News & Impact

The facts are clear: Attending a Jewish summer camp as a child leads to a stronger identification with the Jewish community as an adult. Without the generous camp scholarships provided by JFCS, Micah and Rachel, 10-year-old twins on the Peninsula, would have missed out on this vital experience. The siblings lost their Israeli-born father to multiple sclerosis five years ago. Since then, it has been the hope of their mother, Pam, who is struggling financially, to connect her children to their father’s heritage through the Jewish summer camp experience. “But I could never afford it,” says Pam. “JFCS has helped… Read More

Even before Karen and Scott adopted their son, Gregory, more than four years ago with the help of JFCS’ dedicated adoption agency, Adoption Connection, the couple felt a strong commitment to the domestic adoption process. Karen has a brother who was adopted, and as child, she lived on a street with at least four households with adopted children. “I grew up with it,” says Karen. “It was just the norm.” So when she and Scott decided to grown their family, it seemed only natural that they’d come to Adoption Connection. “I knew about Adoption Connection because I had volunteered… Read More

Josef, an 89-year-old Holocaust survivor, never saw it coming. “I survived the Lodz Ghetto and three camp selections, but I didn’t see that a distant cousin who asked me to contribute to a special fund was stealing from me,” he said. Josef became so distraught that his Seniors At Home homecare attendant, Elvira, contacted his son. “He was very upset,” she said, “and I was worried he would have a stroke.” Son and father talked, and both agreed that the time had come for Josef to have his finances managed by a trusted third party: Seniors At Home’s Fiduciary Services… Read More

Joe Amaroso will be the first to tell you that he is as surprised as anyone that he is still alive and kicking. He wasn’t supposed to be. HIV-positive for decades, Joe, now 68, was diagnosed with full-blown AIDS in 1993, a few years before the development of effective life-prolonging drug therapies. Joe Amoroso “I was in the hospital with a temperature of 104 – 105,” Joe says. “They packed me on ice. I’d made a will, bought a tombstone, and took care of my funeral arrangements.” As his health has waxed and waned over the past two decades, JFCS… Read More

San Francisco’s Lisa Geduldig has earned a rightful place in the pantheon of Jewish comics whose gut-busting humor helps us forget our cares and sorrows. But Geduldig, whose Kung Pao Kosher Comedy has been delighting audiences during the holiday season for 20-plus years, also wins applause for being a mensch. As in years past, a part of the proceeds from her Kung Pao shows will go to help people in need. This year, JFCS’ Nutrition Programs are a beneficiary. “Food is among the most basic of human needs,” says Geduldig. “I like supporting JFCS’ programs because they address human needs… Read More

A rising star in the high-tech world, Greg had a dream job that allowed him to provide a comfortable life for his family: Jewish day schools, summer camp, trips to Israel and Europe, and leadership roles in his synagogue. But all of that changed late last year, right around Hanukkah, when he had a cerebral hemorrhage at work. It was the last time he’d see his office … and experience the world as he knew it. “Our world collapsed,” says Leora, Greg’s wife. “I remember thinking, ‘Who will help us now?’ Then I answered my own question: JFCS.” Leora knew… Read More