Latest News from JFS
JFS on the Move - You can Help!
Just as the old offices were bursting at the seams and staff was wondering what to do, an opportunity emerged. Due to the collective effort of Jeff Levin, Executive Director of the Jewish Federation of Washtenaw County, Chairman Ronald Weiser and CEO Albert Berriz of McKinley Properties, and JFS Board Vice President Mark Berg, JFS will be in new offices by March 2007. The space that will offer greater privacy, security and room for its services.
Not only did McKinley find a way to make the much larger space affordable, Al Berriz also arranged for the pro bono services of architect David Esau of Cornerstone Design and general contractor Leo Szlamkowicz of TJ Electric & Construction in Farmington Hills to implement the needed interior changes to the space. JFS staff, board members, and supporters have been hustling around town lining up small grants, discounts, volunteers and donated materials for the internal re-building of the office space.
The new space located at 2245 South State Street will provide JFS with:
- greater privacy and confidentiality
- added safety with remote entry & security cameras
- the infrastructure needed for JFS to attain national accreditation
"We have grown each year in terms of the demands, expectations and potential," said Executive Director Anya Abramzon. "It was time for us to move to space that allows us to continue to achieve that growth while providing quality services to our clients." JFS continues to look for materials for its build out, as well as handy volunteers to help with construction each weekend for the next three months. If you wish to volunteer or have a suggestion of a materials donor, please contact Carol Lessure at carol@jfsannarbor.org.
Katrina Evacuees Thank JFS
By Bernadette Gilbert
 Dean and I are Katrina evacuees. Six months ago we never dreamed we would be in Ann Arbor speaking to people about Jewish Family Services. It was an organization we never had heard of and a situation we could never have imagined.
We were living in our dream home that we built for our retirement in New Orleans. We grew up there, but spent our adult lives in Chicago where we raised our three sons. We moved back to New Orleans to take care of my mom and because we loved the weather. That life ended on August 29th when Katrina hit land. We had to evacuate with just a few personal items and some summer clothing,
We came to Ann Arbor to be near our son while we sorted out what to do next. We are still sorting things out—dealing with insurance companies, FEMA and waiting for the city to tell us when we can repair our home.
We were referred to Jewish Family Services by the Red Cross. That’s when our burdens were lifted and our stress started to disappear. We met a wonderful person named Mira [Sussman]. She went to work making us feel at home, helping us to find an apartment and furniture. When we moved in we had everything we needed to be comfortable.
Mira introduced us to people who showed us love, caring and concern. JFS is still helping us so that we don’t battle the bureaucracy alone. They help us follow up with phone calls, faxes and emails and deal with FEMA so that we don’t fall through the cracks. Mira helps us be “squeaky wheels,” because they get the grease. We are not squeaky by nature.
Dean has always been the provider. He worked for Health and Human Services as an adjudicator, and I taught for 38 years in the Chicago Public School System. We put all three sons through college and they graduated with no loans to repay. Our family was always giving to others and working with our church, St. Peter Claver. So believe me when I say—if it happened to us, it could happen to anyone.
You truly don’t know what will happen tomorrow—illnesses, accidents and natural disasters lurk on the horizon, waiting to pounce on people like us and our good neighbors in New Orleans. Thankfully, we have some savings, but much of what we had planned for this phase of our lives has changed. We were looking to traveling and landscaping on our house, and now we find ourselves using our savings to pay rent and mortgage on our home that we cannot live in.
I never dreamed that we would be in need of aid from a social services agency—much less one called Jewish Family Services. We were very grateful for the generosity of this community and the warm regard JFS showed all of us.
Thank you for supporting us and JFS during this unusual national disaster.
Note: The Gilberts have returned to rebuild their home and help their adopted hometown of New Orleans rebuild as well. We continue to support them as we can.
