AJFCA Newsletter
In This Issue
ADVOCACY
AJFCA MEMBER BENEFITS
AGENCY PROGRAMMING/OPERATIONS
BOARD RESOURCES
COMMUNICATIONS & DEVELOPMENT
AJFCA Links

Agency Highlights  

February is Jewish Disabilities Awareness Month
jcs baltimore From Awareness to Inclusion, that's the purpose of Jewish Disabilities Awareness Month (JDAM), which takes place in February. The goal is to raise awareness and promote meaningful inclusion in the Jewish Community for people with disabilities and their families.  In recognition of JDAM, JCS is teaming up with Baltimore Jewish Abilities Alliance to present Through My Eyes: 
Reflections on Having a Sibling With Special Needs. For more information, continue reading here.
The JTNews 2013 Best of Everything Results are In.
jfs seattle
&
(tied with Seattle Hebrew Academy) in the JTNews' Best of Everything edition.
 
Click here to see the full article in the JTNews.
JF&CS Atlanta Staff Rally in Snow Storm
All of us have seen Atlanta in the news this week with the snowstorm virtually shutting down their city. Click here to see an impressive list of what the DSPs (Direct Support Professionals) and other staffers at Jewish Family & Career Services of Atlanta did to keep their clients safe and cared for in the thick of the storm. This is also a great example of how to engage followers on your facebook page! 
Calls & Webinars
Register Now for Next MITalks Webinar: MILLENNIALS & BOARDS

Feb. 13, 2014
 12 p.m. EST


Tune in to hear David Eisner from Repair the World and Kari Saratovsky from KDS Strategies discuss how to build and leverage volunteer leadership boards. Learn the latest strategies and benefits for positioning Millennials on your leadership board. 

VIP log-in is required to access registration for this Webinar, but AJFCA members have free VIP access.
 Please email Jennie at  [email protected]
 if you are interested in participating for further instruction.

Opportunity to Connect with Keshet

 

Wed, Feb. 19, 2014

1 pm ET

Keshet is a national grassroots organization that works for the full equality and inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Jews in Jewish life.  Keshet would like to work collaboratively with AJFCA member agencies to enhance programs and services to the LGBT community.  
Join AJFCA and Catherine Bell, National Program Director at Keshet, to discuss potential collaborations.

 

 Please email Sandy Rosenbaum 

to RSVP to this call. 

Supporting People Toward Citizenship, Relationships and Full Life in the Community

 

Wed, Feb. 26, 2014

1-2:30 pm ET

  
People who live with the label of disability often tend to have few relationships outside of paid staff. Supporting the creation of strong, lasting, unpaid relationships -- those that assure safety, provide natural supports and lead to quality of life -- has been a key part of the work of Neighbours, Inc. over the past 17 years.  Join us for a webinar featuring Patti Scott, Founder and CEO of Neighbours, Inc., to explore the strategies and approaches that have been successful for Neighbours, Inc.

This call was rescheduled due to inclement weather.  Please email Sandy Rosenbaum to register or re-resigter for the new date. 
Lead, Learn and Live. Join
AVODAH: The Jewish Service Corps

AVODAH's application is open for the Jewish Service Corps, a prestigious year long program combining work for justice, leadership development, Jewish learning, and community building. Learn about AVODAH  and how to spend the next year fighting poverty in one of four cities around the country.  Join a network of hundreds of Jewish social justice leaders that will challenge and support you!  Watch this video to learn more.  To apply, click here. 
Application deadline is February 10th, 2014.
Stay updated on AJFCA offerings, agency news & current trends . . .
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January 31, 2014  
About AJFCA | News
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fatherdaughter
  
D'Var Torah
Lee I. Sherman
President/CEO

 

This past Monday was International Holocaust Remembrance Day, commemorating the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camps and reminding us to pause and reflect on the six million Jewish lives that were lost at the hands of Nazi terror.  Yesterday, I had the opportunity to join a gathering of a small group of Holocaust survivors, caregivers, and professionals, as we met with Aviva Sufian, as her first official act as the newly appointed U.S. Special Envoy for Holocaust Services.  The survivors shared their experiences and highlighted the critical needs of low income survivors living in the U.S. today.

This week's parashah, T'rumah, describes the details of the design and ornamentation of the Mishkan, the Tabernacle.  The parashah begins with God's instruction to Moses that all of the people who are moved to do so should bring gifts for the decoration of the Mishkan.  This is an activity for the entire community regardless of the individual's social or economic status.  The Israelites are not only building the Mishkan, they are building community.

The Holocaust survivors who live among us today are an integral part of our community.  They have contributed in immeasurable ways to their post-Holocaust communities, despite the trauma of their early lives.  As we remember the six million victims of the Nazis, the entire community should continue to commit to assuring that those survivors we are fortunate to count as part of our community today live out their lives with the dignity they deserve.  We look forward to working with Aviva Sufian and our other partners to make this commitment a reality.

