Brownstein Jewish Family Service

Brownstein Jewish Family Service provides individuals and families with quality information and referrals of community-based services to enhance their independence and emotional and physical wellbeing.

Winter Spring Events 2012

Call 203-267-3177 x 310 for free information, referrals & to RSVP for programs!

JFS Chaplain Visits
If you or someone you care for is ill, call Rabbi Dovid Stein, our JFS Chaplain, at 203-465-9064.

Alzheimer's Support Group
Thursdays, Jan. 12, Feb. 9, March 8 & April 12 at 10:30 a.m.
This open, friendly and on-going group is led by Heather Hitchcock, Northwest Regional Director of the Alzheimer's Association of Connecticut.

Bereavement Group for Adults
Thursdays, Jan. 5 – Feb. 16 from 3:30 – 4:45 p.m. with Jenny Casey, MSW, Regional Hospice
Thursdays, Feb. 23 – March 29 from 3:30 – 4:45 p.m.
This short term professionally facilitated bereavement support group is for adults who have experienced a loss. The goal of this group is supportive in nature, providing a safe environment for sharing with others who have also been touched by loss.

Red Cross Blood Drive
Monday, Jan. 23 from 1:30 – 6:15 p.m.
Call 1-800-733-2767 to donate

Free Social Service Screenings for SNAP (food stamps) & EarnBenefits Program
Thursdays, January 26, February 23, March 22 and April 26 from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Registration required
If you are living on a fixed income, out of work, uninsured or having a tough time putting food on the table, this screening is for you! Nera Clemente, Outreach Worker from the CT Association for Human Services, offers private screenings for 12 different work support/ basic needs programs, including SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly food stamps), energy assistance, HUSKY, Medicaid and Charter Oak insurance.

"Sugar Tips" Diabetes Education Class
Thursdays, Feb. 2, 9, 16 and 23 at 11 a.m.
Facilitated by Sandra Micalizzi, APRN, CDE, the Heart Center of Greater Waterbury

Jewish Journey Through Grief
Tuesdays, Feb. 21, 28, March 6, 13, 20 & 27 and April 3 from 1:30 – 3 p.m.
With Bryna Pauker, LCSW, VITAS Innovative Hospice and Rabbi Dovid Stein, JFS Chaplain
Coping with the loss of a loved one has no set time frame. There are moments when we are managing as best we can in the new normalcy of life, and then there are moments when we continue to struggle. Holidays, life-cycle events and familiar locales may return us to memories which both fill us with joy and are bittersweet as well. This group offers an opportunity to reflect with others who can understand our struggles in a way that individuals who have not suffered the loss of a loved one cannot.

Debt Management and Avoiding Credit Card Catastrophies
CT Association for Human Services Staff-- Date and time TBA

Eating for a Healthier You
Tuesdays, April 2, 9, 16 and 23 from 2 – 4 p.m. with Paula Leibovitz, RD
If you want to lose weight, improve your eating habits, or have heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels or cancer, this program is for you. Learn ways to increase calcium and fiber and how to reduce your fat and sodium intake; how to shop wisely and plan healthful meals; how to choose healthful dining out options; and how to change recipes by substituting healthier ingredients

Stock the Pantry 2012
Please donate high protein foods like tuna, salmon, hearty soups and peanut butter to feed our neighbors in need! We will be collecting groceries for the next few months. Last year we donated over 500 lbs. of nutritious food to the CT Food Bank and local food banks.

Mobile Food Pantry
The third Friday of each month at 1 p.m. at the Southbury Senior Center, 561 Main St. South
The CT Food Bank truck delivers a variety of fresh produce for a free distribution to limited income households on the third Friday of each month at 1 p.m. No proof of income is needed. In case of snowy weather, call the Southbury Senior Center at 203-262-0651.

Walk Against Hunger: Join the Federation Feet Team!
Sunday, May 20 at 2 p.m. from Library Park, Waterbury
Last year our team of 36 walkers raised $2,936, coming in as the first place team! Please join our team as a walker or sponsor!

Yad Vashem Names Recovery Project
To volunteer or fill out Pages of Testimony for both Holocaust survivors and victims, call Don Garber at (203) 262-8606 or e-mail woken5230@mypacks.net with the subject heading "Names Volunteer".

Centerpieces for Tzedakah
Instead of flowers, celebrate your special occasion and decorate the bima and oneg tables with lovely, festive baskets rented from Brownstein Jewish Family Service. Your donation is 100% tax deductible and every penny donated provides grocery gift cards for people in need in our community! Call for more information and to see sample baskets.

For free information and referrals or to register for any of these programs,
call Debby Horowitz, Brownstein Jewish Family Service Director,
at 203-267-3177 x 310, or e-mail dhorowitz@jfed.net.
Updates and other programs are available on our website at www.jfed.net.

Love & Knishes Lunches
February & March 2012

Lunch is served on Wednesdays at 12 noon & programs start at 1 p.m.
RSVP to 203-267-3177 by the Monday before each lunch.

Feb. 1 - Larry and Doreen Ayce-Crasilli
Larry and Doreen have a beautiful love story of their own, and today's show features favorite ballads, country music, folk songs and popular hits about love.

Feb. 15 - Encore Entertainment with John Kuhner and Manny Lopes
Sax, flute, clarinet, piano and vocals will fill the room with Big Band and Dixieland music as well as tunes by Gershwin, Porter and others.

