- Meet Our Leaders
For over 25 years Dick Segal has played an important role in making sure JFCS’ financial future remains bright. He served on the JFCS Board of Directors until June 2018 and has held roles as the JFCS Board Treasurer, the Chair of JFCS’ Finance Committee, and a member of the Investment Subcommittee. By day Dick is a Senior Vice President at a global investment company, where he specializes in consulting for individuals and small businesses. Dick and his wife, Dorothy, have a long relationship and enduring commitment to JFCS and he says, “I’m honored to be a part of something so extraordinary.”
Dorothy and Richard Segal
Tell us a bit about the community where you grew up and your background.
I grew up in Worcester, Massachusetts, which had a large and vibrant community of newly arrived immigrants. My grandparents, who had arrived via New York in the early 1900s, settled in the Jewish immigrant section of town. After moving to a newer section of Worcester, my grandfather founded a conservative synagogue. But I remember with great fondness the sounds of Yiddish and the smell of fresh pickles and corned beef in the shops of the old neighborhood. My father and his siblings all went to college and were eager to embrace American culture. Our family belonged to a reform temple where I attended Hebrew School and was active in youth groups throughout my school years. This cycle was fairly typical of many of my childhood friends.
How did you first get involved with JFCS?
When I moved to San Francisco in the 80s I was looking for a way to get involved with a philanthropic organization. I wanted one which had a local focus that could make an impact close to home. A friend, who was a board member at that time, encouraged me to check out JFCS. I then learned about the important and groundbreaking work JFCS was doing.
I volunteered for the committee of JFCS’ first social enterprise program called Utility Workshop. The workshop was a modest hand-assembly and fulfillment factory where newly arrived refugees could earn a modest wage while looking for more permanent employment. It also was a place where less skilled immigrants, who might not have been able to find other work, were able to contribute to a viable business endeavor. The workshop was a predecessor to today’s successful social enterprise program, Cleanerific.
What motivated you to join the Board?
Once you get involved with JFCS you can never leave—I’m joking, of course, you never want to leave. This is actually my second term of office. I was on the Board of Directors in the 80s, when JFCS was much smaller, but have always been involved on various finance-related committees. When I was asked again to join the Board in 2012, I was happy to say yes.
Has JFCS helped you or have you used the services in some way?
Yes, we turned to JFCS’ Seniors At Home for advice about caring for my elderly uncle and Dorothy’s mother, who were living outside California.
We live in a condo complex in San Francisco. The condo association has a contract with JFCS’ Cleanerific to clean the entire complex and we are very happy customers.
Tell us about your family.
Dorothy is a former government relations executive in the telecommunications industry. Now she is a figurative painter with a persistent interest in portraiture and mixed media. In 1990 she wanted to become involved with JFCS community work too. She volunteered to mentor a family of Russian emigres, who launched successfully into American life and have remained close friends.
After a tour of the JFCS Holocaust Center last summer, Dorothy was so moved by the educational outreach to teenagers that she volunteered to type translations of letters between U.S. and German relatives during the 1940s for the exhibition cases.
JFCS and Dorothy’s art came together in 2009 when Dr. Anita Friedman’s Uncle Solomon commissioned her to paint a dual portrait to celebrate our Executive Director’s 30th anniversary with JFCS.
What is the most rewarding part of your involvement with JFCS?
I never cease to be impressed with the talent of the people who work at JFCS and the commitment and generosity of our Board members. JFCS has a reputation for consistently delivering high-quality service across a broad spectrum of programs to clients throughout the life cycle. Over the last 30 years I have watched JFCS enhance and develop the range of services it can provide and mature into an organization vital to our community. As a finance guy, and donor, I appreciate the fact that JFCS spends most of every dollar on its clients. That’s possible because of the superb training, skill, and professionalism of its staff and leaders. JFCS’ hard-earned excellence will flourish in the years to come. For those reasons JFCS has been my principal philanthropic organization and will continue to be in the future.