News & Impact

JFCS sends warm wishes to you and your loved ones as Passover nears.We also want to thank all participants in our Seder Sacks assembly and delivery efforts, who bring holiday cheer to the most vulnerable in our community, and our friends who have given to our our Seder Sacks campaign. You can still help with Seder Sacks. Come join us! A special thank-you to Joyce Newstat and Susan Lowenberg, who recently established the Seymour Newstat Endowment Fund, This thoughtful gift supports a beautiful annual seder for Holocaust survivors who attend JFCS’ Café by the Bay, a program that… Read More

Mitch P.’s demanding job requires long hours and significant travel. Though mild-mannered and congenial during the day, “I undergo a huge transformation once I walk through the door at night,” he admits. “I turn into this big grouch. I turn away from my 2-year-old’s hugs, and I snap when my 4-year-old starts jumping up and down and squealing. I know they’re excited to see me, but sometimes I feel like a gay Archie Bunker. “All I want,” Mitch adds, “are dinner on the table and a little peace and quiet. Of course, I feel guilty about it—and a little scared,… Read More

An outstanding student with a knack for business, Mark Khavkin was accepted into MBA programs at Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, and Northwestern. As pleased as he was by his choices, he remained concerned about financing his education in a way that would allow him to go to school full-time without falling into debt. Fortunately, he knew about JFCS’ Educational Loan and Grants Program. JFCS provided Mark with a generous deferred-interest loan for his two years at Harvard, where he excelled academically. “The MBA program was an amazing, transformative experience,” says Mark, who now works at eBay. “It developed… Read More

What do Zoe Schwartz, Marsha Jacobs, Lynn Ganz, Miriam Sparrow, Ellen Mundell, Marlene Stein, and Bonnie Lasky all have in common? The dynamic septet are part of the Sonoma Leadership Council, a JFCS affiliate group that has come together to support JFCS’ outstanding services. “JFCS is like my favorite Jewish mother and father,” said Lynn, “tenaciously protecting, loving, nurturing, and strengthening their family.” The Leadership Council members are among many in the Bay Area who want to improve the lives of tens of thousands yearly through exceptional programs like Parents Place, Seniors At Home, Dream House, and… Read More

Finding a place to live is one of the Bay Area’s greatest challenges. For Molly, a 29-year-old with significant learning differences, the perfect home has been JFCS’ Gary Shupin Independent Living Community, which offers residential and comprehensive services to young adults with developmental and other disabilities. “Shupin is ideal for Molly,” says her mother, Margaret, a former psychiatric nurse who helped her daughter with her housing search. “Molly wants to be independent, and Shupin provides the support so that she can remain so,” continues Margaret. “When Molly went to San Francisco City College to enroll in the CNA program,… Read More

Aaron, age 4, was a chronic poker, hitter, and biter. His favorite targets: his mother and fellow preschoolers. “My child was beating me up,” said Laura, a domestic abuse survivor. “He saw what his father did to me, and he started to behave the same way.” Aaron’s pediatrician sent the child and his mother to JFCS’ Parents Place program. Its Child Trauma Training Institute trains professionals and also directly assists children who have been exposed to severe stress and significant violence, such as domestic abuse. “The therapist at Parents Place helped Aaron work through his rage at his father and… Read More