Page 6 - The Jewish Voice - April '20
P. 6

Page 6, The Jewish Voice

                                                    LocaL happenings



      Alpert JFS Marks 25                               Divas Perform at                                   pop numbers. Dr. Steven Horowitz, president of Temple

      Years Providing Services to                       Emanu-El Gala                                      Emanu-El of Palm Beach, said, “We are honored to share
                                                                                                           this evening with our members and bring the music of our
      Survivors                                            Divas on the Bima recently appeared at Temple Emanu-  temple to the community at large.”
                                                        El of Palm Beach’s annual gala concert. Underwritten by
         A quarter-century ago, with a grant of approximately   Palm Beach resident and philanthropist Gilda Block, the
      $1 million awarded in Palm Beach County, Ferd & Gladys   concert was attended by close to 500 people. The Divas
      Alpert Jewish Family Service (Alpert JFS), as lead agency,   are four of the top cantors in the Jewish Conservative
      and Jewish Family Service organizations in Boca Raton,   movement.  The artists, Jen Cohen, Magda Fishman,
      Broward, and Dade counties began to seek out Holocaust   Alisa Pomerantz-Boro, and Elizabeth Shammash,
      survivors to address their distinctive social welfare, health   represent current and future leadership in the cantorate
      care, and emotional needs. To this end, a small article in a   and in the Cantors Assembly. The Assembly is the largest
      Sunday edition of The Miami Herald announced the grant   organization of professional hazzanim, and Hazzan Alisa
      award and, by Wednesday more than 300 phone calls had   Pomerantz-Boro is its current president. The musical
      been received, with Eva Weiss, Alpert JFS Holocaust Care   program had a wide variety of styles. The Divas performed
      Manager starting to develop relations that would last for   in various combinations, singing Israeli, Broadway, and
      lifetimes.











































         Today, the Alpert JFS Holocaust Survivors Assistance
      program grant has been extended to $6.1 million from The                                             Local Happenings on page 7
      Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany,
      and the program has a team of seven committed members,
      diligently working to assist survivors to help them live
      independently at home for as long as possible, affording
      them much-deserved dignity. Approximately 300 clients
      are served annually, provided with assistance navigating
      the reparations benefit process, case management and care
      coordination, counseling and support groups, companionship
      and transportation, and respite care.
         Eat  &  Schmooze,  an  engaging  and  entertaining
      socialization program held twice a month, draws an average
      of 50 attendees to each event, while Alpert JFS’ annual Café
      Europa, modeled on the informal get-togethers that arose in
      Europe during the post-World War II era, typically has more
      than 200 attendees, including survivors, staff, and volunteers.
      The agency has added a quarterly Russian-centric event to its
      calendar, as an increasing number of Russians living under
      Stalin have been identified.
         At a recent gathering of Russian survivors at Alpert JFS,
      more than 35 people enjoyed the harmonization of caregivers
      from Amicable Home Health Care, a member of the group
      spoke with the support of his peers, and attendees enjoyed
      snacks and soft drinks. The event honored Lucy Gorbatova,
      the owner and president of Amicable Home Health Care,
      and her staff with a Certificate of Recognition for their
      volunteerism. The social programs are met with high praise
      from those it serves.
         As a client wrote Weiss, “All the people were delighted to
      meet together and salute you and your colleagues who work
      so hard to please us and are there for us whenever we need
      to open up to you. Thank you very much from my heart; I do
      appreciate your kindness, your smiles, your friendship, and
      assistance,” said Fanny S. “The meetings are such a good
      idea for all of us!”
         Additionally, an educational component of the program
      allows survivors to share their story to schoolchildren
      at the elementary, middle, and high school levels, and
      the  HonoringLife  program  facilitated  by Alpert  JFS
      provides cultural competency training for those whose
      professions touch the lives of survivors: health care and legal
      professionals, for example.
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