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Featured Article

Passover: A Time to Share, a Time to Care

by Jerry Starr, LCSW, Executive Director

As we prepare to celebrate Passover later this month and our thoughts are preoccupied with the family traditions and holiday rituals we have grown up with and feel comforted by, our tradition also tells us to look beyond ourselves and help those in need. “Help all who are hungry, eat; all who are in distress, celebrate”, taken from the Passover Haggadah, says it all. This simple line expresses one of the values the founders of JFS believed in when they developed the mission statement of the agency, “to preserve and strengthen the quality of individual, family and community life based on Jewish values”. This year as JFS celebrates 30 years of providing services to the community including mental health counseling, older adult services, career counseling, emergency food assistance, resettlement assistance and other support services we know there are those in our community in extreme need.

A week doesn’t go by that we don’t get a call or hear about someone in the community who needs immediate assistance. More and more as the economy remains stagnant, the help being requested is for esstentials; food, rent assistance or utility payment assistance, and much more. While we have had an emergency food assistance program for many years the demands on this program are growing and we are receiving other requests beyond food that require an immediate response. We often coordinate our efforts and reach out to the county social service system and other non profit agencies in our area to meet some of these needs but it is also important that JFS be able to provide emergency assistance directly to those utilizing our services. Many of the individuals and families we are working with and providing counseling, mentoring or career assistance to are also in need of concrete assistance to help them stabilize their lives and keep them on a path of independence and self sufficiency.

Toward this end JFS has already partnered with NJ Shares a non profit organization that assists low income and middle income families with overdue utility bills. If you are someone with this need please visit the NJ Shares website, www.njshares.org or call JFS directly to see if you qualify for this valuable program. It is also imperative that we be able to meet the growing need for other financial assistance and we are asking the community to help us expand our ability to provide more than food when someone is in financial distress. At this important time of year when we gather family around and can appreciate all we have, please give thought to those in our midst less fortunate and needing a caring hand. Please donate to the JFS Emergency Assistance Fund. 100% of the funds raised will go directly to assist someone in our community in acute need of financial relief.

JFS of Somerset, Hunterdon and Warren Counties is committed to serving the needs of the community and provides a continuum of programs and services. Licensed clinical social workers provide individual, couple and family counseling as well as geriatric assessments, supportive counseling and case management services for home bound elderly. The Family Mentor Program recruits, trains and matches volunteers with vulnerable young families or with elderly persons for friendly, supportive, in-home visits; Families with children with special needs are assisted through parent groups and through the Family Mentor Program. Career Counseling helps individuals in many aspects of their job search. Ohr Tikvah-Light of Hope Jewish Healing Services offers presentations, support groups, and individual spiritual counseling to address the health, wellness and healing needs of the community. All information is confidential. Many programs are at no cost, on a sliding fee scale or payable through third party insurance. If you are interested in learning more about JFS programs, please contact us at (908)725-7799. Jewish Family Service of SHW, Inc. 150-A West High Street, Somerville, NJ 08876.

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