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The Whole Meshpucha Jewish Family Service of Greater Wilkes-Barre Message from the President and Executive Director. Recently, several announcements have been made regarding potential grant opportunities for JFS. We are close to making some positive announcements as to new funding for Kids Care Club activities as well as other grant requests that have been made. In this Newsletter, we can formally announce that our companion organization, JFS Foundation, Inc. has received approval from the IRS as a tax exempt nonprofit entity. Its goal is to raise $1.1 million for the first JFS endowment. More will be developed on this and reported out at a later date. Recently, both of us attended the annual meeting of the Association of Jewish Family and Children's Agencies (AJFCA) in New York City . We learned much about the various programs of service and the challenges facing small, intermediate and larger agencies across the United States and Canada . Many are turning toward serving far more non Jewish clients than Jewish clients. This trend bears considerable watching as our agency still predominantly serves the Jewish community even though we have a fair number of non Jewish clients. Furthermore, we participated in a number of panels and sessions that will prove important to the agency's future. As our annual meeting is being held during the publication of this Newsletter, we are celebrating the role that our honorees, Rabbi Larry and Gerri Kaplan play in the life of this community. Their dedication, vision, and accomplishments bear witness to the commitment they have to children of all religions and races, and to the astonishing capacity they have for the betterment of young people as well as the traditional role they play in meeting the needs of their congregation at Temple Israel . May they both continue to be part of the "wealth" that this community offers in meeting the needs of youngsters and adults alike in the years and decades ahead.
Friends Campaign Our annual Friends Campaign has a goal of $36,000. Currently, we are slightly over $30,000. It is not too late to contribute to this important activity. These funds help support many of the service programs of JFS and are critical to the ability of the agency to meet its budgetary objectives. The campaign is co-chaired by Steve Libenson and Sandy Warshal. Honorary Chair is Max Bartikowsky.
Children and Youth Committee This Committee, chaired by AW Weinberg, completed a survey of Jewish youngsters, in cooperation with Paul Williamson of the JCC, using funds from the Rosenberg Endowment. Many opinions and suggestions were made, and the Committee is planning an event to be held at the JCC that will involve young people planning on attending college and their parents. Other events will be scheduled in later months.
Arts and Culture Committee This Committee is chaired by Sheree Klemow. Planned are two concerts to be held June 24 th at the home of Jack and Helene Rosenzweig in Mountaintop and on November 11 th at the lower school auditorium of Wyoming Seminary. Funds raised will be used to support the Kids Care Club program of service learning for youngsters as early as kindergarten that help less fortunate youngsters and/or senior citizens. The June 24 th program will feature acclaimed violinist Elliot Rosoff and the November 11 th program will feature Israeli entertainer Ron Eliran who was so popular in Scranton a year ago. Tickets are available by contacting the JFS office.
Student Aid Committee This Committee is chaired by Sandy Warshal and meets to discuss requests for loans or grants for Jewish high school students attending a college or university. Funds are being provided to at least ten students, and over decades, funds have been made available for a great many other students. There now exists, in addition to the undergraduate program, a graduate program of loan assistance through the Max Bartikowsky Scholarship Fund.
Nominating Committee New Board members are being selected and elected to the JFS Board. The Committee is chaired by former Board member David Smith. Elected recently was Dr. Linda Trompetter, executive director of the Diversity Institute, based at College Misericordia, Dan Fierman and Suzy Weinman, LSW. Officers elected to the Board include the following: President 1 st . Vice President 2 nd . Vice President Treasurer Wellness Program This initiative has been highly successful. It includes a $10,000 grant from the Blue Ribbon Foundation and has involved many partners, including Wilkes University 's Nesbitt School of Pharmacy, Penn State Cooperative, ManorCare, College Misericordia, Steps for a Healthier PA and Dr. Herb Weinman. The program has included an emphasis on cardiovascular disease prevention and physical activity and nutrition for those 60 years or older. The venues include the Jewish Community Center, and the senior centers at Wilkes-Barre , Kingston , and Pittston.
Intergenerational Coalition This program is chaired by JFS executive director Howard J. Grossman. Recently a conference was held at Genetti's in Wilkes-Barre that attracted 300 persons i9ncluding many grandparents raising grandchildren. Senator Ray Musto has been a great supporter of this program. Joe Clapps is the Coordinator. The Coalition meets monthly and has been advocating many initiatives regarding ways that grandparents can be helped.
Elder Issues Coalition This Coalition is also chaired by JFS Executive director Grossman. It meets every other month and features speakers on topics of interest to the membership. The Coalition includes an education, advocacy, and membership committee. Recent topics have been the Nursing Home Transition Program and the Benefits Update program that has been used in the Lehigh Valley and other locations.
Clinical Seminars A new program of clinical seminars has been launched, one through the cooperation of Dr. Matt Berger and the other through the efforts of Susan McDonald. Other such seminars are likely to be held in coming months. CEU credits for practitioners are available. The events were held at the JCC.
Caregiver Assistance Program The JFS Jewish Caregiver Assistance Program has proven highly successful. A new grant has been received from the Passan Foundation in memory of John Passan's mother. The program is administered by Lisa Morgan of the staff and enables temporary unskilled assistance to be provided, for example, to individuals leaving a hospital setting. Up to three weeks assistance can be requested, depending upon the amount of funds being used. When JFS first started this program, ten families were served. It is expected that more assistance will be needed in the future to serve this growing need in the community.
Community Forums In cooperation with the JCC, community forums are held at the center that involve both JFS and JCC staff. Many such forums have been held for the Senior Adult Group at the JCC and at times for the Men's Club. Several events were held this spring and plans are being developed for the fall of 2007.
Art Contest This annual children's art contest is being held again and it is expected that announcements will be made as to winners before the end of the fiscal year. We are expecting dozens of entries, and judges will decide the winners in the near future.
Restricted Funds JFS has a series of restricted Funds that can be contributed to for a variety of purposes. These funds are used to help meet the needs of clients, and there is a policy on their use that limits them to no more than four percent of the corpus. The funds include the following:
Staff
Board Members
*Life Members |
Copyright 2006, Jewish Family Service of Greater Wilkes Barre