Through concession sales and donations from the audience, Menlo’s drama program raised over $2,600 for the International Rescue Committee, founded in 1933 at the urging of Albert Einstein and other intellectuals to rescue German citizens suffering under Hitler. In 1940, IRC helped nearly 2000 refugees escape to the United States from Nazi-occupied Paris. These refugees included Hannah Arendt and Marc Chagall, whose paintings on Jewish village life in Russia inspired the title of Fiddler on the Roof.

Over the last 50 years, IRC has stayed true to its original mission. Today the IRC continues to help refugees of political conflict and natural disasters rebuild their lives. In 2014, it helped more than 17 million people from across the world and resettled more than 10,000 refugees in the United States.

The American Institute of Philanthropy gives the IRC a rating of A+. More than 90% of the funds donated to IRC directly benefit refugees and communities affected by war or disaster.