JFS Senior Program receives award for excellent service
Congratulations to Jewish Family Services Senior Program for receiving the Tarrant Area Food Bank’s Excellence in Client Services Award.
The award was presented at a luncheon on Friday, Sept. 18. In her presentation of the award, Lori Pope, director of the Tarrant Area Food Bank, said, “Jewish Family Services got our attention because of the services they provide to clients and for their excellent needs assessment. Jewish Family Services takes people from all over, including seniors who have moved here because of their children, and gives them a place to go … it’s more than a meal, it’s a place to socialize and meet friends.” Ms. Pope went on to say that “what also impressed us was the average age of the participants in the program … it is 78 years old.” You could hear the buzz in the room when she said this.
Hedy Collins, Senior Program director, accepted the award on behalf of the participants, the JFS staff and committee members. The program received a beautiful trophy as well as a $5,000 check. JFS is working with the executive board of the Jewish Federation (which is responsible for much of JFS’s funding) to determine the best way to utilize the money for the Senior Program.
Dr. Carole Rogers, director of Jewish Family Services, said, “This truly is an honor to be recognized by an agency that works with so many organizations in the community, to know our work, particularly what we do with seniors, is appreciated and respected.
“We are all so proud of Hedy. While she started with a program that had a strong foundation, she has added so much. She loves this Jewish community and all the people in her program … it shows in her kindness, caring and creativity. She is open and non-judgmental so everyone feels welcome. She does not hesitate to go the extra mile. And what is even more special is that her staff, Miau Ling Tjahadi and Joyce Dooley, as well as her many volunteers, are the same way.”
Three other organizations also received awards from the Tarrant Area Food Bank: Community Linkage (Excellence in Community Resource Development), Methodist Mission (Excellence in Collaboration) and New Haven Ministries (Excellence in Creating Hunger Free Zones). This is only the second year the Tarrant Area Food Bank has given out awards. Executive Director Bo Soderbergh said he felt it was important to recognize the work of all the organizations that utilize the Food Bank. He stated that thanks to the mutual collaboration, the Tarrant Area Food Bank gave out 17.5 million lbs. of food this past year, which represents a 25 percent increase from the previous year.
‘Deep in the Heart’ performance set for Oct. 25
“Kids Who Care” will perform “Deep in the Heart” featuring a vignette by Hollace Weiner and Riki Zide and community player, Ben Feld, on Sunday, Oct. 25. The free community performance will begin at 1:30 p.m. at Congregation Ahavath Sholom. Mona Karten tells the TJP, “Grab some lunch and join us for a lively performance followed by dessert. You’ll be done by 2:30 p.m. if you want to catch the Cowboys game!”
Don’t forget to bring canned goods for the Tarrant Area Food Bank.
The event is sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Fort Worth and Tarrant County with financial support from the Dan Danciger/Fort Worth Hebrew Day School Supporting Foundation.
‘Daytimers’ taken behind the scenes at the Cliburn
During the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Star-Telegram Senior Arts Editor Andrew Marton interviewed host families, contestants’ families, piano tuners, page turners and all the behind-the-scenes people that made up this exciting event. Last week he shared those stories with the “Daytimers” at Beth-El Synagogue. He was peppered with questions from the group. “How much did Nobuyuki Tsujii’s blindness affect the judges’ decision?” “Who did you pick as the winner?” “Did the ages of the contestants affect the choice of winners?”
He described in detail many of the relationships of the host families to “their” contestants, and about the fabulous dinners prepared by the Italian entrants. He described the behind-the-scenes people such as the piano movers in white gloves, the page turners and the Steinway piano tuner that was brought in from New York. Bill Margolis served as MC for the day. Marton was introduced by Edythe Cohen. Other volunteers for the day included Rosalie Schwartz and Fannette Sonkin at the door, and Al and Sylvia Wexler at the buffet table.
Next event for the “Daytimers” will be a trip to the Kimbell Art Museum to view the exhibit “Butchers, Dragons, Gods and Skeletons: Film Installations by Philip Haas, from Works in the Collection.” The Kimbell requires reservations for lunch and/or for the tour. There is no charge; guests will purchase their own lunches at the buffet.
For reservations, call Barbara Rubin, 817-927-2736, or Sylvia Wexler, 817-294-1129, or e-mail barbara@rubin.net.
The Sylvia Wolens “Daytimers” is a program of Congregation Beth-El with financial support from the Jewish Federation.
See clearly, help support CAS
Alex and Sophia Nason are still offering the same deal to people they did a few weeks ago at Ahavath Sholom’s fundraiser. If people purchase glasses from them, they will donate part of the proceeds to the Congregation Ahavath Sholom. You just need to go to their Pearle Vision store, which is located at 309 South Oakland Ave. They even have a doctor who can set an appointment with so you have a proper prescription. If you have questions or want to make an appointment in advance, please call Alex or Sophia at the store. The number is 817-534-4700.