Building Bridges Between Families and Care Providers
JFS Advocacy Connection began with a series of workshops in December to help families prepare for the medical and legal issues of caregiving for their loved ones. Participants learned about the changing patient environment and ways to ensure family members receive adequate services and support to maintain the dignity, independence, and well-being of an ill family member. JFS has prepared a comprehensive notebook of resources on various aspects related to patient advocacy as well. Check this website for future workshop dates or contact Abbie Lawrence-Jacobson at abbie@jfsannarbor.org for more information. These workshops are supported by the Benard L. Maas Foundation and cosponsored by the JCC.
 top of page
JFS Breaks the Silence about Youth at Risk
In response to growing needs for support, Jewish Family Services will launch workshops and develop resources to assist families with “at risk” youth. JFS is organizing the first Youth & Family workshop on March 9, 2007. Gathering parents, mental health, medical, legal and educational professionals, the workshop will explore resources available and resources needed to assist families with pre-teen and teenage children at risk of crisis behavior. Sessions will include topics addressing the needs of these youth and their families, including ways to identify early “at risk” behavior as well as teens who fail in school, resist therapy, and develop destructive behavior. Plans also include discussions of programs out of state, ways to work with members in the Ann Arbor community and development of a resource network. These efforts are supported by the Benard L. Mass Foundation and a donation by Jeanne and Kenneth Levy-Church. Interested community members should contact Anya Abramzon at anya@jfsannarbor.org at JFS.
top of page
Ann Arbor Community Foundation Supports Launch of JFS CareVan
Jewish Family Services received a grant of $7,000 from the Anna Botsford Bach Fund of the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation to cover roughly 35% of our first year operating costs of the JFS CareVan Program. JFS has purchased and equipped the van with a grant from the Michigan Department of Transportation, and launched this new transportation service in 2006.
top of page
Business is Booming at JFS
You can see the result of Michigan’s struggling economy in the growing case load at Jewish Family Services. The agency has experienced a 50% increase in client requests since the beginning of the year, mostly from people facing job loss, utility cut off, and potential eviction. “You never want business to boom at a social service agency,” said Anya Abramzon, executive director. “Growth usually means that more people are in trouble.”
Michigan has the third highest unemployment rate in the nation, with only hurricane-torn Alabama and Louisiana experiencing worse job loss. Typically, transitioning workers can spend 3 - 6 months finding a new job at a comparable salary. In today’s economy, these transitions often take much longer, adding emotional and financial strain to the process. “Job loss can lead families through a spiral of financial decline,” according to Abramzon. “We have had twice as many requests for emergency assistance for the basics - food, rent and utilities - this year.”
Jewish Family Services has reached out to those in need, distributing food baskets from EMU Hillel and accessing emergency funds from Beth Israel Congregation, Temple Beth Emeth, and the Unitarian Universalist Church. JFS has also joined a group of “Barrier Buster” agencies - a county wide program that provides rent and utility financial aid to families facing eviction. “Not only have we gained greater access to these funds for our clients,” states Abramzon. “But we now participate in meetings where service providers discuss ways to prevent evictions and shut offs whenever possible.”
JFS is working to reach out to local business owners as it looks to assist a number of highly skilled, experienced workers find employment in their fields, and transition these workers into new careers. This month, case manager Mira Sussman visited Detroit’s Jewish Vocational Services to learn about their approaches and develop local resources for transitioning professionals.
JFS works with each client to address their immediate needs as well as establish a path towards long-term employment goals. As one client said, “JFS helped me find money to pay rent and prevent my phone from being turned off. I didn’t have to worry about those bills for a month and could focus on searching for a job. Plus, just having someone to talk to was such a relief.”
“We like to think that Ann Arbor is immune to the state-wide economic downturn that is affecting communities all around us,” Sussman said. “The reality is that even highly skilled, highly trained people are finding themselves suddenly out of work.”
