Over 450 JFS Volunteers
Made A Difference!

JFS volunteers are of all ages and come from schools, synagogues, service organizations and the community at large. Over 450 children, teenagers, adults, seniors, and families, made a difference in the lives of thousands of people last year. Here is what they did:

For the community:

• 45 children made 280 High Holy Day greeting cards
• 20 Hebrew High School students baked over 200 honey cakes in cooking class
• 65 Knitzvah volunteers knitted or crocheted lap blankets given to 75 seniors as Hanukkah gifts
• 13 Chaplain Aides led Shabbat services on Fridays throughout the year in retirement and assisted living facilities
• 15 volunteers helped teach English or citizenship classes and skills to newly arrived refugees and émigrés
• 25 Girl Scouts of Santa Clara County sewed re-useable cloth bags used to deliver food to 75 seniors
• 65 young students made 280 bookmarks as gifts for Passover
• 50 volunteers collected dreidels and gelt for 280 Hanukkah packages
• 45 volunteers “adopted” more than 50 children for Hanukkah, giving gifts of clothing, toys, shoes, school supplies and more according to the child’s request
• 50 volunteers donated 75 toys collected through toy drives
• 40 students decorated Passover food boxes
• 100 volunteers packaged over 900 plates and/or bags for High Holy Days, Hanukkah and Passover
• 20 volunteers lifted the spirits of a senior through our Friendly Visitor program
• 15 students of a sewing club at Brett Harte Middle School made bags to attach to walkers for seniors.
• 25 students, parents and a rabbi conducted a Seder at a seniorfacility
• 60 families (including havurah members) decorated 3 senior facilities for Hanukkah and entertained the residents
• 50 Knitzvah members knitted and crocheted more than 100 baby blankets, hats, and sweaters for “Shalom Baby,” a Federation program welcoming Jewish babies in to the community
• 50 Knitzvah members knitted and crocheted more than 100 hats for preemies and donated them to the NICU at local hospitals

For JFS:

• 15 volunteers accepted positions of leadership as chairpersons for various programs.
• 25 energetic volunteers put in hundreds of hours planning our highly successful Small Plates, High Spirits and All That Jazz fundraising event
• 35 teens made flyers and stuffed envelopes at the JFS office
• 15 newly arrived refugees and émigrés assisted in mailing our agency newsletters
• 10 teens helped set-up and clear dishes at our gala fund-raising event

You can join us, too!

Call Vlada Gelfond, Volunteer Coordinator,
(408) 357-7456 or email
vladag@jfssv.org