AJFCA and Fiscal Spaghetti
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Shelley Rood
Washington Director
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Happy New Year! Last year, I looked ahead to January 2013 as a refreshing start in Washington with a new session of Congress, a fresh Presidential term, and an end to sound bytes about the fiscal cliff. The swearing-in of the 113th Congress and the Inauguration activities will bring hope and enthusiasm for the year ahead, but let's not fool ourselves. The Bush-era tax cuts have been extended for most Americans and the brutal sequestration has been postponed, but there will be a new buzz word for the fiscal cliff or slope that we're approaching, and it will be up to us to keep the message focused on protecting people in need. The budget debates will affect programs our clients rely on such as the Older Americans Act, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Emergency Food and Shelter Program, and housing and transportation for seniors and people with disabilities. In the next few months, Congress will need to pass a budget to fund programs for the remainder of FY 2013 and agree to budget cuts to prevent the sequestration which was delayed by two months. At the same time, the President's budget request for FY 2014 is expected to be released in early February. Add the debt ceiling debate to this congruence of fiscal proposals and we have the budgetary equivalent of a collapsed spaghetti junction highway. Continue reading here. |
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Tricia Downing, author, athlete, and inspirational speaker, will be featured at the fifth annual Jewish Disabilities Awareness Day and Resource Fair sponsored by Jewish Family Service of Colorado on Sunday, January 27th. Jewish Disabilities Awareness Day is the cornerstone of the metro Denver Jewish community's celebration of the national Jewish Disability Awareness Month in February, promoting understanding and inclusion in community life for Jewish people with disabilities. The goals of the day, which focuses on "finding ability in disability," are to increase awareness, in both the Jewish and general community, of the abilities and contributions of people with special needs; to honor those who care for those with disabilities; and to provide valuable resources for families and caregivers. Continue reading here. |
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"We've all been crying since learning about the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut, shaken to our cores. We're hugging our children harder and longer, talking to our friends about the missing pieces of the puzzle that will never be found and trying to make sense of what is senseless and unthinkable." Continue reading Jewish Family Service of Detroit's blog here. |
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The 8th Annual JPROSTL Mentor award will be presented to Lori Goldberg, Director of Senior Services at Jewish Family & Children's Service of St. Louis. Over 200 staff members and nearly 100 friends, family and community leaders attend each year, representing 40 different organizations including agencies, organizations, schools and congregations. For more information visit, www.jprostl.org. |
Pittsburgh Community Celebrates 75 Years of JFCS
| Jewish Family & Children's Service of Pittsburgh celebrated their 75th year of service and received much press, sharing the agency's story and impact. Below please find links to these articles; a great way to see the full scope of the impact JFCS has on so many individuals and families in Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
The Jewish Chronicle
Pop City
Shady Ave Magazine |
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| Visit AJFCA's Calendar to learn more about free calls and webinars. For more information login to For Our Members on the AJFCA website, followed by Webinars. Contact Megan at 410-843-7327 with questions.
Behavioral Health IT: Implications for Community Providers
Jan., 15th, 1pm ET
REGISTER HERE
Introduction to Text4Baby
Jan., 16th, 12:30pm ET
REGISTER HERE
Pay for Success for the Service Provider Perspective
Jan., 17th, 3pm ET
REGISTER HERE
Let Justice Flow Down Like Waters
Jan., 23rd, 2pm ET
REGISTER HERE
Transform Your Food Pantry into a Source of Health and Wellness
Jan., 31st, 2pm ET
REGISTER HERE |
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Stay updated on AJFCA offerings, agency news & current trends . . .
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D'Var Torah
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Lee I. Sherman
President/CEO
Last week we began reading the seminal story of the Jewish people - the exodus from Egypt, going from slavery to freedom, from "strangers in a strange land" to a nation. We read of the birth of Moses, of his journey to manhood, and his recruitment by God to lead the Israelites out of bondage. Now, in this week's parashah, Va-era, Moses is back in Egypt to convince Pharaoh to let his people go.
We know well the story of Moses' advocacy with Pharaoh, we read about the plagues each year at our Seders. But, a bit more obscure is the advocacy that Moses needs to do with his own people. In the opening verses of the parashah, we learn that the Israelites did not listen to Moses when he first conveyed to them God's promise of redemption, perhaps because "their spirits [were] crushed by cruel bondage." 6:9. And so, Moses had to make the case with his own people, just as he would do with Pharaoh, and to teach them about their place in the lineage from Abraham to the physical nation of Israel. They not only needed to believe in the possibility of their own freedom, but also reject the bonds of their own passivity and become actively engaged in the march to a new life.
The clients who come to our Jewish family service agencies are often in a place of personal bondage, whether due from financial, emotional, mental, or other constraints. What the professionals at our agencies do so well is to teach their clients about the possibilities in front of them and to get those clients actively engaged in the process of making progress. They know how to "make the case".
Shabbat Shalom.
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Behavioral Health IT: Implications for Community Providers Webinar
Please join AJFCA, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), HHS Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) and the National Council for Behavioral Health for a webinar designed specifically for AJFCA member agencies. The webinar presenters will review the current issues in behavioral health IT and discuss the effects on community behavioral health care providers, and how community providers can best position themselves to succeed in the current environment.
Behavioral Health IT: Implications for Community Providers
Tuesday, January 15th, 1:00pm ET
Please email Megan for registration details. |
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Domestic Violence Professionals Call: Engaging Funders & Innovative Funding Proposals
Please join Amy Rubin, Director of Community Services at Jewish Child & Family Services of Chicago and domestic violence professionals from across North America for a call focusing on Engaging Funders & Innovative Funding Proposals. How many times have you spoken with funders who want statistics pertaining to the number of abuse victims served in your community? How do we as domestic violence professionals frame messages? How should we go about telling stories so that funders understand the importance and impact of our prevention and intervention work?
