Like many children who had a parent who survived the Holocaust, Lydia Preisler Shorenstein felt an obligation to find a way to honor her father’s memories and experiences, as well as to educate others about the tragedy of the Holocaust so that history would not continue to repeat itself. For Lydia, the call to action came when she and her late husband, Doug Shorenstein, visited the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., along with her family, including Lydia’s parents, Simon and Etelka. Simon Preisler was born in Fancsicovo, Czechoslovakia, to an observant Jewish family. A survivor of Auschwitz,… Read More

This past year Jewish Family and Children’s Services said goodbye to one of our dearest friends, Jerry Rosenstein. A Holocaust survivor who bravely told his story after decades of silence, a businessman with keen financial acumen, a gay man who cared about human rights, and a generous person who fully gave of himself in service to others, he made an impact on JFCS equally immeasurable and enduring. As a Holocaust survivor, Jerry was active in Holocaust education and a solid supporter of the JFCS Holocaust Center. Jerry’s relationship to JFCS dates back to the mid-1980s when he made his first… Read More

Elinor and Eugene Friend z”l set an incredible example of philanthropy for their children. Through their involvement with various organizations in the community, Elly and Gene showed their deep connection to their home and their heritage. Their story spans more than a century. As an Eastern European Jewish immigrant in New York City around the end of the 19th century, Gene’s father was drawn to the western frontier, a place without barriers or discrimination. Elly moved to California from El Paso, Texas, and met Gene while attending UC Berkeley. The couple married in 1940 and started a family. Though the… Read More

Daryl Messinger’s collaboration with Jewish Family and Children’s Services started decades ago. Shortly after she and Jim Heeger joined Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos in the early 1990s, Daryl quickly heeded the call to service. At that time, Beth Am had partnered with JFCS to help resettle and acculturate emigres from the former Soviet Union, and Daryl chaired the congregation’s emigre committee. In 1998, Paul Resnick recruited Daryl onto JFCS’ board of directors and by 1999 she was board treasurer, then vice president from 2002 through 2005. Both Daryl and Jim found inspiration to serve their community and to… Read More

Anita and Ronald z”l Wornick sat for this interview in 2014. May his memory be for a blessing. Over many years, Ronald and Anita Wornick touched the worlds of art, medical research, education, and Jewish philanthropy through gifts that made a difference in the lives of many. But few of their gifts have meant as much to them personally as the Harry & Florence Wornick Endowment Fund for Youth Loans, which they established at JFCS as a tribute to Ron’s parents. The fund supports the education of promising students. “My reverence for my father is beyond containment,” said Ron, a… Read More

It was the joy that a particular JFCS program brought to her father’s life that prompted Joyce Newstat, along with her spouse, Susan Lowenberg, to establish a Named Endowment Fund in his loving memory. The Seymour Newstat Endowment Fund makes distributions each year to support the Annual Seymour Newstat Passover Seders for participants of JFCS’ Café by the Bay program for Holocaust survivors. Joyce recalls that her father did not talk much about his life during World War II—which included time in a work camp, from which he’d later escape. As he aged, he began to share more about his… Read More