International Association of Hebrew Free Loans
Encyclopedia
The International Association of Hebrew Free Loans (IAHFL) is an umbrella organization
for Hebrew Free Loan societies, organizations that offer interest-free loans. There are members around the world, with most in North America. Each member organization has its own rules regarding such things as who may borrow, the maximum loan amount, and the repayment process. However, all offer loans without interest.
Hebrew Free Loan societies (such a society is also known as a Gemach
) are based on the biblical injunction that Jews may not charge interest to other Jews in need, found in Exodus 22:25: "If you lend money to My people, to the poor among you, do not act towards them as a creditor; exact no interest from them."
The IAHFL provides a forum for independent free loan societies to interact, share information, and helps establish new Hebrew Free Loans. There is an annual conference hosted by a member organization.
The IAHFL produces a newsletter several times a year. Back issues are available at IAHFL newsletters.
October, 2008 Hebrew Free Loan Association of Cleveland
October, 2007 Hebrew Free Loan Association of Vancouver
September, 2006 Hebrew Free Loan Association of South Florida
2005 Hebrew Free Loan Association of San Francisco
October, 2004 Hebrew Free Loan Society of Greater Philadelphia
Umbrella organization
An umbrella organization is an association of institutions, who work together formally to coordinate activities or pool resources. In business, political, or other environments, one group, the umbrella organization, provides resources and often an identity to the smaller organizations...
for Hebrew Free Loan societies, organizations that offer interest-free loans. There are members around the world, with most in North America. Each member organization has its own rules regarding such things as who may borrow, the maximum loan amount, and the repayment process. However, all offer loans without interest.
Hebrew Free Loan societies (such a society is also known as a Gemach
Gemach
Gemach is a Jewish free-loan fund which subscribes to both the positive Torah commandment of lending money and the Torah prohibition against charging interest on a loan. Unlike bank loans, gemach loans are interest-free, and are often set up with easy repayment terms.Gemachs operate in most Jewish...
) are based on the biblical injunction that Jews may not charge interest to other Jews in need, found in Exodus 22:25: "If you lend money to My people, to the poor among you, do not act towards them as a creditor; exact no interest from them."
The IAHFL provides a forum for independent free loan societies to interact, share information, and helps establish new Hebrew Free Loans. There is an annual conference hosted by a member organization.
The IAHFL produces a newsletter several times a year. Back issues are available at IAHFL newsletters.
United States
- Akron, OH -- Free Loan Association (Akron, OH)
- Atlanta, GAAtlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
-- Jewish Educational Loan Fund, Inc. (Atlanta) - Atlanta, GA -- Jewish Interest Free Loan of Atlanta, Inc.(http://www.jifla.org)
- Baltimore, MD -- Hebrew Free Loan Association of Baltimore
- Boca Raton, FL -- Ruth Rales Jewish Family Service (Boca Raton)
- Boston, MA -- Jewish Family & Children Service
- Buffalo, NYBuffalo, New YorkBuffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
-- Hebrew Benevolent Loan Association (Buffalo) - Cincinnati, OH -- Jewish Federation of Cincinnati
- Cleveland, OH -- Hebrew Free Loan Association of Cleveland
- Dallas, TXDallas, TexasDallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
-- Dallas Hebrew Free Loan Association - Denver, CO -- Jewish Interest Free Loan of Colorado
- Detroit, MI -- Hebrew Free Loan Detroit
- Fort Worth, TXFort Worth, TexasFort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
-- Tarrant County Hebrew Free Loan Association - Grand Rapids, MI -- Jewish Federation of Grand Rapids
- Houston, TXHouston, TexasHouston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
-- Hebrew Free Loan Association of Greater HoustonGreater HoustonHouston–Sugar Land–Baytown is a 10-county metropolitan area defined by the Office of Management and Budget. It is located along the Gulf Coast region in the U.S. state of Texas... - Los Angeles, CA -- Jewish Free Loan Association (Los Angeles)
- Miami, FL -- Hebrew Free Loan Association of South Florida
- Minneapolis, MNMinneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
-- Jewish Free Loan Program (Minneapolis) - Milwaukee, WI -- Milwaukee Jewish Free Loan Association
- New Haven, CTNew Haven, ConnecticutNew Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
-- Hebrew Burial & Free Loan Association of New Haven - New Jersey (northern) -- Hebrew Free Loan of New Jersey
- New York, NYNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
-- Hebrew Free Loan Society (New York) - New Orleans, LANew Orleans, LouisianaNew Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
-- Jewish Family Service (New Orleans) - Palm BeachPalm Beach County, FloridaPalm Beach County is the largest county in the state of Florida in total area, and third in population. As of 2010, the county's estimated population was 1,320,134, making it the twenty-eighth most populous in the United States...
