal Revenue Service.
In 1904, HIAS established a formal bureau on Ellis Island, the primary arrival point of European immigrants to the United States at that time.
In March 1909, the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society merged with the Hebrew Sheltering House Association to form the Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society, which continued to be widely known as HIAS. By 1914, HIAS had branches in Baltimore, Philadelphia, Boston, and an office in Washington, D.C.
In 1891, Jewish residents of Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Kiev were expelled and many came to America; beginning in 1892, Ellis Island was the point of entry for most of these new arrivals. In the half-century following the establishment of a formal Ellis Island bureau in 1904, HIAS helped more than 100,000 Jewish immigrants who might otherwise have been turned away. They provided translation services, guided immigrants through medical screening and other procedures, argued before the Boards of Special Enquiry to prevent deportations, lent needy Jews the $25 landing fee, and obtained bonds for others guaranteeing their employable status. The Society was active on the island facilitating legal entry, reception, and immediate care for the newly arrived.
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Wikipedia