Jewish Family Service of the Lehigh Valley Annual Report 2019-2020

2019 -20 20

OUR VISION No one in our community should suffer hunger, isolation, abandonment, emotional or physical distress, or lack of community support and caring.

OUR MISSION Jewish Family Service of the Lehigh Valley, guided by Jewish values, helps individuals and families to live healthier and more stable lives by providing social services, professional counseling, education and community programs.

CELEBRATING OUR PROFESSIONAL RELATIONSHIPS Chabad of the Lehigh Valley Congregation Am Haskalah Congregation Bnai Shalom Congregation Brith Sholom Congregation Keneseth Israel Congregation Sons of Israel Jewish Community Center of Lehigh Valley Jewish Day School of the Lehigh Valley Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley LIFE & LEGACY Monocacy Farm Project

Network of Jewish Human Service Agencies PANO Second Harvest Food Bank ShareCare Faith in Action Temple Beth El Temple Shirat Shalom Tikvah House United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley Wawa Wegmans Weis Markets

JFS IS HERE FOR YOU Dear JFS Friends and Supporters: We have experienced a year of unprecedented conditions in our lives. The pandemic has influenced the way we all go about living.

Jewish Family Service also had to adapt.

This was a challenge, as we had to educate ourselves about safety precautions for COVID-19 and then deal with protecting and serving our clients while also being tuned into our own vulnerabilities. This required some financial investment such as extra cleaning, hand sanitizer, technology, and other supplies.

Our JFS staff mindfully transformed the agency’s operation so that, after a brief, initial shutdown, we were able to resume our activities: re-organizing our food pantry, maintaining outreach to older adult residences, delivering Mazel Meals, counseling through teletherapy, sponsoring Zoom socialization and educational experiences, and securing grants to help with financial assistance for those in need. Our goal was to find innovative and meaningful ways to connect to the diverse populations JFS helps through multiple programs. This year, even more than in the past, we celebrate our amazing and nurturing staff who kept JFS running at full-steam when our services were needed more than ever.

In addition to our staff, we have an amazing group of volunteers, including our Board of Directors as well as the hands-on volunteers, who stock the pantry, deliver meals and provide friendly phone calls. Our generous supporters make it possible to feed the hungry and help individuals coping with depression, loss, social isolation and anxiety.

Our bodies may continue to be confined, but our spirits remain free. This has been a traumatic year full of turmoil and loss, but we know that the work of JFS remains more important than ever and we continue to make a difference in the lives of those who are struggling and need our help.

Sincerely yours,

Rabbi Allen Juda President

Debbie Zoller, MSW, LCSW Executive Director

INNOVATING TO MEET NEW NEEDS Throughout the year, and especially with the COVID-19 pandemic starting in March 2020, we pivoted and innovated in many ways to meet new and ongoing needs.  Secured grants to expand our Emergency Financial Assistance Program to provide funds to community members needing mortgage or rent subsidies due to COVID-19 closures  Implemented contactless protocols to continue running our Community Food Pantry and Mazel Meals within two months of the outbreak  Introduced new programs to respond to the pandemic, like the Shop Gap program to get groceries to older adults and the Send-A-Card Program to send mail to older adults experiencing isolation  Created webinar series on topics of interest including mental health, mindfulness and identity, and also shifted our annual Phyllis Ringel Memorial Lecture to a virtual format  Researched and planned for our ongoing partnership with Tikvah House to provide Jewish life programming to adults with intellectual disabilities  Hired a new Older Adult Case Manager and a Jewish Community Programming Liaison for Tikvah House  Strengthened our partnerships with the Jewish Community Center, Jewish Day School, and Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley with programs like Coats & Cocoa, the JDS Community Garden, and Heart2Heart  Launched a new strategic planning committee to take us into the future

