News & Impact

By Brittney Reiser, AMFT, Child Therapist at JFCS’ Center for Children and Youth Receiving a positive COVID-19 test in your family or community can be frightening for adults and children alike. Young children, who may not fully understand what this diagnosis will mean for them or their loved one, might ask questions like “Am I going to die?” or “When can I see grandma?” These questions may be painful to hear and difficult to answer. Parents and grandparents are likely managing their own anxiety, confusion, and uncertainty that comes along with a COVID diagnosis as well. Here are 5 strategies… Read More

A woman in California, whose mother died from COVID-19 in New York, is struggling with the pain of never getting to say goodbye. A man in his 80’s, whose wife is alone in the ICU, now must quarantine from the rest of his family. An emergency room doctor, who has young children at home, is torn every day between caring for her patients and putting her family at risk. These are just three of the many calls that JFCS has answered since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Millions of people have lost a loved one, and those who haven’t… Read More

Written by Beth Berkowitz, Psy.D, Director of Children’s Clinical Services and Child Training Institute at JFCS’ Parents Place. There is no doubt that the most recent tragedy in Pennsylvania has escalated our fears. With this sad reminder of the painful consequences of anti-Semitism, racism, and hatred, it is normal for all of us—including children—to experience anxiety, worry, anger and confusion in its aftermath. Below is some guidance to help prepare you for conversations at home. Talk to Your Children Avoiding the subject will only increase worry and fears. Encourage your children to ask questions, and do your best to… Read More

Dear JFCS community, We are all full of sorrow in the wake of the terrible loss of life and hateful act of anti-Semitism at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. We send prayers for strength and healing to those who are suffering, and we are grateful for the expressions of support echoing across the country and the world at this difficult time. At this time we remember the words of President George Washington, who wrote to one of the first US synagogues—the Hebrew Congregation of Newport, Rhode Island—in 1790:  “May the Children of the Stock of Abraham, who dwell… Read More

KQED’ Forum with Michael Krasny Death and saying goodbye—they are among life’s most mysterious and challenging phenomena. The theatrical production “End of Life” opens a dialogue about these experiences via staged readings of two Greek tragedies written by Sophocles. Artistic director Bryan Doerries joins Forum, along with award-winning actor David Strathairn and a palliative care expert, to discuss the show and making peace with mortality. Guests: David Strathairn, actor Bryan Doerries, artistic director, Theater of War Redwing Keyssar, palliative care director, Jewish Family and Children’s Services; author, “Last Acts of Kindness: Lessons for the Living from the Bedsides of the… Read More

J Weekly By Laura Paull As Sophocles surely knew, people often are able to absorb tragedy much more easily on a stage than in their own lives. That’s the principle behind an upcoming performance at the Castro Theatre, where a New York-based theater collective will guide audiences to reflect on the ultimate drama we tend to avoid. After staged readings of scenes from two plays by the ancient Greek playwright, the ensemble will ask: Is death necessarily a tragedy? “I see it, rather, as a transition,” says Judith Redwing Keyssar, palliative care director at Jewish Family and Children’s Services, sponsor… Read More