(Courtesy of JFSCNJ) Jewish Family Service of Central New Jersey (JFSCNJ) is proud to announce it was selected to receive a grant from the Jewish Federations of North America through their recently launched Center for Advancing Holocaust Survivor Care. When combined with matching funds from the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest NJ, this award will enable $293,333.33 in new programming for survivors in the Central NJ area.

The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) launched the Center for Advancing Holocaust Survivor Care in the fall of 2015, following an award from the United States Department of Health and Human Services for up to $12 million over five years to advance innovations in person-centered, trauma-informed (PCTI) services for Holocaust survivors in the United States. PCTI care is a holistic approach to service provision that promotes the dignity, strength and empowerment of trauma victims by incorporating knowledge about the role of trauma in victims’ lives into agency programs, policies and procedures.

“It is critical that we deliver these lifesaving and life-enhancing services to Holocaust survivors. The past two years of this federal grant program have shown the deep impact that person-centered, trauma-informed services can have on Holocaust survivors. We are grateful to partner with the government to augment this work,” said Mark Wilf, chair of JFNA’s National Holocaust Survivor Initiative.

Through a series of innovative programs and in-home services for survivors, JFSCNJ will actively work to reduce social isolation. The caregivers will benefit from a combination of practical seminars and innovative stress-relieving workshops such as art and yoga therapy, cooking demonstrations, lectures and in-home support.

Of the more than 100,000 Holocaust survivors in the United States, nearly one quarter are aged 85 or older, and one in four lives in poverty. Many live alone and are at risk for social isolation, depression and other physical and mental health conditions stemming from periods of starvation, disease and torture.

“JFSCNJ provides so many services for the people in need in our community. There is no greater task than helping our elderly survivors who are in need. As a second generation board member, and the child of survivors, I am very proud to be associated with an agency that does so much good work,” said Michael Gottlieb, past JFSCNJ president and current board member.

“As a child of survivors who were able to come to America and be successful I feel it is our obligation to help those who survived but continue to struggle on a day-to-day basis,” said Eric Harvitt, board member of JFSCNJ and vice president of the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest.

The Center for Advancing Holocaust Survivor Care promotes these innovative service-delivery models together with the expertise of partner organizations including the Association of Jewish Family & Children’s Agencies and the Claims Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany. The grant money is a combination of federal dollars and philanthropic dollars raised by Jewish Federations as part of JFNA’s National Holocaust Survivor Initiative, which seeks to raise $45 million to support the survivor community.

Please contact Alyssa Reiner, LSW, at [email protected] or 908-352-8375 if you are a survivor, caregiver of a Holocaust survivor, or know of anyone who would benefit from services through Jewish Family Service of Central NJ.