Following World War II, around 250,000 European Jews who had survived the Holocaust made their way to the displaced persons (DP) camps established by the Allied Armed Forces in Germany, Austria and Italy. These overcrowded and bleak environments provided the barest of necessities. Supplementing the relief supplied by the U.S. Army, the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration and its successor, the International Refugee Organization, JDC provided critical services that nourished both body and soul: food, medicine, clothing, tools, educational and religious materials. JDC placed special attention on the unique needs of the growing population of children in the camps.