JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE
JFS holds Biennial meeting in-person, the first in two years J
ewish Family Service of Tidewater opened its 65th Biennial meeting on Tuesday, June 8 with an invocation by Rabbi Batya Glazer, United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Jewish Community Relations Council director. Following the invocation, Ellen Rosenblum, JFS board president, 20192021, spoke of the challenges of her presidency due to the coronavirus pandemic. “When news of this life altering virus was beginning to affect our community, JFS immediately started working on ensuring the safety of our staff and clients. Our goal was to find new ways to continue providing the quality of care we had always offered,” she said. Throughout her opening remarks, Rosenblum stated that the agency did not just survive the pandemic, it thrived. “Thriving is defined by growing and learning as the result of an event,” she said. “Thriving was our only option so we could continue to meet the needs of our community”. During the past fiscal year, JFS provided services that supported more than 250 local Jewish individuals/families. In addition to its array of services to people throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia, thousands of people receive
services from JFS each year. Kelly Burroughs, Jewish Family Service CEO spoke about the financial challenges of the agency during the pandemic. “We normally have our annual Spring Into Healthy Living events, but they had to be canceled two years in a row,” she said. “These events account for nearly one half of the agency’s annual fundraising campaign.” The event is slated to take place this fall, with the topic of ‘Mental Health Matters.’ JFS is partnering with UJFT and other community organizers and synagogues to bring educational events and awareness of issues surrounding mental well-being to the Tidewater community. “As JFS explores new opportunities and looks to the future, we want to keep in mind Ellen’s words: ‘we want to thrive, not just survive.’ ” JFS received nearly $69,000 from the UJFT COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund, which was used to purchase food, help pay rent and utilities, support medical expenses, and other services to Jewish individuals affected by the pandemic, as well as to provide operational support to help set up a COVID-19 Assistance Line for anyone who needed help registering
Charlie Gross, Sam Levin, Megan Helman, Nate Simon (not pictured Ryan Dobrinsky, Elijah Muhlendorf, Caroline Wainger, Erin Wainger) were honored for generously designating their Bar/Bat Mitzvah projects in support of JFS. Debbie Mayer presented the awards.
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for the vaccination. “Despite all the challenges of 2020,” said Burroughs, “JFS is entering into the next fiscal year completely debt free,” which is the first time in many years. After these opening remarks, Debbie Mayer and Jody Laibstain recognized young people for their generosity Rabbi Batya Glazer delivers the D’Var Torah at the beginning and tzedakah on the of the 65th Biennial meeting. occasion of their Bar and Bat Mitzvahs: of their Bar or Bat Mitzvahs. JFS has Ryan Dobrinsky, Charlie Gross, Megan received more than $5,000.00 from Bar/ Helman, Sam Levin, Elijah Muhlendorf, Bat Mitzvah guests, in these teens’ honor. Nate Simon, Caroline Wainger and Erin All of these projects helped support local Wainger. Mayer, JFS’s clinical director, Jewish individuals. described the Mitzvah projects: leading “These eight young people helped JFS community food drives, stocking the serve over 400 different local families in shelves of food pantries, making gift need,” said Mayer. “The Pandemic made bags for the holidays, and supporting the need for food, financial help, houseself-care by collecting personal care items hold supplies, clothing, books, school for girls. In addition, some of the young supplies, toiletries, and holiday gifts even people requested that donations be made more pressing… Being able to rely upon to JFS rather than gifts on the occasion these projects made a real difference!”
Members of the 2021–2023 JFS executive committee: Jeff Cooper (former immediate past president), Scott Flax (vice president), Anne Kramer (president), Kelly Burroughs (JFS’ CEO), Stephanie Peck (vice president), and Jody Greason (secretary).
