Uplifting Lives
RHEA’S STORY: COURAGE TO CHANGE
It was a year before Rhea* even mentioned the abuse she was experiencing to the counsellors and caseworkers at JFS.
“I didn’t know how to ask for help at first; I couldn’t even articulate what was wrong. The violence, his isolating me from family and friends, and the undermining of my confidence had happened slowly, over a period of years,” she says. “He made it feel normal and I had to fight to convince myself that it wasn’t.”
For 18 months Rhea worked with her JFS counsellor on a plan to get her and her children out of their unsafe situation. During that time, she accessed other services including our food bank program because her husband controlled the family finances and did not provide the family with food.
*Name has been changed for privacy
Jody Dales, New JFS Board Chair, p2
“ ”
I didn’t know how to ask for help at first; I couldn’t even articulate what was wrong.
“The thing I feared most was retribution. I was afraid to leave,” she says.
JFS was able to provide Rhea the support and safety she needed to stand up for herself. Through our guidance and advocacy, she reached her goal of finding safe housing where she could live independently with her kids. You, as donors, provided Rhea and her children with an advocate and the resources she needed for change.
Like Rhea, people come to JFS for one type of support like the food bank and after we sit with them, get to know them, often times more is revealed. We are grateful when we can help.
Story continues on page 2 . . .
SHOUT OUTS
Thank you to our generous community.
• Thank you to Ward & Ross Saito of the Canadian Tire Grandview & Cambie locations & an anonymous donor for donating car seats. These seats are loaned out to JFS families.
• Thanks to Krystine and Growing Farms for donating 3,400 lbs of fresh squash to the food bank in honour of Moishe Vinegar.
• With support from Jewish Federation, Simone Kallner coordinated backpacks full of back to school items for kids in the JFS families.
“Every day is still a battle,” says Rhea. “Sometimes I feel like I don’t deserve to be free. But I’m proud to have stood up for myself and my children. I know it took strength to do what I did. Knowing I am strong in their eyes gives me strength.”
It is not going to be an easy road for Rhea and her children to heal from the trauma they experienced. But thanks to donors like you, they will continue to grow and build their resilience.
JFS is built by many hands, to sustain those in our community who need us most so they can gather the courage to persist, to heal, and start over. Your support to community members like Rhea gives them an opportunity to start a new life.
You can alleviate the impacts of family violence and poverty in our community by donating to JFS.
Please consider giving at www.jfsvancouver.ca/donate-today.
MEET OUR NEW BOARD CHAIR
Jody Dales shares her thoughts on what makes JFS special, the importance of valuing our people, and what we’re working on for the future.
What motivated you to get involved with JFS?
I’m extremely lucky and could have just as easily been extremely unlucky. My good fortune allows me to help those who are far less fortunate. That’s what motivates me to be involved with JFS; my affinity with everyone that we help.
What do you think is special about JFS?
The “J” in JFS for me is the most special part of our agency. We are a Jewish organization. We only exist because Jewish law dictates that we “do justice” by caring for the needs of one another, and in this way, create an equitable society. Some form of a JFS existed throughout Jewish history, even in the ghettos during the Holocaust. It’s part of our culture. It’s who we are. It’s even how the JFS board chose the values by which we operate: To be trustworthy and collaborative, to offer dignity and respect, to be inclusive and welcome diversity, to be compassionate and offer care, and to be transparent and accountable. These values are not exclusively Jewish, but they are inherently Jewish.
What do you think the community should know about JFS?
I hope that every member of our community takes a moment to fully appreciate what JFS does. We provide basic essential human needs to the members of our community (and beyond). We put roofs over people’s heads. We put healthy food on their tables. We give them strategies to help them manage anxiety, fear, and anger. We provide caregivers that allow seniors to stay in their own homes. We provide an exit from harmful relationships. And we freely offer genuine loving kindness. Arguably, our stakeholders know this. But there are different ways that our brains process information. I hope that what our community knows about JFS is understood intellectually, and felt profoundly. What JFS does should make us smile, and make us cry.
For the full interview, visit jfsvancouver.ca/jfs-board-chair
BUILDING A FOOD-SECURE FUTURE TOGETHER
New School Program Creates Equal Access to Healthy Food for Students
Proper nutrition plays a central part in learning, yet 1 in 8 households in Canada struggle to access nutritious food.