Engaging Funders & Innovative Funding Proposals
Tuesday, January 22nd, 2:00pm ET
Email Megan to register for the call.
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Connecting Kids to Coverage Outreach and Enrollment Grant Opportunity and Important Information on Key Medicaid and CHIP Provisions of the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012
The Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services are pleased to announce that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a solicitation for applications for Connecting Kids to Coverage Outreach and Enrollment Grants. These grants, funded under the Affordable Care Act, continue efforts to find and enroll eligible children in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) that were initially funded under the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (CHIPRA). Learn more about the grant opportunity here.
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Shabbat Supper: Live the Legacy
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Unsure of what to do with your upcoming 3-day weekend? Interested in exploring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King (hint: why you're getting that extra day off)? Or maybe you're looking for a good excuse to host a party? Look no further than your kitchen table! Make MLK Day weekend (January 18-20) meaningful by hosting a Repair the World Shabbat Supper. |
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Blackbaud Highlights Key Nonprofit Sector Trends to Watch in 2013
Blackbaud Highlights Key Nonprofit Sector Trends, January 9, 2013, eJP
As charitable giving continues to recover, mobile, global and new expectations are changing nonprofit operations and supporter engagement worldwide Blackbaud, perhaps the largest software vendor to the global nonprofit community, has shared trends that will have the biggest impact on the nonprofit sector in 2013:
- Increase in charitable giving will not be dramatic
 - The nonprofit sector will go through a revaluing process
- Technology will play a major role for both nonprofits and their supporters
- The world is shrinking and philanthropic borders are broadening
Continue reading here.
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5 Things That Will Change the Way Nonprofits Work in 2013
5 Things That Will Change the Way Nonprofits Work in 2013, January 4,2012, Chronicle of Philanthropy, by Suzanne Perry, Caroline Preston & Cody Switzer
Impact Investing
More donors are exploring ways to combine their charity and financial investments. Some foundations are putting a share of their foundation's endowment into social enterprises, while the F.B. Heron Foundation announced last year that its entire endowment would go to such causes.
Meanwhile, more cities, states, and federal-government agencies are eyeing social-impact bonds, which are loans that cover a social program's upfront costs and pay donors or more traditional investors a profit if the program succeeds. While it remains unclear whether these new approaches will augment or cannibalize more traditional philanthropy, charities that can prove their programs work are poised to benefit the most. Continue reading here. |
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The 4 Kinds of People Who Care About Causes - and What They Do Online 
The 4 Kinds of People Who Care About Causes, January 3, 2013, Katya's Nonprofit Marketing Blog, by Katya Andersen
The Georgetown Center for Social Impact Communication has drawn on their recent research to profile who is most likely spread the word about your cause - and how. The headline is that while most people are active online, that doesn't mean that they focus all their advocacy efforts on the Internet. People spread the word both online and off, just as they donate online and off, just as they shop online and off. The wise nonprofit - and the wise company - recognize you have to meet people in the many real and virtual places they inhabit and provide easy ways of spreading your message wherever they are.
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Human Services Framing Initiative Survey
The ongoing conflict over the Fiscal Cliff and government spending underscores the crucial importance of effectively communicating the core values and beneficial outcomes of human services. All too often, however, we try to make this case in our own specialized "professional" languages that fail to resonate with the general public and policy makers alike. To address this important challenge, the National Human Services Assembly (NHSA) is working with stakeholders across the human services sector to help identify ways to "reframe" the way we talk about our work.
As part of the research for this project, NHSA needs to first find out how the nonprofit sector thinks about itself. Please take a few minutes of your time to take the survey.
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The adoption community was hit hard last week by news that Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin signed the Yakovlev Act, banning adoptions by families from the United States. Kathy Brodsky, director of JCCA's Ametz Adoption Program, called it a "vengeful political act."
Ametz Adoption Program and Jewish Child Care Association are shocked and saddened by the recent events in Russia which put the lives of so many children in jeopardy and the families prepared to adopt them in limbo. Continue reading here.
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 Purchasing Point: Reduce Printing Costs
Guy Brown Products is offering discounted pricing on high-quality re-engineered toner and ink cartridges through Purchasing Point, a complimentary group buying program available to all AJFCA member agencies. Cut costs while being environmentally friendly. Potential savings up to 54%. - Cost analyses show average savings of 25-54%
- Quality guarantee/12 month warranty on re-engineered cartridges
- Managed print solutions
- Expertise in managing a variety of organizations, from small to large and geographically dispersed
This discount and many others are available to member agencies through
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2013 Mutual of America Community Partnership Award Competition
Applications are now being accepted  for the 2013 Mutual of America Community Partnership Award competition, which recognizes and encourages partnerships dedicated to the public good among businesses, government and social sector organizations. Entering its 18th year, the CPA has recognized over 170 partnerships across America, expanding public awareness of their work and helping them attract additional partners and new sponsors.
The Award Guidelines can be viewed here. Applications to enter the 2013 competition must be submitted no later than April 1, 2013.
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2013 Government Affairs Institute & AJFCA Advocacy Mission
Registration for the 2013 Government Affairs Institute and AJFCA Advocacy Mission (GAI) is filling up. Registration closes on Tuesday, January 22, 2013. The deadline for guaranteed hotel accommodations  at the discounted rate is today, Friday, January 11, 2013. The GAI is our premier gathering of professionals and lay leaders who are interested in public policy. The GAI brings together professionals and volunteers from Jewish family and children's service agencies and Federations to advocate on policies that impact the vulnerable populations that you serve. Learn more here. 2013 Government Affairs Institute & AJFCA Advocacy MissionTuesday, February 5th - Thursday, February 7th - REGISTER HERE |
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