News & Impact

Gerson Bakar z’l, a Beloved Visionary, Remembered You might not know of Gerson Bakar z’l by name but you have almost certainly seen his work in San Francisco. Levi’s Plaza, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the UCSF Mission Bay campus—these are just a few of the iconic San Francisco institutions that Gerson helped bring to life. Gerson, who passed away last June, supported many charitable projects yet it was giving back to his Jewish Community that brought him the most satisfaction, saying, “Asking me why the ‘Jewish Community’ is important to me is like asking me why the… Read More

Dear Friend, Julie’s mom came home from waiting tables one evening and found her daughter unconscious. Lying next to her was an empty bottle of sleeping pills. Amazingly, Julie’s life was saved at the emergency room, but it was a very close call. Her cry for help needs to be addressed with ongoing care. Julie isn’t alone in her worries. Reports of major depression have increased by 37 percent nationwide. Experts blame everything from academic pressure to online bullying—and now, sadly, the very real fear of gun violence—as the reasons so many young people seriously contemplate suicide or resort to… Read More

During the storms of adolescence it’s a tricky balance for parents to know when to offer support and when to let go. We all want our young adults to be prepared for life, and not be stifled by a “failure to launch” into adulthood. So what’s the best way to foster independence and responsibility? And how is JFCS’ Parents Place Child and Family Clinical program and Parent Coaching program helping families get set up for success? We recently sat down with Havi Wolfson Hall, LCSW, child and adolescent therapist at JFCS’ Parents Place in Palo Alto, to find out. What… 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

J Weekly By Karen Galatz The generation of Holocaust survivors may be passing, but thanks to a just-launched initiative in San Francisco, their testimonies will live on through their children and grandchildren. Called the Next Generation Speakers Bureau, the initiative is the brainchild of Morgan Blum Schneider, director of Jewish Family and Children Services’ Holocaust Center. The bureau is designed to address the challenge of Holocaust education when the last of the survivors are gone. “We want to ensure that the Holocaust remains a story of faces, not just a history of numbers,” said Alexis Herr, the Holocaust Center’s new… Read More