News & Impact

Shana was 14 when her parents divorced. Angered by their break-up, and deeply hurt when her dad left California, she felt her life spiraling out of control. “I started acting out—small things at first, like smoking,” Shana recounts. Fortunately, her mother encouraged her to get involved with JFCS’ YouthFirst program, which grounded her through service learning and leadership activities. “When I started going out into the community and helping others in need, like senior citizens and people with developmental disabilities, I began feeling better about myself,” says Shana. “It seemed like I had a purpose, and it was great being… Read More

Cleanerific, JFCS’ social enterprise, is not only receiving rave reviews from the many customers who use the green-friendly cleaning service to keep their homes and offices sparkling clean. Cleanerific’s employees, including Maria Linares, appreciate its mission: providing training, employment, medical benefits, and support so that they can become independent and advance in their lives. Maria is singlehandedly raising three children, including a 7-year-old with medical problems. It can be challenging, but Cleanerific helps ease the burden. It pays her a living wage, provides full benefits, and treats her with kindness and care. “They are very understanding,” Maria says of… Read More

As small business owners who have seen their own enterprises grow over the years, Vlad and Sandra Shmunis have a particular affection for budding entrepreneurs who are trying to get a good start in life. That’s why they have invested in JFCS’ Financial Aid Center, which offers assistance to young, promising upstarts in the Bay Area. “We’re big believers in helping those who are helping themselves,” says Sandra, “and we wanted to invest in a program that is already well established so that we didn’t need to reinvent the wheel. In addition, we have a great deal of respect for… Read More

When Gabe was 45, he developed adult-onset diabetes, leaving him blind and jobless. “Devastated is an understatement,” says Gabe. “I was panicked and emotionally paralyzed. I didn’t know where to turn. Thank G-d a friend directed me to the People with Disabilities Program at JFCS. It has been a lifesaver and has enabled me to be independent which is really important to me.” Each year, JFCS helps hundreds of adults like Gabe—people with physical, emotional, and developmental disabilities who want to strengthen their lives. Gabe and others meet regularly with counselors from JFCS who offer hope, comfort, and coping tools.… Read More

Because business leaders know it takes a village to support those in need, they generously offer resources to JFCS clients. Recently, Peet’s Coffee & Tea contributed to our Dream House and Parents Place programs—a result of Peet’s customers who made donations to totaling $10,000. Peet’s joins many business partners, that give cash and in-kind gifts. They include San Francisco magazine, Whole Foods, the San Francisco 49ers, and many more. “We are grateful for the outpouring of support that we receive throughout the year from companies, big and small, that want to give back to the community by investing in… Read More

For Dafna Kory, it all started with the jalapeño. “I’m from Israel, and I remember seeing jalapeño jam in the store soon after we moved to the States and thinking ‘What’s this?’” says Kory, founder and owner of Inna Jam, an artisanal jam company that recently received support from JFCS’ Business and Professional Loan Program. A few years ago, when Kory was at a friend’s, she braved jalapeño jam and found she loved it. “Now, if I were an ordinary person,” she says, “I would have asked my friend where she bought it. But being who I am, I had… Read More