The Near East Foundation was founded in 1915 in response to Ambassador Henry Morgenthau Sr.'s
reports of governmental atrocities against Ottoman Armenians. Morgenthau referenced the
deportations of intellectuals and requested urgent and immediate assistance. Former missionary
and educator James L. Barton and philanthropist Cleveland Hoadley Dodge led a group of prominent
New Yorkers in forming the American Committee for Armenian and Syrian Relief. The committee
raised $60,000 for direct relief at its first meeting on Sept 16, 1915. The money was wired
to Ambassador Morgenthau for distribution. Cleveland H. Dodge personally financed the committee's
operating expenses in order to ensure that all funds went to direct relief. The committee then
embarked upon an unprecedented grassroots campaign to raise money and awareness across the U.S.
The campaign combined striking imagery, passionate celebrity spokespeople, and captivating
stories from the field to inspire Americans from all economic backgrounds to become citizen
philanthropists. The organization also briefly used the name American Committee for Relief in
the Near East in 1918–1919; that name appears on many of the committee's most iconic posters.

In August 1919, the committee received a congressional charter (the second humanitarian
organization to receive this recognition, after the American Red Cross) and was renamed
Near East Relief. From 1915 to 1930, Near East Relief saved the lives of over a million
refugees, including 132,000 orphans who were cared for and educated in Near East Relief
orphanages. Near East Relief also mobilized the American people to raise over $116 million
for direct relief. Nearly 1,000 U.S. citizens volunteered to travel overseas. Near East Relief
workers built hundreds of orphanages, vocational schools, and food distributions centers.
Overseas relief workers were responsible for the direct care of orphans and refugees,
including the organization of vast feeding and educational programs. Thousands of Americans
volunteered throughout the U.S. by donating money or supplies and hosting special events to
benefit Near East Relief's work.

The organization created the International Near East Association, which then dedicated
Sunday, Dec 2, 1923, as an International Sunday of the Golden Rule. The "Golden Rule Sunday"
as it became known, encouraged people to eat something simple—namely staple menus typically
served in orphanages—and offer the money they saved as a donation to the orphans of the
Armenian Genocide. The Sunday of the Golden Rule was celebrated in many parts of Europe,
Australia, and America. President Calvin Coolidge urged the American people to express a
spirit of sacrifice and generosity on Dec 2, 1923 as part of the larger philanthropic effort.

In 1930, Near East Relief was renamed the Near East Foundation (NEF) to reflect the
organization's shift in focus from emergency relief to long-term social and economic
development. NEF expanded its geographic focus to include North Africa, sub-Saharan
Africa, and the area now known as the Middle East. NEF launched the Near East Relief
Historical Society in 2014 in an effort to preserve and share the organization's history.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Near_East_Foundation

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