- Meet Our Leaders
Jan Maisel, MD, PHD, JFCS Board of Directors
A trained scientist and a gifted pediatrician, Dr. Jan Maisel has contributed to the development and creation of children’s programs at JFCS for nearly two decades. Jan’s clinical eye was instrumental in the creation of the Center for Special Needs for children, among others. Jan has also participated and chaired numerous committees. She and her husband established a Named Endowment Fund in honor of their son’s graduation from high school and are a part of JFCS’ Carob Tree Society. Jan believes her work with JFCS gives her an opportunity to give back to others saying, “I deeply believe in tikkun olam and that you help when you can.”
How did you first get involved with JFCS?
I was a new member of a private pediatric practice in Marin and I was interested in learning what resources were available in the area. A dad of one of my patients was a clinical supervisor at JFCS and he directed me to the agency.
Initially, my son and I volunteered during the holidays—delivering gifts and food to seniors in need of companionship and holiday cheer. My family made some nice elder friends this way.
Soon after getting involved I was invited to join the JFCS Program Committee. I got a chance to learn about the many services JFCS offered first-hand, and was very impressed with the quality of the work. I saw the passion of JFCS’ clinicians and the empathy and rapport they fostered with their clients. I thought, “This is an agency that knows what it’s doing!”
Have you always been involved in the Jewish Community?
Yes, I grew up in the Detroit suburbs and both my parents were first generation Americans; we were observantly reform. My dad was poor as a child and was a self-made man. He organically believed in tikkun olam and, looking back, he was a role model for me in how I approach helping others.
Although I didn’t have a bat mitzvah until I was an adult, as a child my close friends and social community were all from my youth group at our temple. When I went on to pursue college and graduate school I always observed the holidays in some way.
Has JFCS helped you or have you used the services?
When my son was a sophomore in college on the East Coast he was quite seriously injured and needed surgery. My husband and I were very distraught and at the hospital when I got a call, by coincidence, from JFCS. The response was almost instantaneous… What do we need? How can JFCS help? It was recommended to us to get a consultation with a JFCS social worker and we did. It gave me some excellent insight as to how I was processing my feelings, and how I could take care of myself and my family. It was a tough time and the JFCS community supported me in multiple ways during his hospitalization and recovery.
Tell us about your family.
My husband, Doug Currens, and I live in Tiburon. We have a son, Ethan, who is 27 years-old and doing well. He is a materials engineer living in San Francisco.
What is the most rewarding part of your involvement with JFCS?
There are so many aspects that are personally rewarding. I enjoy helping people understand the breadth and depth of services JFCS offers, especially to the local medical community. I was recently able to connect a retiring social worker who was looking for a meaningful volunteer experience to JFCS’ palliative care volunteer program. It was a perfect fit.
It is rewarding to see JFCS programs that I helped develop—the Center for Special Needs for children and Summer Impact Camp for teens in Marin—as they grow and thrive.
I lost a branch of my family during the Holocaust and last year I traveled to Poland as a participant of the JFCS Holocaust Center Legacy Study Tour. It was an amazing trip and, with the support of the group, I connected with remnants of my maternal grandmother’s ancestral village—I’m very proud of how JFCS has kept the Holocaust Center going and has expanded its reach to thousands of teachers and students in Northern California.
How do you encourage others to become involved with JFCS?
I tell people that getting involved with JFCS is a chance to work with an agency that takes care of people from pre-birth to the end-of-life and does so with respect, passion, and with programs of fantastic quality.
As a pediatrician, it has been incredibly rewarding and an honor to be able to use my training to contribute to an agency that does such important work.