THRIVER The
Greetings!
2020. “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.” Although the pandemic we have lived with for the past year was clearly among the worst of times, there were extraordinary personal and communal acts of kindness and self-sacrifice, along with social, recreational and educational opportunities. From the beginning of the Barb LaRue Judith Kovach quarantine, Cancer Thrivers Network shifted gears to virtual programming for our members, providing opportunities for education, skill-building, fun and companionship. To that end, we held Zoom meetings on the following: stress management, challah baking, chair yoga, gardening, art talk, a presentation about Leader Dogs for the Blind, and, just for the fun of it, a session of Trivial Pursuit and another of Family Feud. We also had virtual lunches and outings in parks for lunch, wearing masks and practicing social distancing. We all had fun and enjoyed seeing old friends and meeting new ones.
And we’re not slowing down in 2021. Plans are in the making for Zoom meetings on the topics of healthy cooking and nutrition; sleep health; genetics and cancer; self-care; make-up and skin care; and a wonderful Museum Series including the Jewish Historical Museum, the Charles Wright Museum and the Holocaust Memorial Center. You may remember that we had a live luncheon program – Thriving: Physically, Emotionally, and Spiritually – scheduled in 2020, which we had to cancel. We are thrilled that we could reschedule that presentation for March 23, 2021 (albeit without lunch). Speaking of lunch, we will continue to arrange virtual lunches and outdoor meetings in safe places. We both look forward to seeing you at all of these upcoming events. If you have an idea for a topic for a meeting or a fun activity, just call Sarah at 248-592-2267 and let her know, and we will try to arrange it. Let’s keep on thriving together! Barb LaRue and Judith Kovach Co-Chairs, Cancer Thrivers Network
Cancer Thrivers Network for Jewish Women is a program of Jewish Family Service Sally & Graham and Suzanne & Joseph Orley Building 6555 W. Maple Road, West Bloomfield, MI 48322 248.592.2300 jfsdetroit.org
Spring 2021
From the Remote Desk of Jewish Family Service
By the time this reaches you, it will have been a full year since the COVID-19 pandemic made its impact at Jewish Family Service. On March 16, 2020, the agency’s staff collected their files, grabbed their plants and left their offices completely unaware that one year later they would all still be working from home. The building still remains closed to the public, but that hasn’t stopped community members from knocking on JFS’s virtual door. Despite this unprecedented time, JFS continued to meet the changing needs of the community: To ensure the most vulnerable had access to food, the JFS transportation department partnered with Yad Ezra to deliver food boxes to over 560 community members each month. In addition, the Kosher Meals on Wheels program had 211 new enrollments between March 2020 and January 2021. With anxiety rising throughout the community, the JFS Behavioral Health department offered free consultations with a therapist to 47 people. With many people struggling financially and unable to keep up with their bills, JFS was able to help by providing $930,380 in financial assistance to 921 people since March 2020. JFS, along with the Oakland County Health Department, was honored to provide the COVID-19 vaccine to over 170 Holocaust survivors at a clinic held at the agency’s office.
If you or someone you know needs help, please reach out to the Jewish Family Service Resource Center at (248) 592-2313.