A Message from
Jewish Family
Service CEO,
Perry Ohren
ewish Family Service always has been and always will be the commu-
nity's Safety Net. Simply put, helping people in need is in JFS' DNA.
During the last decade Jewish Family Service has had to reassemble
this safety net. Born out of necessity. Caused by external economic
forces. A community-wide effort.
After 9/11 we began to see indications that needs were changing and deep-
ening, and that we were going to need to adapt our supply side in order to
meet the changing demand. With the generosity of the community, specifical-
ly Federation, JFS has been able to grow its Safety Net Infrastructure in many
directions. This has involved dollars, creativity, collaboration and teamwork.
Lots of teamwork. One cornerstone of this new Safety Net has been Project
Chessed. My predecessor, Norm Keane, famously said he never thought that
it would be the business of the Jewish Family Service to coordinate access to
health care. We all then realized there was a health care problem in the Jewish
community that no other entity was stepping forward to solve. JFS then built
the program that would provide thousands of Jewish adults with dignified
and comprehensive health care. Nine years later and moments away from the
Affordable Care Act altering the health care landscape, Project Chessed has
literally been a life-saver. I hope that you learn more about Project Chessed
through this Spotlight Publication, but know it is only a part of the larger
story.
Jewish Family Service has added to the safety net with other Project
Chessed-like programs: Project Build! and the Legal Referral Service. These
programs also utilize volunteers' professional expertise (attorneys, contractors
and tradespeople) to provide legal consultation and representation, as well as
home repairs and renovations. These additions, while housed at Jewish Fam-
ily Service, take place in physicians' examining rooms in Clawson, attorneys'
offices on Northwestern, homes of our neighbors in Huntington Woods and
Farmington Hills, and all points in between. Jewish Family Service always has
been and always will be the community's Safety Net. We provide this Safety
Net with you, and in you, and because of you, the community. Thank you for
being part of our community. Together we make it a better place for all.
2 • Jewish Family Services I September 2012