East Orange—Jewish Vocational Service of MetroWest NJ (JVS) recently made three strategic appointments to its board of trustees to further fulfill the organization’s mission of “helping people help themselves.” These new appointees bring a combination of business management, financial expertise and communication skills to JVS. They are Mr. Jeffrey Altschuler, president and CEO of Allied Beverage Group; Mr. Ira Robbins, CPA, senior vice president and treasurer of Valley National Bank; and Ms. Caren Ford, former interim assistant executive director for JVS.
“We’ve selected Jeffrey, Ira and Caren to help JVS strengthen the life-enhancing services that it provides,” said Addy Bonet, CEO of JVS. “The organization will prosper with the help of this exceptional group and their expertise.”
Mr. Jeffrey Altschuler is the president and CEO of Allied Beverage Group, where he oversees nearly 900 employees in its New Jersey and Pennsylvania facilities. His exemplary leadership has named the company as New Jersey’s largest wine and spirits distributor, in addition to being one of the largest independent distributors in the U.S. Mr. Altschuler will bring his years of business judgment and management skills to JVS.
Aside from JVS, he is also actively involved with the World Presidents Organization and the National Wholesalers Association. He currently serves on the boards for both the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America and Cornell University’s School of Industrial Relations. In the past, he has been a part of the Christie and Corzine administrations. He has also done work for the Bayonne Hospital Foundation and the Mayor’s Task Force of Technology for his hometown in Summit, New Jersey.
Mr. Ira Robbins, CPA, is a senior executive vice president and treasurer of Valley National Bank. Throughout the years, he has led numerous teams that have driven effective results and delivered invaluable contributions to the bank’s growth. Mr. Robbins will now bring his strategic thinking and ambition to the board of JVS.
He is also a member of the New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants and the American Institute of Public Accountants.
Ms. Caren Ford has been involved with JVS for more than a quarter of a century. Over the course of her career, she has held the titles of volunteer coordinator, business English instructor, grant writer, corporate services coordinator and public relations and development manager at the organization. Last year, Ms. Ford retired as the agency’s interim assistant executive director.
Ms. Ford plays an active role in the Jewish community. She currently serves on the ABLE committee of the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest and is a member of Temple B’nai Abraham in her hometown of Livingston, New Jersey. She also co-founded the New Jersey Jewish Film Festival 17 years ago with her husband, Herb, which has become one of the premier Jewish cultural events in the state.
Founded in 1939, Jewish Vocational Service of MetroWest New Jersey is a nonprofit, community-based health and human service organization, delivering a wide array of personalized services on a nonsectarian basis to nearly 20,000 individuals each year. Visit jvsnj.org or call (973) 674-6330 for more information.