WE’RE HERE FOR YOUR HEALTH At JFS, the mental and physical health of our clients and community is of the utmost concern. That’s why this year we:  Shifted to Telehealth to continue to provide a HIPAA-compliant platform for counseling services for our clients  Offer case management and referrals to those in need of services  Offer the annual Phyllis Ringel Memorial Lecture and other programs on health topics  Are involved with advocacy through the annual Jewish Disability Awareness, Acceptance and Inclusion Month each February and throughout the year

WE’RE HERE FOR THE OLDER GENERATION It’s part of our vision that no one in our community should suffer isolation or lack of community support and caring. We continue to grow our offerings for older adults through programs such as:  Mazel Meals, providing homemade kosher meals to those for whom cooking may be a hardship  Schmooze & Schmear, a social group for retired men  Shabbat and Jewish holiday events  Phone-A-Friend and the Friendly Visitor Program, which saw exponential growth during quarantine lockdowns  Partnership with ShareCare Faith in Action for the GO Program to meet transportation needs  Launching an effort to help older adults register to vote and turn in ballots for the primary and general elections with our graduate student intern  Centering our fundraiser around honoring outstanding volunteers who have made an impact on their communities through the theme of “Spectacular Over 70”

WE’RE HERE FOR FAMILIES All Jewish individuals and families in the Lehigh Valley, as well as our neighbors throughout the 18104 zip code, are eligible to participate in our Community Food Pantry.

After an exciting expansion of our Community Food Pantry, we were honored to have Rep. Susan Wild and State Rep. Mike Schlossberg attend our grand re-opening. We welcomed teen volunteers and their mitzvah projects to benefit the pantry.

When COVID-19 struck, we were up and running as soon as possible to continue to serve our community. We made all the changes necessary through the tireless efforts of staff and volunteers to safely distribute food and necessities to over 100 households per month.

YOU’RE HERE FOR US We’re here for you because you, our volunteers, are here for us. For every phone call made and pantry box packed, thank you for your adaptability and continued dedication throughout this trying time.

Totaling over 1,500 hours of service from July 1, 2019 - June 30, 2020 Allen Abbott Allentown Life Marvin Adler Tama Lee Barsky BBYO Aaron Berger Clara Bergstein Sam Bub Sara-Jane Bub Patty Carlis Larry Center Jane Greenberg Cohen Rachel Cubellis Natalie David Diana DeFanti Ana Deledda Doris Denherder Eva Derby Elaine Deutch Roberta Epstein Neil Feldman Julian Finley Eileen Fischmann Leyna Fleischaker Bobbie Friedenheim Rose Lee Goldberg Danielle Gordon

Sandy Greenfield Lisa Griffiths Ben Grossman Barry Halper Jonathan Hertz Margie Hertz Eric Herz Ginger Horsford Linda Hutter Madeleine Jelensits Rabbi Allen Juda Irving Kaplan Marty Katz KI Brit Olam Committee Stuart Krawitz Roberta Kritzer Beth Kushnick Mary Laronge Doe Levan Pierre Libmann Aviva Markowitz Talia Markowitz Richard Mongilutz Daniel Morgenbesser Gabriel Morse Judy Murman Julie Mylnarksy Richard Nelson Nancy Oberlender Leon Papir Rebecca Perten Howard Pitkoff

Jane Pitkoff Andrea Reich Matthew Ringold Judith Rodwin Bobbie Rudolph Jett Saracheck Naomi Schachter Ellen Schaffer Lenore Scharf Ron Segel Richard Shadick Richard Silverman Amy Singer-Douglass Maryann Snyder Barbara Spagnoletti Izzy Studzienko Lena Szakalay Pearl Szakalay Rivka Szakalay Rochelle Topolsky Abby Trachtman Susan Travis Beverly Volk Stephen Volk Helene Weiss Margo Wiener Alex Wood Sandie Zettlemoyer Leon Zoller

STEWARDSHIP OF YOUR GIFTS EXPENSES - $755,900 $15,100

$110,700

$45,500

$266,000

$253,500 $65,100

Direct Assistance

Client Education

Volunteers

General and Administrative

Therapeutic Counseling Services

Fundraising

REVENUE - $755,900 $29,800

$75,000

$111,400 $154,800

$143,900

$241,000

Disbursed from JFS Investment Account

Grants

Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley

In-Kind Food Donations

Contributions and Event Fundraiser

Therapeutic Counseling Revenue

For more detailed financial information, visit our website at www.jfslv.org.