Are you a business owner looking for employees or work with contractual laborers? Are you someone looking for work? If so, please contact Mira Sussman, Case Management Coordinator at mira@jfsannarbor.org.
top of page
JFS Fills the Void
By Ann Budilovskaya
 I moved to the US with my mother and grandmother from the Ukraine in 1990. We moved here because my mom and grandma wanted a better life for me. We found a wonderful new extended family of friends here in Ann Arbor. JFS staff were a big part of this extended family. They helped us settle by providing us with furniture and giving my mom and grandma the opportunity to study English, while I went to the Hebrew Day School.
My grandma found a new community and involved herself in bake sales and other programs provided by JFS. We attended many programs and picnics and JFS gave us the opportunity to socialize with other people who were brand new to the area, enabling my family to form friendships that have lasted to this day.
During my senior year of high school my life changed forever when my mom died at the age of 42. I lost my foundation. Eight months later my mom’s brother died and I was devastated by all the losses and changes I experienced at such a young age. The loss of both children at a relatively young age was very hard on my grandma, but she stayed strong for me.
JFS was there to guide us through the whole process. When my mom died, I moved in with my grandma, and JFS helped with speeding up the process for us to get a two-bedroom apartment. For almost a year, Anya met weekly with my grandma to support her during this difficult time.
In July of 2004, things really took a turn for the worse when my grandma suffered a series of strokes and had to be put into a nursing home. Once again JFS was there throughout the whole process, providing translators for doctors’ appointments and helping us pick out the best nursing home for her. My grandma continued to fight for me, but in November 2004 she lost her battle.
During this hard time for me, JFS was a big part of my support system. They helped me financially, emotionally and provided help in obtaining things like health insurance and a place to live. Things were very hard at first, but JFS has, and continues, to help me get back on my feet.
JFS is “my family in the community.” JFS is encouraging me to grow, learn and achieve. As I lost those closest to me, JFS has tried to fill the void. They nurture, push, advocate and accept me. JFS is a safety net. Each time life hit me hard, JFS was there to catch me and keep me from despair.
top of page
JFS Honors Bernsteins, UMS and Ken Fisher
 Jewish Family Services honored Ken Fischer, President of the University Musical Society at an award reception on March 19, 2006 before the Kirov Orchestra concert. JFS presented the Claire and Isadore Bernstein Resettlement Award to Fischer and UMS for enriching the lives of older adults in the resettlement community. The event brought together community leaders and supporters of UMS and JFS as well as people resettled here from the Former Soviet Union.
UMS, through the Clifford and Fanni Epstein Fund, supplies tickets to seniors so they can enjoy world-class performances they would otherwise be unable to afford to attend. UMS piloted the first year of this program with JFS and has used its experience as a model for extending the program to other area agencies serving seniors.
At the reception, Ken Fischer noted that "JFS is well run agency and a perfect partner for this effort." He said, "I am deeply moved by the gratitude and deep appreciation for UMS performances from the members of the resettlement community."
JFS honored the memory of Claire Bernstein who passed away in October. At the reception her daughter, Amy Colton, shared how her parents welcomed the first Russian Jews to Ann Arbor. She said, "I realized that if an individual lives by democratic, Jewish and moral values, and isn't afraid to stand up for what he or she believes in and is willing to go the extra mile to make things happen, individuals can move mountains and change lives in very significant ways. You just need a vision and the will to make it happen. My parents had both."
JFS established the Bernstein Resettlement Award to recognize community members providing time, resources and support for the area's resettlement community. Past recipients include Ron Weiser and Al Berriz of McKinley
top of page
JFS Awards Congressman Dingell for 50 Years of Service
Jewish Family Services presented Congressman John Dingell with a certificate recognizing his steadfast work on behalf of the people of Southeastern Michigan during his 50 years as United States Congressman. JFS president Marjorie Checkoway, executive director Anya Abramzon, Federation director Jeff Levin as well as two Katrina clients met with the Congressman and his staff to brief him on the issues facing JFS and the people it serves. Representative Dingell has championed the needs of the underserved during his Congressional tenure – crafting programs such as Medicare and fighting to keep them funded. The poor, immigrant and elderly populations we serve owe him a debt of gratitude.
top of page
|