When Richmond Jewish Day School needed support with their school lunch program after a contract with a former caterer ended, the Kehila Society of Richmond approached JFS to create a food program that benefits all families, regardless of income.
“ Thank you JFS and Kehila, in helping to ensure our RJDS students have healthy bodies and healthy minds!”
With start up funds provided by Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, JFS delivers weekly hot meals to RJDS at no cost to the students or their families. These meals are healthy, plantbased, and available to all students. In addition, a community fridge and pantry program are in operation. The fridge and pantry cupboard are kept stocked by JFS, the Kehila Society of Richmond and Richmond Food Bank. Students and their families can access healthy snacks, dry goods, fresh produce and meals during school hours.
Universal school meal programs play an important role in creating a sustainable future for our children and families. This multiagency initiative is an exciting example of what can happen when community partners work together to strengthen our community.
Henry Rosenthal has been delivering food to the JFS Food Bank from Point Roberts, USA, throughout the pandemic.
Q: Tell us how you got involved with the JFS food bank.
A: I used to visit a cousin’s uncle in Vancouver, through whom I met a gal named Dhorea Chalmie who told me she worked as a volunteer for the Jewish Food Bank in Vancouver. I asked if they needed any assistance. At that time I was responsible for the food bank in Point Roberts and we had an excess of food that we were getting from a few sources. That’s how I started bringing food over.
Q: You live in Point Roberts. How did you continue driving to Vancouver during the pandemic?
A: We are an essential service and so far they’ve let me through. I’ll bring frozen fish when I can, but there are other foods we bring across, too.
Q: What other needs do you see at the food bank?
A: We’ve had a major increase in the number of folks who need assistance. Not only in the area of food, clothing and shelter, but in other areas that are emotional in content. And so what we do is, at least a couple of us have become halfway decent listeners.
Q: Why do you volunteer?
A: We do it because we want to do it. And at the end of the day you see a lot of folks who have some of the strain lifted from their lives. And that’s good.
Deepen Your Impact
Consider giving through one of these high-impact opportunities:
• Honour someone in your life with a tribute card: Send us your personal message and we’ll post the card to their address
• Give monthly through our Monthly Mitzvah program
• Host a fundraiser: Consider turning a bar/bat mitzvah, birthday, or other special occasion into an online fundraiser. We can help.
• Legacy Giving: There are many rewarding ways to fund a planned gift to JFS.
Questions? Contact the Development Department at 604.257.5151 or email development@jfsvancouver.ca
BRINGING JOY AND SUPPORT TO THE HOLIDAY SEASON
If you live on a low-income, access to holiday services and food can be expensive and overwhelming. This is why our Jewish Holiday Assistance program is a highlight for so many families. With your help, we provide extra assistance to support people in carrying on Jewish tradition, including Rosh Hashanah, Hanukkah and Passover.
Every year, you help us provide holiday gifts to local families through our Hanukkah Helpers program. We’re grateful to this year’s organizer, Judy Weinstein, and all those who donated and put these packages together. They bring light and laughter into many homes.
One parent says, “As a single mother of 3, the Chanukah hamper is such a treat and relieves some of the pressure off of me. My kids and I are so grateful for this program! And thankful to the generous donors.”
Thank you for spreading light this holiday season!
SENIORS SHARING SHABBAT
In July 2021, JFS Thriving Seniors program launched Seniors Sharing Shabbat, sponsored by Herb and Barbara Silber, to engage with seniors in our community.
Once a month, JFS sends out Shabbat meals to seniors who are looking for an opportunity to meet, connect, and share Shabbat with others. The seniors leadership group takes pride in developing a menu based on their family stories and recipes. Each meal is cooked and assembled by volunteers at our Parve Kitchen and comes with a menu card that captures the personal connection behind the recipe. In addition, a 15 minute zoom blessing with a local rabbi is shared on the Friday the meals are delivered.
One participant shared, “Thank you for the time, effort and wonderful Shabbat meal that was sent to me. I’m so happy to see new faces and I look forward to being part of this group next time.”
Learn more at www.jfsvancouver.ca/thrivingseniors
