News & Impact

San Francisco’s Lisa Geduldig has earned a rightful place in the pantheon of Jewish comics whose gut-busting humor helps us forget our cares and sorrows. But Geduldig, whose Kung Pao Kosher Comedy has been delighting audiences during the holiday season for 20-plus years, also wins applause for being a mensch. As in years past, a part of the proceeds from her Kung Pao shows will go to help people in need. This year, JFCS’ Nutrition Programs are a beneficiary. “Food is among the most basic of human needs,” says Geduldig. “I like supporting JFCS’ programs because they address human needs… Read More

A rising star in the high-tech world, Greg had a dream job that allowed him to provide a comfortable life for his family: Jewish day schools, summer camp, trips to Israel and Europe, and leadership roles in his synagogue. But all of that changed late last year, right around Hanukkah, when he had a cerebral hemorrhage at work. It was the last time he’d see his office … and experience the world as he knew it. “Our world collapsed,” says Leora, Greg’s wife. “I remember thinking, ‘Who will help us now?’ Then I answered my own question: JFCS.” Leora knew… Read More

Forty-four-year-old Ben has not had an easy year. Only three weeks after sitting shiva for his wife, Susan, who succumbed to aggressive metastatic breast cancer last December, he was told by his employer that his company was relocating to Texas—without him. “I was dealing with unspeakable grief, trying to take care of my son, and barely holding it together,” recounts Ben, who had worked as a mid-level sales manager for a high-tech firm. “On top of that, my 77-year-old dad, also a widower, had recently had heart surgery and needed help. If my rabbi hadn’t recommended JFCS, I don’t know… Read More

Ayala Feder-Haugabook, an incoming senior at the Jewish Community High School of the Bay, has had a busy summer. While gearing up for an August trip to Israel, where her brother is in the army, she also participated in a first-in-a-lifetime experience: a paying summer internship. Ayala was one of approximately 60 teens throughout San Francisco, Marin County, and the Peninsula who were selected to be part of JFCS’ Summer Internship Program, which provides valuable work experience—both at JFCS and at various organizations and businesses in the Bay Area. In addition to working in various offices and acquiring on-the-job… Read More

Each summer, JFCS’ YouthFirst program provides paid internships to Bay Area high school students seeking valuable work experiences. This summer, we have welcomed approximately 60 outstanding young people to the program. They are gaining important skills at various departments throughout the agency, as well at many local businesses and organizations pleased to work with us to help our young people hone their vocational abilities. We’re pleased to introduce one of them to you here. Stay tuned for more profiles! Domenic M, incoming sophomore, Archbishop Riordan High School, San Francisco Where are you working this summer? In JFCS’ Seniors At Home’s… Read More

JFCS is proud of our Loans and Grants Program graduates. Here are updates on two of our many successful alumni: Andrea Bouch-Dimondstein What do you do? Andrea Bouch-Dimondstein I’m a senior account manager at Fluxx, a San Francisco-based company that provides customized software to grant makers. I work closely with large and small foundations. Before that, I worked at Google, and I was a Kiva Fellow in Guatemala. Kiva is an international nonprofit whose Fellows oversee improvement projects worldwide through microfinancing institutions. Where did you go to college? I received my bachelor’s degree from the University of California, San Diego.… Read More