County, FL -- HFL of Palm Beach County - Paterson, NJPaterson, New JerseyPaterson is a city serving as the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, its population was 146,199, rendering it New Jersey's third largest city and one of the largest cities in the New York City Metropolitan Area, despite a decrease of 3,023...
-- Paterson Hebrew Free Loan Association - Philadelphia, PAPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
-- Hebrew Free Loan Society of Greater PhiladelphiaHebrew Free Loan Society of Greater PhiladelphiaThe Hebrew Free Loan Society of Greater Philadelphia provides interest-free loans to members of the Philadelphia Jewish community in need. Founded in 1984 as the Hebrew Free Loan Society at Beth Sholom and housed at Beth Sholom Congregation , by 2006, over $2 million in loans had been granted from... - Phoenix, AZPhoenix, ArizonaPhoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
-- Jewish Free Loan of Greater Phoenix - Pittsburgh, PA -- Hebrew Free Loan Association of Pittsburgh
- Providence, RIProvidence, Rhode IslandProvidence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
-- Hebrew Free Loan Association of Providence - Salt Lake City, UT -- Joseph & Evelyn Rosenblatt Free Loan Fund
- St. Louis, MOSt. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
-- Jewish Loan Association (St. Louis) - San Antonio, TXSan Antonio, TexasSan Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
-- Hebrew Free Loan Association of San Antonio - San Diego, CA -- Hebrew Free Loan of San Diego
- San Francisco, CA -- Hebrew Free Loan Association of San Francisco
- Sarasota, FL -- Sarasota-Manatee Jewish Federation
- Seattle, WA -- Hebrew Free Loan Association of Seattle
- Springfield, MA -- Hebrew Free Loan Assn. of Greater Springfield
- Tucson, AZTucson, ArizonaTucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
-- Hebrew Free Loan Association of Tucson - Washington, DC -- Hebrew Free Loan Association of Greater Washington
Canada
- Calgary, ABCalgaryCalgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
-- The Calgary Jewish Family Loan Association - Hamilton, ON -- Hebrew Free Loan Association of Hamilton
- Montreal, PQMontrealMontreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
-- Hebrew Free Loan Association of Montreal - Toronto, ONTorontoToronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
-- Toronto Jewish Free Loan Cassa - Vancouver, BCVancouverVancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
-- Hebrew Free Loan Association of Vancouver - Winnipeg, MBWinnipegWinnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
-- The Asper Helping Hand Initiative
Outside North America
- Buenos Aires, ArgentinaBuenos AiresBuenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
-- ACCEDER Hebrew Free Loan - Jerusalem, Israel -- Israel Free Loan AssociationIsrael Free Loan AssociationThe Israel Free Loan Association is the largest free loan association in the world, having lent out nearly $150 million in the last two decades. This non-profit organization offers interest-free loans to citizens of Israel only. It is supported primarily by private donations and grants...
- Jerusalem, Israel -- International Free Loan Association for Ukraine Loan Fund
- Melbourne, AustraliaMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
-- Jewish Mutual Loan Company PTY, Ltd.
Annual conference
The IAHFL holds a conference each year (normally in the fall) to provide an opportunity for networking and education. The conference is always hosted by a local Hebrew Free Loan, though the program is generally planned by the International.Past conferences
October, 2009 Hebrew Free Loan DetroitOctober, 2008 Hebrew Free Loan Association of Cleveland
October, 2007 Hebrew Free Loan Association of Vancouver
September, 2006 Hebrew Free Loan Association of South Florida
2005 Hebrew Free Loan Association of San Francisco
October, 2004 Hebrew Free Loan Society of Greater Philadelphia
Hebrew Free Loan Society of Greater Philadelphia
The Hebrew Free Loan Society of Greater Philadelphia provides interest-free loans to members of the Philadelphia Jewish community in need. Founded in 1984 as the Hebrew Free Loan Society at Beth Sholom and housed at Beth Sholom Congregation , by 2006, over $2 million in loans had been granted from...