On Friday, May 10, Five individuals living with disabilities and their employers will be honored at the 18th Annual JFCS Dubrow Vocational Celebration Breakfast. Each of these individuals has demonstrated excellence over the past year as part of the JFCS Supported Employment Program. Thanks to customized training and follow-along support, these employees have thrived in [...]
Author Archives: Rachael Ovitz
Meet Sherri Jonas, Director of Volunteers! How long have you been working at JFCS? It will be seven years in August. Tell us about your role. I recruit, place, and train volunteers for all JFCS agency opportunities. The Volunteer department is also responsible for matching clients’ needs to volunteer services such as Friendly Visitors, Personal [...]
By Cheryl Herzfeld, MCMHC, LPC, BCC Many people have heard of “coaching,” but what exactly is it, and how does “life coaching” differ from counseling or therapy? One formal definition of “coaching” is “a human development process that involves structured, focused interaction and the use of appropriate strategies, tools and techniques to promote desirable and [...]
Just saying the word “dementia” can create a feeling of fear, rejection, or worse. But if we live long enough, most of us will experience mild cognitive impairment or some type of dementia. Dementia is the general name for a decline in cognitive abilities that impacts a person’s ability to perform everyday activities. The word [...]
Meet Judy Nadell! What inspired you to contribute to JFCS? Over the years, I've been involved in several Jewish Federation outreach initiatives. One that always speaks to my heart is JFCS’s call for food donations. Sometime last summer, the request included items like soap, shampoo, and toilet paper along with the usual food staples. Pained that [...]
Jewish Family & Children’s Service (JFCS) of Southern New Jersey has announced the winners of its third annual Esther Award for Excellence: Carly Schaffer and Emily Witmier. Established in 2022, this award is presented each year around the holiday of Purim, which celebrates the survival of the Jews of Persia from the evil Haman thanks [...]
The JFCS Disability Services Committee will hold its next Disability Workshop on Thursday, March 14 at 7:00pm in the Katz JCC (Room 206). Guest presenter Kristen Russell will explore various techniques and tools to help individuals with disabilities find success at home, school, and work. Kristen Russell, OTR, ATP is an occupational therapist and a [...]
Meet Stephanie Fendrick! Tell us about yourself. This community has been my home for most of my life. While I moved away for about 15 years, I was raised here, met my husband Jeff here, and moved back here to raise our 3 children – Leah (28), Molly (26) and Isaac (23). My commitment to [...]
Jewish Family & Children’s Service (JFCS) will hold its annual fundraiser, Stepping Out with JFCS, Thursday, April 11, starting at 6:30pm at Congregation Beth El. This year’s theme, Here We Grow: Celebrating our Past, Present, and Future, is an ideal platform to highlight the positive impact of JFCS on our South Jersey community to hundreds [...]
Meet Oriel Weinberg, Director of Disability Services! How long have you been working at JFCS? It will be two years this May. Tell us about your role. I assist our incredible Disability Services team with developing and maintaining the high standard of programming that we are well known for throughout Southern New Jersey. Our department [...]










