rogram for Holocaust Survivors and Families
Summer/Fall 2004
Inside this issue
Opening Windows
1
for Widows
Opening Windows for Widows Program
Services of Program
for Holocaust
Survivors and
1
Families
The Jewish Women's Foundation Grant
Opening Windows for Widows, funded for
a second year with a grant from the Jewish
Women's Foundation, helps widowed
Holocaust survivors cope with their losses
through the Program for Holocaust
Survivors and Families. The goals and
objectives of the program are aimed at help-
ing aging widowed Holocaust survivors who
are experiencing great emotional loss due to
the recent death of their spouse, gain sup-
port and understanding from other survivor
widows who have been through similar dev-
astating experiences. The goal is to help
reduce their feelings of isolation and loneli-
ness and to support them as they continue
with their lives.
Survivors who are widowed meet in facili-
tated support groups both at the JCC in Oak
Park and at Fleischman Residence/Blumberg
Plaza in West Bloomfield. The support groups
focus on the special difficulties of widowhood
when one has suffered devastating losses of
their families earlier in their lives. This group
setting is an essential tool helping survivors
realize that they are not alone in their strug-
gles with depression and loneliness. Veteran
widowed survivors provide a sense of caring
and comfort as they reach out to the newly
widowed, taking them under their wings and
helping them cope with life's changes.
Many of the widows enjoy the friendships
they have recently formed as a result of the
support received in the Windows for Widows
Program. Later, many attend Cafe Europa and
are able to enjoy the Yiddish music and cama-
raderie this unique social support event pro-
vides. They report feeling less isolated, lonely
and depressed.
(Biographical information is a composite of several
survivors, for purposes of confidentiality.)
Mrs. A. is a concentration camp survivor who
lost her entire family in the Holocaust. Six months
ago, due to a stroke, she lost her husband. Several
years prior, Mrs. A. and her husband lost their only
child, a daughter, in an automobile accident. Since
her husband's death, she has found it difficult to
continue with normal day-to-day activities. She felt
overwhelmingly depressed, alone, and that life was
no longer worth living.
Mrs. A. was referred to Dr. Silow who suggested
that she attend an Opening Windows for Widows
support group meeting. As she began to discuss her
situation, other group members warmly welcomed
her. Befriended by other widowed survivors, they
insisted that she join them and have lunch at the
JCC, and later to see some Jewish films together and
attend Cafe Europa. These caring widows under-
stood her loneliness and sorrow.
A Note from
Joel Dorfman
2
A Note from
Dr. Silow
2
Community
Resources
2
Jewish Family
Services
2
Happenings at
Program for
Holocaust Survivors
3
and Families
Mrs. A. has grown and exhibits strengths that
others have helped nurture in her. She is not only
an active participant in all of the activities offered
through the Program for Holocaust Survivors and
Families, she has become a leader as well.
Although her life is still difficult, she welcomes other
widows into the group and encourages them to keep
going. She has created her own identity in a com-
munity that cares for her, as she cares for them.
Donations and
Contributions 3
Portraits
of Honor
Online
Contributions
4
Contribution
Form
4
Services of the Program for Holocaust Survivors and Families
The Program for Holocaust Survivors and Families is a
dynamic multi-faceted program developed to provide
psychosocial and emotional support to Jewish
Holocaust survivors and their families. Activities and
supports are provided at no cost to the survivor or their
family.
Facilitated Support Groups
Facilitated Support Groups are at the heart of the
Program for Holocaust Survivors and Families. The
support group meetings, as well as individual and
family counseling, address and support the psy-
chosocial and emotional needs of survivors using
both traditional and non-traditional methods.
For Holocaust survivors, aging presents an enor-
mous challenge. Although they have survived Hitler
and the Nazis, many survivors now struggle with
the anxiety and problems of aging, isolation, stress
and frightening turmoil in the world around them.
Small support groups provide a safe and environ-
ment for survivors to share their fears, concerns and
memories.
Facilitated by Dr. Silow, himself a child of Holocaust
survivors and fluent in Yiddish, group sessions meet
every Monday morning from 10:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
twice per month at the Jewish Community Center
in Oak Park, and from 1:30 p.m.-2:30 p.m. at
Fleischman Residence/Blumberg Plaza in West
Bloomfield.
Café Europa
This upbeat café provides a festive, freilich, Jewish
atmosphere where survivors come together monthly at
the Jewish Community Center in Oak Park, to listen to
Jewish and Yiddish music, have a nosh, sing and even
dance. It is a place where survivors can forget their wor-
ries, troubles and concerns and relax with friends.
Jewish Videos/Films
The Jewish Videos/Films program provides an opportu-
nity for Holocaust survivors to view rarely shown
Jewish & Yiddish films. It affords survivors the oppor-
tunity to reminisce with each other about life before the
war, their Jewish life and heritage. Movies are shown in
five locations each month: Fleischman Residence-
Blumberg Plaza and Hechtman Apartments in West
Bloomfield; the Jewish Community Center, Prentis and
Teitel Apartments in Oak Park.
Portraits of Honor:
Michigan's Holocaust Survivors
This exceptional traveling exhibit portrays black and
white photographs with brief biographies of Michigan's
Holocaust Survivors. Approximately 300 survivors have
been photographed and interviewed for this ongoing
project that seeks to honor the lives and histories of
Michigan's Holocaust survivor community.
Consultation, Liaison and Training
Ongoing consultations with health-care facilities
and professionals are conducted regarding the psy-
chological needs of Holocaust survivors in their
care. Dr. Silow is also available as a consultant
when a Holocaust survivor is having difficulty
adjusting to a hospital or institutional setting.
Educational outreach programs are provided to
help train health-care professionals regarding the
unique psychological issues and needs of survivors
and their families.
The Program for Holocaust Survivors and Families
also coordinates care and serves as a liaison to mul-
tiple community agencies serving the Jewish
Holocaust survivor population.
For more information, contact:
Program for Holocaust Survivors and Families
Jewish Home & Aging Services
Charles Silow, Ph.D. - Program Director
Sharon Levine - Program Coordinator
6710 West Maple Road
West Bloomfield, MI 48322
248-661-2999 ext. 299
csilow@jhas.org
slevine@jhas.org
www.j has. orWHolocaust