I just received this update from Shelly Hahne, our Hand Up Youth Food Pantry Coordinator:

Yesterday an elephant came to the food pantry. Well, not literally an elephant, but the weight equivalent of an elephant. More than 5 tons (10,000 pounds) of food were donated from 9 area synagogues after the High Holy Days–that’s enough weight to equal an elephant, or two hippos! Today we had even more food come in. Our shelves are overflowing–such a great thing during this time of need! The food will be distributed by our Hand Up Youth Food Pantry at 12 locations throughout the County, including Camp Pendleton and Murphy Canyon Military Housing.

Our food pantry serves more than 1,300 hungry people and distributes more than 13,000 pounds of food and hygiene products each month. We’re always in need of people to help out by donating money, hosting food drives, and volunteering in the pantry and at distributions. Especially this week–we need volunteers to help organize the food that came in from the High Holy Days. If you want to get involved email handup@jfssd.org or call 858-637-3088. Help us move that elephant and get food to people in need!

This just in from Brenda Bothel, Director of Older Adult Transportation:

When Bette W. signed up for a ride to High Holy Day services at Temple Adat Shalom with On the Go, she never anticipated we’d be writing a blog entry about her. But Bette W. has a very distinct honor–she’s the 1,000th rider to enroll in the program since On the Go started last September! This program has grown much more quickly than we had projected. Our goal was to have 675 enrolled riders at the end of the first year. We never anticipated 1,000! This growth shows the obvious need for transportation services in the Jewish community. On the Go provides life enhancing rides to older adults, designed specifically with their needs in mind. The program provides shuttles to and from Older Adult Centers and shopping destinations; Group excursions to exciting destinations such as museums and performances; and individuals rides to medical appointments and synagogue services through Rides & Smiles®. Bette W. now has access to an entire menu of transportation services, a fleet of vehicles, and hundreds of valuable volunteer drivers—all because of one call to receive rides for High Holy Day services. Visit our website for a current schedule of On the Go Shuttles and Excursions and a Rider Enrollment Application.

Me with Hanna and Mark Gleiberman

We had an amazing event last night for our Friends of the Family, our major donors. It was at the beautiful home of Hanna and Mark Gleiberman. An overflow crowd. I had the privilege of thanking everyone for their support and what it has meant to our clients, particularly during this past year, with the economy in such bad shape. I don’t think people understood how it has impacted the Jewish community—hundreds of people losing their jobs, being foreclosed on, facing bankruptcy, not to mention the emotional distress. People in need are coming to JFS all the time and thankfully, we can respond with real help—concrete services and support. Read the letter below to see how we’ve helped one of our clients.

Dear JFS,

I can’t begin to tell you how grateful I am to have you standing behind me during this trying time in my life. When I first came to you it was for a Big Pal for my daughter. I was fresh out of a divorce and my daughter felt lonely and confused. It has been almost two years and the bond between my daughter and her big pal is one of the most beautiful relationships I have ever seen. Thank you.

Shortly after, a close family member was diagnosed with cancer. It seemed that all my free time was spent helping my family. I spent money on gas, groceries, and prescriptions—more dollars than what I had. Jewish Family Service took care of me in some way or another, whether it was a gift card for food, backpacks, or gas. There was even a day when I didn’t have enough money to get to JFS to pick up groceries you had for me, and someone drove them to my house and put them all in my fridge for me while I was at work. What a surprise that was when we came home.  When my daughter told me she wanted to attend the JCC Theater Camp, I knew it was not possible with our budget. With no family here that is able to help me, I turned again to JFS and the Supporting Jewish Single Parents program. With your help, my daughter was able to go all summer long and connect with other Jewish children—she now has more self-esteem and dignity than I have ever seen.

And then, my own illness. This past year has been a struggle with my own fight against cancer, and the loss of work. Between the loss of work, feeling terrible physically, and being a struggling single parent with little money to spare, I again leaned on JFS. Supporting Jewish Single Parents again made sure my daughter made it to camp for her second year in a row, and this time she walked away with more than self-esteem, she walked away with the desire to learn more about being Jewish. With the help from the JFS I now have her enrolled this year in Hebrew School! I have managed to continue to work FULL TIME through all of these difficult times, continue my education and raise my daughter the best that I can. I know in my heart I am doing the best I can, and I am very lucky and grateful to have your support.

Thank you for everything you have done for my family.

Sincerely,

Anonymous

So the recession is over. At least that’s what the experts announced yesterday. Apparently they haven’t been by our office lately or else they’d see the fallacy of that statement. We’re still seeing more and more folks who have been battered by the economy. I just stopped by our Food Pantry and we have more requests than ever for food from families and individuals who have never come to us before. And it’s not just food, many need financial assistance with rent and utility bills. While the financial markets may be on the road to recovery, I’d say we have a long way to go before we can hang out the banner at JFS.

I’m proud of how we’ve met the increased demand. I invite you to view our newly released Annual Report for 2008-9 (click here to view) that documents the year past and the unprecedented number of clients we’ve helped.