News & Impact

Last October deadly wildfires ignited across the North Bay. Within hours of the crisis JFCS began providing immediate services to families, emotional support, emergency financial assistance, child care, food, mattresses, and vouchers for clothing and fuel. In the days and months that have followed JFCS has tailored services to meet the changing needs of the community, providing case management, insurance workshops, assistance with living expenses, help locating temporary housing, and counseling to 1,200 individuals. On the one-year anniversary of the deadliest and costliest wildfires in California history the region is still very much in transition, especially for those who were… Read More

As a successful entrepreneur and legendary business leader, Barney Mizel knows an effective enterprise when he sees one. Barney and his wife, Ann Mizel, have been providing significant support to JFCS and the community it serves through their family foundation. The Marin County resident has built three national insurance brokerage firms over the course of his long career and served on JFCS’ Program and Planning Committee. This year Barney joined the JFCS’ Endowment Committee, and is planning for the future by leaving a bequest to JFCS. He says, “I truly admire JFCS for the valuable work it does and I… Read More

The dynamic husband-and-wife duo, Nancy Livingston z”l and Fred Levin, together honored a family legacy to support the Jewish community. Well-loved patrons of the Bay Area’s arts scene and married nearly four decades, they were the type of couple who regularly completed each other’s sentences. They were steadfast and passionate supporters of JFCS for over fifteen years, having served on JFCS’ Special Events Committee and worked on the Annual Campaign. Nancy, who died in 2019, once said, “The scope of JFCS’ work is truly amazing.” It is our privilege to share this 2018 interview with Nancy and Fred. How did… Read More

Four years ago Joan became one of the every six Americans diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease each year. The 69 year-old’s symptoms progressed quickly and her husband of over three decades, Brian, retired early from his job in order to care for her while their adult daughter lives with them in their Foster City home for added support. But living on a fixed income while coping with the challenges of caring for their loved one with dementia proved more taxing than the family had imagined. As Joan’s dementia advanced, it became more difficult for her family to connect with her, taking… Read More

Siesel Maibach may still have a slight Southern accent from her childhood in Louisiana, but don’t let that fool you—she’s been in the Bay Area for many years. A successful art consultant for decades, you can view a sample of her work at JFCS’ assisted living community, Rhoda Goldman Plaza, where she placed 350 pieces of beautiful art. Siesel has served JFCS in a multitude of vital capacities over the past 40 years. As Board President in the 1980s, her leadership stewarded JFCS through challenging times. A longtime member of JFCS’ Endowment Committee, she has made an estate gift… Read More

Rywka’s Diary: The Writings of a Jewish Girl from the Lodz Ghetto—first published by the JFCS Holocaust Center—has been awarded this year’s Historical Award by Polityka, Poland’s top newsmagazine. The handwritten diary—miraculously discovered intact amidst the rubble at Auschwitz—is a moving account of the life and dreams of 14-year-old Polish girl Rywka Lipszyc. After more than 70 years in obscurity, the diary was finally published in 2014 and soon after became a worldwide success. The diary has gone on to be translated and published in 15 countries, including Poland. The award, initiated in 1959, is the oldest award in Poland… Read More