Feb. 22 - Pianist Jeremy Alston
Ethel Kaufman's drummer goes solo today, playing piano and singing old standards, some country music and hits from the '50's.

Feb. 29 - "The Glory of Love"
Jeanne Hinkson and Ercole Gaudioso present a collection of solos and duets made famous by Nat & Natalie Cole, Frank & Nancy Sinatra, Dean Martin & Peggy Lee, Tony Bennett & Diana Krall, Louis Prima & Keely Smith, Sammy Davis Jr. & Carmen Rae, Bette Midler, The Everly Brothers, and others.

March 14 - Music From the Heart
Pianist Ethel Kaufman is joined by trumpeter Bucky Milam and drummer Jeremy Alston in a program from the great American Songbook.

March 21 - Pierce Campbell's 10th Annual Irish/ Jewish Mishmash!
Our annual Irish/ Jewish Mishmash with this talented singer/ guitarist is always a blast! What could be better than Irish music and Jewish food? Pierce is a former CT State Troubadour, a member of the Kerry Boys and the Funky Butt Jazz Band, and has 5 CD's to his credit.

March 28 - Willie Nininger: Famous Duets
Singer/ guitarist Willie Nininger and Jan Scruggs perform famous duets of the 20th century by artists such as Sonny and Cher, Simon & Garfunkel, Johnny Cash & June Carter, The Everly Brothers, Ian & Sylvia, and Kenny Rogers & Dolly Parton.

Reservations: Lunch reservations should be made by Monday for that week's program.
Call Debby Horowitz, Brownstein Jewish Family Service Director, at 203-267-3177.
The suggested lunch donation is $7.50 for adults over 60 and $9.50 for those under 60.
Everyone is welcome to attend! Connecticut Magazine's # 1 Caterer for the past 11 years, Jordan Caterers of Cheshire, prepares our delicious kosher lunches here.
Programs are held at The Federation, Jewish Communities of Western CT, Inc., at 444 Main St. North in Southbury.

• The Love and Knishes Lunch Program served almost 1350 hot kosher meals at 31 lunches this past year, averaging 43 people per week.
• · Over 500 different people age 60 and better from many neighboring towns enjoyed the Love & Knishes lunch, entertainment and lectures.
• · The program provides a delicious and healthful meal, fellowship and a variety of informative, entertaining and insightful programs.
• · Blood pressure checks are offered monthly, and referrals to support groups and other programs are made when needed.

Help in Crisis

JFS fielded over 1,300 phone calls from people of all ages looking for help with every conceivable problem:

• financial and marital crises
• job loss
• bereavement
• caregiver support
• domestic violence
• cuts in welfare benefits,
• mental health issues

We get many calls from people who are “falling through the cracks” and:

• living on fixed incomes
• out of work
• in debt
• not poor enough to qualify for state or government programs

They are really struggling to pay for the basics, including food, housing, oil and gas.

In the past year, over $30,000 in aid was given to individuals and families in need. We strive to make a positive difference in the lives of the most vulnerable people in our community, and let them know that they have not been abandoned by the Jewish community.

Community Health

• We offered two flu clinics in Southbury.
• Our popular "Dialogue With the Docs" program featured two physicians from Yale's IBD Program.
• We offered free health education and support groups for hypertension, diabetes, stroke, heart disease and more.

Support and Caregiving Programs

• Our Holocaust Survivors and Second Generation Group, which serves almost 100 people, celebrated 11 years of programming.
• ·The Yad Vashem Names Recovery Project volunteers collected more than 120 names of Holocaust survivors and those who perished in the Shoah.
• ·Dozens of people in hospitals, nursing homes and assisted living facilities receive visits from our Brownstein Jewish Family Service Chaplain, Rabbi Dovid Stein, and they enjoyed receiving holiday cards and food packages as well. To arrange a visit, please call Rabbi Stein's cell at 203-465-9064 or call the Federation office at 203-267-3177 ext. 310.
• ·Scores of community members attend a monthly Alzheimer's support group.
• ·Our part-time Russian Resettlement Coordinator continues to assist and counsel dozens of the 200+ people we have helped to resettle over the past 25 years.
• ·Bereavement support includes four and six week grief workshops and "Surviving the Holidays Without Your Loved One".

Feeding the Hungry

• Our Centerpieces for Tzedakah baskets generate thousands of dollars to purchase grocery gift cards for people in need in our community.
• At Passover, holiday food packages and dozens of grocery gift cards were distributed to over 100 individuals and families in our community.
• Over 36 people of all ages walked with the Federation Feet Team in the annual Walk Against Hunger in Waterbury, raising almost $3,000 for area food pantries and soup kitchens. Others helped contribute 500+ pounds of food for United Way's Stock the Pantry spring food drive.
• Our Community Resources Expo helped 40 people fill out applications, many of them for food stamps, and learn about programs to help them during these tough economic times.

Centerpieces for Tzedakah
Celebrate your special occasion with lovely, festive centerpieces rented from Brownstein Jewish Family Service. You'll help provide food gift certificates for people in need in our community and you'll get a 100% tax deduction too! Call for info and to see samples. Our Centerpieces for Tzedakah baskets generate thousands of dollars to purchase grocery gift cards for people in need in our community.