JFS Blog

We are pleased to share the fall 2023 edition of Compassion in Action: Your Community Impact Report. You’ll find the following content:Message about our Mental Health Response to Crisis in IsraelFive Ways to Help Feed Our Community Thank You for Supporting the Back-to-School Drive!Donor Spotlight: James Goldman, Money CoachStaff Spotlight: Alicia Walker, Client Support SpecialistLeaving a Legacy for Today and for Generations to Come  Many of us have personal connections to family, friends, and others in Israel, and we are navigating this difficult time as best we can. Jewish Family Service’s mental health team is here for you, and we are proud to offer our expertise with the support of the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford and the Jewish Community Foundation of [...]

JFS has been here for the community for over a hundred years, and now we have increased capacity to help even more people. […]

#MyStoryIsNow - This Yom HaShoah, Let Us Focus on The Real Lives of Survivors NOW “We currently serve over 200 survivors in the state and the majority are living below the poverty line. After the horrors they endured during the Shoah, we owe it to them to do everything we can to help them live out their remaining years with dignity.”  The modern dialogue about Holocaust survivors involves asking them about their experiences in the war. “Never again,” we say.  It is to preserve their memory and their experience to ensure that such an atrocity does not ever transpire under our watch. “Never again,” we say.  But how often do we stop and think about [...]

Jewish Family Services Offers Free Financial Counseling to All in Tough Economy 2020 was a hard year financially for many in the Greater Hartford region when the coronavirus pandemic gripped the world, and sadly 2021 seems to be more of the same.  The continuing economic impact of the pandemic has left many in our community questioning their financial futures.  With multiple rounds of stimulus checks, inconsistent disbursement of unemployment benefits, and a fluctuating stock market, wading through one’s own individual finances can seem daunting.  Jim Goldman, Money Coach at Jewish Family Services of Greater Hartford (JFS), is here to help. Goldman is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) with over 32 years of experience in the [...]

National Matching Initiative exponentially multiplies Emergency Services reaching Holocaust Survivors in 30 US cities and growing As the pandemic approaches its year mark, Holocaust Survivors across the United States continue to face new and renewed daily struggles. COVID-19 has only further exacerbated and enhanced the challenges that this vulnerable population faces. Health and safety protocols have heightened social isolation for Survivors. Holocaust Survivors living in poverty have been forced to choose between heat or food, medicine or rent. Many have lived in dire conditions because they did not have the funds needed to repair their homes. Over the past year, Survivors have been forced to reckon with new, difficult questions: How will I get food [...]