2017 Annual Report
Message From The Board Chair and The President & CEO
Dear Board Members, Supporters, Volunteers, and Friends,
We are pleased to present you with the 2016-2017 Annual Report on the activities of Ruth & Norman Rales Jewish Family Services (JFS). Our fiscal year runs from September 1, 2016 through August 31, 2017. During this fiscal year JFS received our largest single one-time gift in the agency’s history from the Estate of Bernard Sherman. This $2.3M gift will support our many programs and services which serve people of all ages and beliefs. In addition, our annual fundraising and legacy giving efforts continue to grow with several new and increased gifts.
We are extremely proud that for the third year in a row, JFS has earned a Four Star Rating from Charity Navigator, America’s largest independent charity evaluator. This designation is important because our donors can trust that JFS utilizes our funds wisely in fulfilling our mission of providing help, hope and humanity to our neighbors in need. Also, for the third year in a row, JFS was named a Top Workplace by the Sun-Sentinel. The three years represent every year that the Top Workplace has existed in our area. What makes this award truly special is that the evaluation is based upon the feedback provided by our dedicated staff.
Since adding the Center for Families and Children, JFS has had the staff capacity to deploy immediately after a tragedy to support the community in times of need. Our Community Outreach professionals have provided support groups, linkages to emergency financial assistance and other available community resources following a hurricane or other crisis. As time goes on, the impact of having the Center for Families and Children is evidenced by the many positive outcomes resulting from all the program under this Center’s umbrella.
One of those positive outcomes is in the Special Needs Department which added a for-fee case management service for adult children living in our community. This was created as a response to a community request, specifically for adults with disabilities, whose needs differ from our existing geriatric case management program, CareLink. Through donor support, JFS is able to provide both of these programs on a sliding-scale basis for those who qualify.
Recognizing the on-going and continued increased needs of our Holocaust Survivor clients, JFS received additional funding from the Claims Conference for Holocaust Survivor Assistance Program. In addition, as a result of grass roots efforts by many of our donors and supporters, we were able to successfully maintain current State of Florida funding for this program during the budgeting cycle.
Outgrowing our current space on the Federation campus, in August of 2017, JFS staff from our Senior Services and Career and Employment Services (CES) departments relocated into new space providing a state of the art training facility for CES, and allowing other programs the space they needed to continue to provide services.
JFS at Home, Inc. began repayment of the loan from JFS for start-up and operating costs. JFS continues to be a great partner of JFS at Home, Inc. as we strive to continue as the premiere human service agency serving our community. None of these accomplishments could ever be achieved without the efforts of our dedicated staff, Board of Directors, volunteers and YOU, our generous supporters. Thank you for your generosity in support of our work.
Sincerely,
