Salem —   CBS Evening News with Katie Couric aired a story on Tuesday, December 30, about the North Shore Jewish community's response to the loss of the free Youth to Israel program of the Robert I. Lappin Charitable Foundation. If you missed it, view it on line at CBS.com.

Scores of volunteers are coming forward, leaders are meeting, and money is coming in to retain the program and send nearly 100 local teens on their scheduled trip to the Jewish state in July. As of Tuesday morning, the community had raised $175,000 of the $556,200 needed.

The CBS News story revolved around how charities are coping with the loss of mega millions, casualties of the alleged Bernard Madoff Investment Securities Ponzi scheme, which is said to have lost $50 billion in funds from investors and individuals. The Lappin Foundation was among them.

See related story on the home page of this website, “Community Responds, Sets Sites on Y2I 2009.”