Diddle
Class
buggle

"The real
stigma is that
you are still
thinking
about how
others
perceive you."

emergency money, he's
more than ready to listen
to the plan, Mr. Goodman
said.
"We usually see what's
happening in advance,
before you start reading
about it in the news-
papers," Mr. Goodman
said. "The longer the
recession has continued,
the more we're seeing a
changing face in who is
walking in here. These are
people who, in the past,
weren't thought of to be at
risk. But when people
aren't paying for products
and services, someone
doesn't get the money, be it
from commissions or
salary." Mr. Goodman
added that JFS is seeing
more clients now who are
laid off after working in a
particular company for a
career's worth of years.
Most have never been
unemployed before. Many
will go through a state of
immobilization, like a
mourning process, because
their entire identity is tied
up in their careers.
Barry can attest to that.
For 21 years, he worked as
a supervisor in the finan-
cial planning industry. Six
months and 200 resumes
later, little is out there for
him at the salary he was
accustomed to making.
There's the rub, accor-
ding to Mr. Goodman. Jobs
are out there, but people
might have to take a pay
cut or a change in lifestyle
if they accept those jobs.
"When you give the best
years of your life to a ca-
reer, and then you are told
you aren't good enough or
that there's no money, you
become hollow," Barry
said. "I'll get a job, but I'm
going to make about one-
third of what I made before.
There will be some
changes."
Changes are exactly
what Mr. Goodman rec-
ommends. He said that all
too many times clients
come to JFS for help
without a plan for change.
JFS, he said, doesn't want

to see them every month.
The agency can't afford to
see the same people every
month.
Instead, JFS wants a
plan. It wants to know that
clients are selling their
houses in favor of a rental
home or apartment.
Workers understand this
exchange probably in-
cludes a part of clients'
pride.
JFS is also worried about
the bigger cost to a family's
emotional success if money
isn't taken care of quickly.
Divorce, domestic violence
and depression are com-
mon results if a family
doesn't mend itself finan-
cially.

Arlene Goldberg, Helen
Samberg_ and Debra Ed-
wards work the frontline
for JFS. Lately, they are
seeing more than their
share of this kind of client.
"In the last two weeks, if
I hear another one of these
stories, I'll explode. We're
seeing twice as many of
these clients as we've seen
before," Ms. Goldberg said.
"The idea here is that
we're not in a position to
help the client survive an-
other month. They really
have to make that happen.
"What we do is help the
clients realize the
resources they have," she
continued. "If it's not
possible to hold on to a
mortgage, we'll suggest
that they sell their house
and rent a place for a-
while. But the problem is
the stigma that goes along
with this. Jews are
sometimes so locked into
their status position, they
can't handle the thought of
moving from a 3,000-square-
foot home to a rented house,
even if it means that their
monthly payments might be
cut in half."

Roger Goodenough of
Jewish Vocational Service
said that classes on job-
finding skills, once
sparsely attended, are now
often filled.
People, he said, are more

open to mid-level manage-
ment jobs than in recent
memory. This is a job that
pays anywhere from
$25,000 to $45,000. If a
person finds himself
unemployed and in an
emergency, Mr.
Goodenough will get him
in the door of JVS in a
week. The average length
of time to be seen in a non-
emergency is about three
weeks.
Ms. Samberg said that
JFS is also seeing a rise in
clients belonging to what
she called the marginal
middle class. These are
men and women who have
jobs that pay an hourly
wage. When there is an ill-
ness, however, or a car
breaks down, they are
unable to get to work, and
sometimes they are fired.
"We're in a depression
period now," Ms. Samberg
said. "We're seeing these
problems more than ever.
We're hurting now. There's
such a big pride factor in-
volved here. When you
have to go to DSS, there's a
feeling that the Jewish
community has abandoned
you."
Ms. Samberg added that
many Jews don't know how
to handle their money, and
in the past they've been
able to get by. Now the
times won't let them.
Ms. Goldberg said many
of her clients keep hoping
they'll awaken and this
terrible financial night-
mare will be over.
"They are still telling
their stories to us," she
said. "It's painful to watch.
If you ask them a direct
question like 'Where are
your savings?' the defenses
come up."
The defenses are an at-
tempt to regain some dig-
nity, some control, accor-
ding to Mr. Goodman.
"Some people try to
maintain their existing
lifestyle," he said. "They
might scrape by with their
mortgage payment. But if
you check the refrigerator,
there's no food in it." ❑