Have a restful Shabbat. 
ADVOCACY
Tablet Magazine Creates Stunning Collection of Survivors' Stories

In 2005, the United Nations declared January 27 an international memorial day for t
he victims of the Holocaust. In honor of this, Tablet Magazine asked photographer Jason Florio to take humane portraits of a small sampling of New York's Holocaust survivors--to avoid remembering the Shoah in the abstract, and to remind readers of the dignified specificity of each survivor's life.  Click here to view the nine portraits, and listen to the short audio interviews that accompany each one.
February is Jewish Disability Awareness Month.  
 
You can help make it a Social Media phenomenon! 
 
Use #JDAM14 when you post links, shares and comments about including people with disabilities in Jewish life.
AJFCA MEMBER BENEFITS
Conference Registration - COMING SOON!
Inspiring Creativity in a Changing World  
May 4-6, 2014 
Montreal, Quebec
 
Registration for the 2014 AJFCA & IAJVS Annual Conference will be available soon.  For a glimpse at the schedule, speakers and other details, visit this page of our website.
Deadline for KOVOD Awards 
Next Week

AJFCA is pleased to sponsor the 2014 Kovod Awards competition for the following categories: 
 
  • Effective Response to Changes in Health & Human Services
  • Meaningful Engagement of Young Adults
  • Sustained Success: Programs with Staying Power
Winners will be recognized at the 2014 Annual Conference with a reception in their honor, mention in the conference mobile app, and during the annual awards ceremony.
 
The deadline for submissions is 2 pm EST, Friday, February 7, 2014.
 
Click here for category descriptions and more detail.
 

Please share your agency's excellence 

with your colleagues in our network!

AGENCY PROGRAMMING/OPERATIONS
The 4 S's of the Modern Nonprofit
The modern nonprofit has a laser-tight focus on making a difference through one specific lens. Forget the 30-second elevator pitch: the new breed of nonprofit can be summed up by the "Four S's" which will be helpful in this new era of social enterprise.  Click here to review the Four S's.
Effective Delegation in Three Simple Steps
 
Delegation requires a balance between trusting others to get the work done while offering a sufficient amount of support to ensure the assignment is successfully 
bridgespan
 completed. These three simple steps from Jerry Hauser of The Management Center can help nonprofit leaders ensure their goals are met while empowering their staff members to take on greater responsibilities.
Suggestions for the Next Generation of Jewish CEO's
Thejewish philanthropye most predictable fact about Jewish communal life in the next generation is that the profile of future executives will differ from that of their predecessors. We can expect greater gender balance, a diversity of educational and prior career backgrounds and stronger Jewish experiences. While all without exception are for the better, new styles and backgrounds bring with them new challenges, trade-offs and potential pitfalls.  Continue reading here.
cms
CMS Provides Health Insurance Marketplace Guidance

In an effort to assist organizations working with clients who are applying for health insurance coverage, CMS has posted several informational articles on their website offering guidance on commonly-asked questions.  For example, frequently asked questions on eligibility, the application process, and helping consumers apply are answered on the site.
BOARD RESOURCES
To put it simply, assessment is one of the most effective ways to move youboard sourcer board and board leaders to the next level of performance. And if you're like most, that's something you want to do! Why conduct a board self-assessment? Are you wondering whether you should change your board's size or composition? Restructure your committees? Put term limits in place? Do you want to step up your board's engagement? Explore issues related to board/staff relations? Or determine how your board is performing in fundraising or other key areas of responsibility? Read more here.
COMMUNICATIONS & DEVELOPMENT
Characteristics of a Winning Proposal
 
David Bowman, owner of Precise Edit and an experienced proposal writer, shares the characteristics of proposals that get noticed and funded. Some key elements include having a clear connection to grantor intentions, a clear connection to strategic plan and mission and firm leadership support. View the entire presentation here.
The Top 10 Ways Nonprofits Can Use Visuals
network for good
It might be old news, but it's still true: Visuals trump text. Content with compelling images experience 94% more views on average than content without images.  Nonprofits can harness the power of visuals to help boost their online presence, generate an engaged social media following, and share information with supporters and donors. Here are 10 ways your nonprofit can leverage visuals online and off.
5 Nonprofit Trends to Watch in 2014 
As the nonprofit sector is asked to do more and more, nonprofits will no longer be a "nice to have" but an absolute essential component of any way forward. We will move squarely away from the idea of "charity" and toward an economy and a mindset that fully integrates the social. No longer sidelined as a small piece of the pie, the nonprofit sector will be recognized for the undeniable and pivotal role it plays in our economy, our institutions, our systems. As such, the nonprofit sector will stop apologizing for the resources it needs to do the job. The sector will rise up and take its rightful place as a critical force in shaping a sustainable future.  Read about more trends Nell anticipates in 2014 here. 
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