American Council of Voluntary Agencies for Foreign Service records

Collection — Container: Meeting minutes

Identifier: MS-2008-06

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The records consist of meeting minutes from various committees that were formed to discuss the immediate situation of displaced peoples in Western Europe. The records include minutes from the committees on Camps, Displaced Persons, Italy, and France.

Dates

Other: Majority of material found in 1945

Creator

American Council of Voluntary Agencies for Foreign Service (Organization)
Cooperative for American Remittances to Europe, Inc. (Organization)

Conditions Governing Access

None. The contents of this collection may be subject to copyright. Visit the United States Copyright Office's website at http://www.copyright.gov/for more information.

Biographical or Historical Information

The American Council of Voluntary Agencies for Foreign Services, Inc. was the precursor of the group Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere (CARE), a relief group of 22 American organizations that came together with the aim of sending food aid and basic supplies to war-torn Europe. The original organization monitored the dire situation in post-World War II Europe, especially France, Italy, and Germany, to discuss ways in which to alleviate the dire situations of the numerous displaced persons after the war. CARE was founded after World War II, on November 27th, 1945, and the first 20,000 “CARE packages” reached the port of Le Havre, France, on May 11, 1946. “CARE packages” are now a trademarked term that is synonymous with any form of aid package.

The 22 groups associated with the project included: The American Christian Committee for Refugees, American Friends of Service Committee, American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, American ORT Federation, American Relief for Italy, Inc., Central Location Index, Inc., Hadassah, HIAS-ICA Emigration Association, Intergovernmental Committee on Refugees, International Migration Services, International Rescue and Relief Committee. Italian Relief Workshop, Labor League for Human Rights, AFL, Russian Children’s Welfare Society, Save the Children Foundation, Self-help for Émigrés from Central Europe, Tolstoy Foundation, Unitarian Service Committee, United States Committee for the Care of European Children, World Student Service Fund.

Note written by Joe Tamargo, 2011