JFCS Brings Help, Hope & Healing to Hightstown & East Windsor Communities

September 26, 2018 (Hightstown, NJ) – Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Greater Mercer County (JFCS) proudly opened a new satellite office at 133 Main Street in Hightstown on Wednesday, September 26, 2018 to help youth in Crisis. The agency is now positioned to offer supportive services at a location convenient to the communities of East Windsor and Hightstown. Services will be targeted towards teens and young adults struggling with mental health concerns, those in need of stabilization and education for navigating these challenges, as well as serving as a bridge to a broad referral network of high-level services for substance abuse and acute mental health crises. “Our new location is an example of the JFCS commitment to sharing help, hope and healing to our broader community,” said Michelle Napell, Executive Director of JFCS. “Mental health challenges have come to the forefront of the national headlines this year, and it is more important than ever to recognize the need for support and education among our youth, in schools, and to parents.” The expansion into the East Windsor & Hightstown communities is funded by the County of Mercer Department of Human Services and supported by I.C.A.R.E of East Windsor-Hightstown (Initiative for Counseling, Addiction, Renewal & Education). Two years ago a group of concerned Hightstown and East Windsor residents voiced their concerns through structured focus groups and surveys over the lack of counseling services available in their community.  It became clear that this area was underserved and would benefit from community based support services that would include assessment, education and referral services. This coalition was the start of ICARE, the leadership of which then turned to JFCS for the expertise in mental health in order to deliver supportive services to the community. “The launch of the JFCS offices on Main Street is a testament to the strength of our community,” said Mayor Janice Mironov of East Windsor. “To see the efforts of concerned parents and educators come together with the professional resources of JFCS is remarkable and I look forward to seeing this partnership make a true difference for our community.” Services available at 133 Main Street will include:
  • Mental Health & Substance Abuse Stabilization Services
  • Crisis Case Management
  • On-going Support
  • Community Outreach & Education
  • Information & Referral
Office hours will be Monday through Thursday 2:00 – 7:00 PM. For those who wish to learn more about these services or make a referral may call 609-987-8100.

JFCS Takes It’s Food Pantry On The Road for Homebound Seniors

Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Greater Mercer County is pleased to announce the new Healthy@Home Senior Nutrition Program, a non-sectarian initiative which provides low-income, homebound seniors with healthy food and nutrition information delivered directly to their door.  Healthy@Home is designed to increase food security among seniors in Mercer County.  Clients work with a geriatric care manager and a registered dietician to select foods that are healthy, easy to prepare and enjoyable. They can choose fresh fruits and vegetables, breads, poultry, frozen fish and chicken, frozen fruits and vegetables, canned goods, soups and more.  At least once a month, volunteers deliver the food along with nutrition information, recipes and food safety tips.

“We’re taking our food pantry on the road,” says Michelle Napell, Executive Director of JFCS.  “We have so many seniors in the community who are mostly homebound and have limited finances.  They aren’t able to get to the supermarket or our pantry.  They’re unable to carry grocery bags or even stand in the kitchen to prepare a meal.  Some even have to make difficult choices on whether to pay bills or buy food.  Others can’t afford the high cost of fresh fruits and vegetables and settle for cheaper, unhealthy alternatives.”  Healthy@Home will provide these vulnerable seniors with more access to healthy and nutritious food.

“We are increasingly hearing about how food equals medicine and this is a great way to proactively advocate for seniors in the community,” says Napell.  In fact, according to a Health Affairs study, “delivering meals to vulnerable sick people might be a simple way to cut back on emergency room visits and hospitalizations, reining in some of the costliest kinds of medical care. Low-income seniors or disabled younger people who received home-delivered meals — particularly meals designed by a dietitian for that person’s specific medical needs — had fewer emergency visits and lower medical spending than a similar group of people who did not receive meal deliveries.”

In addition to increasing food security, the Healthy@Home program encourages socialization and community connections for these homebound and isolated seniors by offering a Friendly Visitor.  Friendly Visitors spend meaningful time with these seniors, either chatting, playing games, working on puzzles, crafts and more.

One of our clients recently reported, “Thanks so much for the food delivery.  I can’t remember the last time I had a fresh apple.  They’re too heavy to carry home from the supermarket.”  Another said, “When the volunteers deliver my food, I really feel like they are my family.”