YOU’RE HERE FOR THE FUTURE

Jewish Family Service wishes to thank the generous community members* who have made a gift to our endowment fund or who have vowed to support our organization in their wills, trusts, retirement accounts and life insurance policies through LIFE & LEGACY. *as of June 2020 Rony Ackerman Sheila C. Berg Wendy Born Ross Born Emily Charlap Nancy and Daniel Cohen Edwin Davis Rabbi Melody Davis Glenn and Jan Ehrich David Eiskowitz Iris Epstein Elizabeth Fear Eileen Fischmann Roberto Fischmann Jay and Fran Fisher Peter Fisher Brian Jason and Emily A. Ford Patricia and Gary Glascom Bennett Grossman Dr. Harvey and Melissa Hakim Robert and Bonnie Hammel

Jerome z”l and Florence Hausman Kevin and Mary Ellen Hausman Arthur David Hoffman Barbara Jean Hoffman Rabbi Allen Juda Toby K. Juda Kathi Katzman Seth Katzman Ferne Kushner Daniel Leisawitz and Daniela Viale Pam Lott Bill and Jane Markson Linda Miller Mike Miller James Mueth Taffi Ney Audrey Alexander Nolte Mike Notis Ruth Notis Dorothy Parmet z”l Roberta and Alan Penn

Abby Pozefsky Robert Rockmaker Alex and Robin Rosenau Lorrie Scherline Mark H. and Deena Scoblionko Lynne Shampain Howard M. Sherer Sam Shikiar Rabbi Michael and Alexis Singer Susan Sosnow Peggy A. Stettner Ron Ticho Beverly and Stephen Volk Arthur and Barbara Weinrach James A. and Linda P. Wimmer Norman Wruble Sandra Wruble Rachel Zane Debbie Zoller Leon Zoller Anonymous (7)

JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE IS A RESOURCE FOR THE COMMUNITY BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2019-20 Rabbi Allen Juda PRESIDENT

Marcia Berkow TREASURER

Audrey Nolte VICE PRESIDENT

Wendy Born PAST PRESIDENT

Robin Rosenau VICE PRESIDENT Sue Sosnow SECRETARY

DIRECTORS Marcia Berkow Tom Freedman Emily Ford Roberta Gaines Dr. Harvey Hakim Barry Halper

Rima Hirsch Ellen Hof Stuart Horowitz Pam Lott Rabbi Steve Nathan Audrey Nolte Mark Pinsley Andrea Reich Lorrie Scherline Sue Sosnow Cantor Ellen Sussman Kimberly Valuntas

Phyllis Kaufman ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

Rachel Shurman ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

Linda Krause PAYROLL CLERK

Marcia Schechter, MS, RN OLDER ADULT OUTREACH

Sarah Morse ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

Carol Wilson, LSW PROGRAM MANAGER AND COMMUNITY LIAISON FOR OLDER ADULTS

STAFF 2019-20 Rebecca Axelrod-Cooper, MSW, LSW COMMUNITY IMPACT COORDINATOR Amy Buchanan OFFICE ADMINISTRATOR Ellen Feldman, MA CASE MANAGER Sharon Gayner FOOD PANTRY COORDINATOR Chelsea Karp VOLUNTEER AND GRANTS COORDINATOR

Daniel Phillips GRADUATE STUDENT INTERN Stephanie Quinn CASE MANAGER FOR OLDER ADULTS Wendy Rapaport, MSW, LCSW LICENSED CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER

Debbie Zoller, MSW, LCSW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MARKETING TEAM Bayley Carl Stephanie Goodling Allison Meyers Stephanie Smartschan

2004 W. ALLEN STREET ALLENTOWN, PA 18104 610.821.8722 WWW.JFSLV.ORG