News & Impact

Philanthropist Bill Lowenberg, who survived Auschwitz, spent much of his life educating children, grandchildren, and countless others about the lessons of the Holocaust. Now, two years after his death, his legacy lives on at the newly named William J. Lowenberg Speakers Bureau of the JFCS Holocaust Center. A significant gift from the philanthropic fund of his daughter, Susan Lowenberg, and her spouse, Joyce Newstat, ensures that young people throughout the Bay Area will hear survivors’ stories of moral courage for years to come. “The two Holocaust-related institutions that my father felt closest to were the JFCS Holocaust Center, locally,… Read More

“He is such a faxxx like i can’t belief his dum stupid shirt. what a xxxx fairy.” Has your child ever received a text like this? If so, he has experienced cyberbullying. “When one child targets another through an electronic device like an iPhone to threaten, humiliate, or torment, he or she has engaged in cyberbullying,” says bullying expert Holly Pedersen, MFT, PhD, Director of the Community Education Center of Parents Place on the Peninsula. “What makes this form of bullying so lethal is that it usually falls under the radar until it’s too late—when the message goes viral. In… Read More

Coming home after surgery, Eleanor didn’t have to worry about arranging for the home care she now needed for the first time in her life. Seniors At Home had already done it. “It was a relief that I didn’t have to scramble for services in my condition,” says Eleanor, 84. “Since everyone at Seniors At Home knew what I wanted, I could focus on regaining my strength.” Eleanor is part of the newly available Futures Program, which is for healthy seniors anticipating that their needs will change as they age. Seniors of any age—from their late sixties to their nineties—sign… Read More

Several hundred community members gathered at San Francisco’s Jewish Community Center (SFJCC) on Sunday, April 7,  to commemorate Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day. The multigenerational participants ranged from middle school students and scholars to rabbis and Holocaust survivors. Here’s a snapshot of the day’s events, which included an art project, a reading of Holocaust victims’ names, symposia, and a worship service. San Francisco’s Yom HaShoah programs were co-sponsored by the JFCS Holocaust Center, Lehrhaus Judaica, the SFJCC, the Jewish Community Relations Council, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and the Anti-Defamation League. Photos by Michael Krasnobrod.  … Read More

When 71-year-old Jay lost his wife in 2011, he received comfort from JFCS’ spiritual cares services and its Bereavement Support Group. “JFCS and Seniors At Home helped me get through a tough time,” he said. That’s why Jay didn’t hesitate to return to Seniors At Home this spring, when he began dating. “I felt like I was cheating on my wife,” he said, “and I needed to talk through issues I haven’t addressed in almost 50 years—sex and intimacy.” “It’s not unusual for many people in their 60s, 70s, 80s, and even 90s to experience conflicting feelings about love, romance,… Read More

You’re tired, cranky, and short-tempered. You feel that you have no life outside of your spouse, kid, and job. Does this make you a lousy parent—or are you being too hard on yourself? “We see a lot of clients  who wonder whether they’re good parents,” says Karen Friedland-Brown, MA, Director of Parents Place on the Peninsula, “Most of the time, they’re doing fine. All they need are support, strategies, and reassurance.  “Parents in the Bay Area are particularly hard on themselves,” continues Karen. “They’re super-achievers: educated, driven, and socially conscious.They want to do the right things for their kids. We… Read More