JFCS has been operating the Yvette Sarah Clayman Kosher Community Food Pantry since 1999.  The Pantry is choice-based and allows our clients to shop for their food instead of picking up a prepared bag.  This follows our philosophy of empowering clients to care effectively for themselves and others.  It is open to people of all denominations in Mercer County.

For more information on the Healthy@Home Senior Nutrition program, please contact Beth Englezos, Manager of Senior Programs & Hunger Prevention at bethe@jfcsonline.org or 609-987-8100, ext. 126.

 

 

JFCS receives 4-star Rating From Charity Navigator, Again!

Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Greater Mercer County is proud to announce that we have received Charity Navigator’s top rating of 4 stars for the second year in a row!

Charity Navigator is an online rating system that donors can use to intelligently decide where their money is best directed. The 4-Star rating means that JFCS has passed a stringent vetting and has come out fulfilling all of the necessary requirements for the award.

A 4-star rating from Charity Navigator proves that JFCS is an exceptional charity and that we exceed industry standards and outperform most charities in our category. Thank you to the community and partner organizations that continue to make JFCS a thriving success!

Church and Dwight Grant Award

Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Greater Mercer County receives grant from Church & Dwight Employee Giving Fund

Amy Solomon from Church & Dwight Co., Inc. presents a $10,000 grant from the Church & Dwight Co., Inc. Employee Giving Fund to JFCS Executive Director, Michelle Napell and JFCS Board President Audrey Wisotsky.

JFCS is happy to announce that it has been awarded a $10,000 grant from the Church & Dwight Co., Inc. Employee Giving Fund.

With this critical funding, JFCS is able to ensure that the economically disadvantaged families who use our food pantry have access to healthy foods on a regular basis. In addition, JFCS is able to continue to offer hunger education and advocacy programs to community members regarding food insecurity and resources to address this issue. JFCS will also engage community and corporate volunteers to participate in “Shop & Stock” activities to stock the pantry with healthy foods.

“By offsetting some of our families’ out-of-pocket costs for food from their limited household budgets, we are able to help them extend their budgets further.” said Lara Wellerstein, JFCS Director of Community Programs and Services.

“We are extremely grateful to partner with the Church & Dwight Employee Giving Fund. Our pantry brings a level of stability into the lives of our low-income clients. This award helps JFCS meet our goal of providing a healthy food pantry for the community.” said Michelle Napell, Executive Director of Jewish Family & Children’s Service.

JFCS Announces New Executive Director

JFCS Announces New Executive Director

Michelle Napell Selected as the Next Executive Director at JFCS

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The Board of Directors of Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Greater Mercer County (JFCS) announced that it has selected Michelle Napell to become the agency’s next Executive Director. Ms. Napell will succeed Linda Meisel, who announced earlier this year that she is stepping down on June 30th, after 18 years as Executive Director. Michelle Napell will take over the role on July 1, 2016.

Ms. Napell is currently the Executive Director at OneFamily. When she joined OneFamily, there was limited awareness of the organization in the US. Now, there is a strong Board of Directors and a broad base of support with a shared passion geared toward supporting the thousands of victims of terror living in Israel.

On behalf of the JFCS Board of Directors, President Audrey Wisotsky said, “The Board is delighted that Michelle has accepted our offer to lead the Agency into the next chapter of its history. She is a visionary leader who we are confident will strategically guide the Agency and advance and develop the critical programs we provide to the community.  I want to thank the members of the search committee, chaired by Joyce Kalstein, for the many hours of conscientious work that they did leading to this excellent result.”

A graduate of Cardozo School of Law, Michelle practiced for 3 years before “retiring” to start her family. In January 2010 Michelle was hired by OneFamily, as the Coordinator of Programming and Special Events, she was promoted in June 2011 to Executive Director of US operations. Michelle lives in central New Jersey with her husband and two children.

In accepting the role of Executive Director, Michelle Napell said, “Being a part of JFCS will enable me to leverage my passion and experience to make an equally important difference – this time closer to home. I hope to build off the strong programming and base of support that already exists and engage new supporters throughout Mercer and Bucks Counties.”

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