Avodah, a national antipoverty organization dedicated to strengthening the Jewish community’s impact on the most pressing justice issues of our time, will launch its fifth Jewish Service Corps location this summer in San Diego.

Music therapy provides instant respite for over-exhausted caregivers. As one caregiver who depends on our Music & Memory program states, “There is nothing else that I can do or give her at that moment that would make her smile.”

Telma Chavarria took her granddaughter to immigration court while her daughter, the child’s mother, stayed behind in Tijuana working two jobs to support the family while they waited for their asylum case to proceed. Once Chavarria was released she went to JFS Migrant Family Shelter and later received assistance from Vanessa Dojaquez-Torres, an immigration advocate and accredited representative working with Jewish Family Service as a HIAS border fellow.

JFS is proud to partner with Avodah, a national anti-poverty service organization, as they open a new branch here in San Diego. CEO Michael Hopkins says, “We are excited for Avodah to bring and develop future leaders in San Diego where they will amplify and enhance the critical work JFS and our partners are undertaking every day.”

San Diego For Every Child: The Coalition to End Child Poverty aims to reduce child poverty in the San Diego region by 50% over the next ten years. As part of the leadership team, JFS is proud to support this bold new initiative that mobilizes experts from across the community to create effective, sustainable change.

As part of our dedication to serving the San Diego immigrant community, JFS provides Citizenship Class training to educators across the County. Two instructors at the Ramona Library who participated in our training are now hosting a 10-week class to help local immigrants prepare for the citizenship test.

For the next two and a half years, the JFS Migrant Family Shelter has a new home at a State-owned building in Linda Vista. Now in its seventh location, the shelter will continue to provide vital humanitarian support, travel assistance, medical screenings, and legal counsel for asylum-seeking families as they search for a better life. Kate Morrissey of the San Diego Union-Tribune takes a first look at the new location.

Jewish Family Service is one of four organizations providing free services on 22 CSU campuses. Services range from help in submitting DACA applications to free and full legal representation.

Very few legal service providers are sending attorneys to Tijuana to represent those who have been enrolled in MPP. Those that do, such as Jewish Family Service of San Diego, lack the capacity to represent all those in need.

Liz Nederlander Coden and Daniel Coden chair Dear Evan Hansen fundraiser on January 11.

As an outreach coordinator for our Breaking Down Barriers program, Spshelle works to reduce mental health stigma and provide vital resources to underserved communities. With a military background, a Master’s in public health, and past experience working on international public health committees, she’s an incredible addition to the JFS team.

Our Higher Education Legal Services program is expanding to eight new San Diego campuses in 2020, providing free immigration legal assistance to students, faculty, and staff.

Watch Sasha Escue, our Director of Nutrition Services, highlight the JFS Foodmobile on Giving Tuesday. Thanks to our incredible supporters, we raised over $100,000 to provide isolated older adults with hot, home-delivered meals.

Ali Awow fled civil war at home and spent a year in a refugee camp in Kenya before making his way to Southern California. Now he is running a custom clothing shop. JFS was the refugee resettlement agency that helped him come to San Diego.

An AARP survey in 2018 found that 76 percent of adults over 50 would prefer to stay in their current home for as long as possible. The survey also found that only 46 percent of people thought they’d be able to do so.
Melissa Dennison, JFS Fix-It Coordinator, explains that safety concerns are some of the main hindrances to older adults aging in place.

Attorney Kate Clark, who serves as the senior director of immigration services for Jewish Family Service, told a congressional panel on Friday that officials of the Department of Homeland Security at the southern border routinely ignore DHS’s own regulations concerning the protection of unaccompanied minors and individuals with significant medical issues.

The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs heard from attorneys, migrant advocates and others about humanitarian issues along our southern border. Kate Clark, JFS Senior Director of Immigration Affairs, gave evidence to the failings and abuses of MPP, otherwise known as Remain In Mexico.

CEO Michael Hopkins discusses in-studio the Safe Parking Lot recently approved by the Encinitas City Council.

In this article and video, CEO Michael Hopkins discusses stopping the cycle of chronic homeless.

College students are a growing population that use the Safe Parking Program.

Coverage of the Encinitas City Council vote on approving a Safe Parking Program location on land owned by the Leichtag Foundation.

CEO Michael Hopkins answers questions leading up to the Encinitas City Council presentation.

In an article geared for students in grades 5-6, Time for Kids explains what it means for kids to “Remain in Mexico” as they seek asylum in the U.S. Lea Bush, Senior Director of Family & Community Services, is interviewed in this great overview for people just learning about this issue.

Coverage from our press conference with ACLU announcing our class-action lawsuit demanding access to legal representation for detained migrants who have expressed a fear of being returned to Mexico. The plaintiffs, a family from Guatemala, are represented by Jewish Family Service.

This in-depth video segment follows a day-in-the-life of Celina, a young mother living in her vehicle at our Safe Parking Program. With two kids and a third one on the way, Celina has a full-time job and is working hard to find affordable housing so her kids can go to school in the United States. The Safe Parking Program provides Celina was a safe place to sleep, a community to share her day with, a Housing Specialist, and many other supportive services that help her build a stable future.