FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Michelle Beller
JNF Education Programs Manager
212-879-9305 ext. 269
mbeller@jnf.org

JNF Invites Students to Plant Their Roots in Israel
With Annual Tu B'Shevat in the Schools Program

December 13, 2006 -- New York, NY --To connect students with the land of Israel and engage them in restoring the Galilee forests that were burned by Hezbollah rockets this summer, Jewish National Fund has kicked off its annual Tu B'Shevat in the Schools Program.
In honor of Tu B'Shevat, the Jewish New Year for trees, over 800 students across the country will play their part in JNF's Operation Northern Renewal campaign by planting trees in Israel for family and friends for $18 each. The theme of this year's program is "Plant Your Roots!"

"Over the years, Tu B'Shevat has taken on the theme of planting trees in Israel, making it JNF's holiday," said Bob Levine, JNF's National Vice President for Education. "Perhaps no other organization is as strongly associated with a holiday as JNF is with Tu B'Shevat. Over the past 106 years, Jews have come together to plant over 240 million trees through JNF, providing luscious belts of green covering more than 250,000 acres of land in Israel."

Registered schools will begin to receive materials in January in preparation for Tu B'Shevat, which begins this year at sundown on February 2, 2007. Packets will include tree planting envelopes for each student; copies of the Tu B'Shevat issue of A New Leaf!, JNF's educational newsletter for students in grades 1-4 and Growing UP!, for students in grades 5-8; JNF Tu B'Shevat posters; TREESource, JNF's congregational programming catalog for Tu B'Shevat (which can also be accessed online at www.jnf.org/treesource); a template letter to explain the program to parents; and an order form for Branching Out, JNF's interactive Tu B'Shevat haggadah.

Special certificates designed by the winner of JNF's "Color Israel Green!" contest will be sent to students who plant trees as well as to the friends and family members they honor with the plantings.

Each student that plants at least one tree will be entered into a raffle for a free ticket to Israel, and each school that has 25% student participation or submits $2,000 worth of tree orders will be entered into a separate raffle for another ticket to Israel. Students who plant multiple trees can choose a prize at the $36 or $72 level.

"Tu B'Shevat in the Schools is a wonderful way for young people to connect with the land of Israel and learn about the spiritual and environmental significance of the holiday," said Michelle Beller, JNF Education Programs Manager. "And this year, it is an important way to engage them in JNF's initiative to rehabilitate the forests in northern Israel that took 50-60 years to develop and will take an additional 50-60 years to restore."

Throughout the month-long war with Hezbollah, over 400 forest fires erupted as Katyusha rockets rained down on northern Israel, burning 20,000 acres of planted forests and nature reserves, destroying nearly two million trees, and severely degrading soil quality. Many farmers lost all of their crops to fires or from a month of neglect, and tourism in the Galilee ground to a halt.

Forest rehabilitation is only one part of JNF's 10-year, $400 million Operation Northern Renewal campaign. To make the north home again, the plan also includes upgrading parks and recreation sites; developing tourism; preparing land for agriculture and providing research and development; working on preparedness (more fire trucks, accessible hydrants and equipment storage); the purchase of a firefighting airplane; year-round camps for children; a housing loan program to encourage families to move to the north; funding of Hugey Sayarut, Israel's elite youth movement; and volunteer activities.

Tu B'Shevat in the Schools is part of JNF's Tu B'Shevat Across America -- a program that provides materials, resources, sermons, and speakers to help families, schools, and congregations celebrate Tu B'Shevat. For more information, contact JNF's Education Department at (212) 879-9305 ext. 263 or education@jnf.org or visit www.jnf.org/tbschools to register.

Caption: Students enjoy a Tu B'Shevat seder. Photo available as a high-resolution jpeg upon request.

Jewish National Fund is a non-profit organization founded in 1901 to serve as caretaker of the land of Israel, on behalf of its owners—Jewish people everywhere. Over the past century, JNF has planted over 240 million trees, built over 180 reservoirs and dams, developed over 250,000 acres of land, created more than 1,000 parks, provided the infrastructure for 1,000 communities and educated students around the world about Israel and the environment. Today, JNF is restoring northern Israel, making it home again to its residents, and is putting its century of experience to work with Blueprint Negev, supporting Israel's newest generation of pioneers in developing the Negev Desert, Israel's last frontier. For more information on JNF or to plant trees in Israel, call 800-542-TREE (8733) or visit www.jnf.org/trees. To contact your local office, please call 888-JNF-0099 or visit http://www.jnf.org/.