First JDC unit sent overseas led by Dr. Boris Bogen (fourth from left)

When American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee representative Boris Bogen visited Poland in early 1919, he encountered Jews in the direst of circumstances: homeless, starving, in fear for their lives. Hoping to bring them succor, a special Joint commission followed on his heels with an overseas visit, fanning out into different regions and provinces of Poland. On Dr. Bogen's recommendation, the Joint mobilized a volunteer cadre of American Jewish professionals compelled by a powerful sense of responsibility to their brethren. In January 1920, JDC's Overseas Unit Number 1 left to join Bogen in Warsaw in order to conduct a massive relief effort across Eastern Europe. These efforts continued and were expanded during the interwar years.