A Community Conversation on Mental Illness - January 29

YAD Hosts Fabulous Place2Be

The Federation's Young Adult Division hosted its annual Place2Be at the House of Blues this Christmas Eve. This year’s Place2Be brought Jews together to eat delicious kosher food, drink, mingle and dance the night away. More than 350 Jews partied in style on Tuesday night with family and friends. Joseph Berman, event attendee reports “It was great to have a place to go on Christmas Eve, when otherwise I would have been sitting at home, lonely on my couch.”

The soiree featured a House of Blues DJ, an Israeli themed candy bar, a mardi gras themed photo booth and more! Party-goer Sarah Hoffman said, “There was no place I’d rather be than the Place2Be!”

Place2BE is part of Federation's efforts to build a vibrant Jewish community for young adults in San Diego. This year the party also promoted two Federation initiatives, Tribefest and Birthright. Check out pictures from the event here and here. If you want more information about these great YAD events, Tribefest or Birthright, please contact Carlye@jewishfederationsandiego.org.

Your Dollars at Work - Federation Goes to Washington

In 2013, your Federation dollars supported important legilisative efforts at the national level. As a resounding voice on behalf of the Jewish community, the Jewish Federations of North America's Washington office works tirelessly in promoting policies, programs and practices that benefit our Jewish community. Each year, JFNA’s Washington office establishes public policy and program priorities that reflect the needs and concerns of the Federations and their beneficiary agencies on an array of issues.

William Daroff, VP of Public Policy at JFNA said "JFNA and our partners – including advocates representing a broad range of Jewish communities, religious streams, social service providers and public policy organizations – work day in and day out with policy makers on Capitol Hill and in the Obama Administration to further the goals of our communities."

William Daroff, VP Public Policy - JFNA

In spite of the political stalemate and divisiveness within the US Congress this past year—the most notable manifestation being the 16-day partial shutdown of the federal government—JFNA succeeded on a number of noteworthy fronts and laid the foundation for additional achievements in 2014. These successes came about through the confluence of direct advocacy, collaborations, and synergies, including significant efforts by the Federation field to advocate with elected officials. Read about these accomplishments below - click for more information!

Summary of 2013 Domestic Policy Accomplishments

Health, Aging, and Long-Term Care Services

• JFNA introduced the Responding to the Urgent Needs of Survivors of the Holocaust Act and created a new partnership with the White House to address the needs of Holocaust survivors living in poverty in the United States.
  
• JFNA positioned itself this year as a vocal proponent for cost-effective reforms to the Medicare and Medicaid programs that enhance the quality of care, and several of JFNA’s recommendations were in fact included in the Federal Commission on Long-Term Care Report to Congress.
  
• JFNA played a leading role in securing the introduction of the Behavioral Health Information Technology Act, which would authorize government programs that offer financial incentives to create electronic healthcare records and improve communications among providers.
  
• With JFNA support, the Senate Finance Committee approved legislation to permanently repeal physical, speech, and occupational therapy caps within the Medicare program. In the interim, the budget agreement that Congress is set to consider includes a three-month moratorium on such therapy caps.
  
• With JFNA support, the Senate Finance Committee approved legislation to bolster community mental health providers, such as Jewish Family & Children’s Agencies.

Charitable Giving & Incentives

• Regular lobbying by JFNA-prepared Jewish groups at White House meetings contributed to a new willingness on the part of the Administration to “compromise” and “potentially abandon” its proposal to decrease the tax deductibility of charitable contributions.
  
• JFNA lobbying helped to secure the extension of the IRA charitable rollover through the end of 2013, resulting in over $10 million in additional rollover contributions to Federations this year.

Disability Inclusion and Independence

• JFNA made it a priority to introduce the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act of 2013, which would create private savings incentives for people with disabilities and their families.
  
• JFNA is one of the leading faith-based organizations advocating in the Senate for ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
  
• Partnering with the Ruderman Family Foundation, JFNA established a new matching grant program to create employment opportunities for young individuals with disabilities at JFNA and five Federations nationwide in 2014.

Disaster & Emergency Relief and Protecting the Economically Vulnerable

• In 2013, JFNA led efforts to secure an additional $10 million for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, $9 million of which was awarded to enhance the physical security of Jewish communal institutions in 21 high-risk areas across the nation.
  
• JJFNA maintained its leading role in advocating for the Emergency Food and Shelter Program’s annual allocation, helping to avert a $20 million cut in the program.
  
• During the past calendar year, the JFNA Emergency Committee’s top priority remained responding to Superstorm Sandy, including $2.6 million in aid.

Federal Budget & Appropriations

• JFNA was vocal all year against certain across-the-board cuts mandated by Sequestration. At year’s end, Congress agreed to a modest budget deal that will provide a two-year, short-term relief to the cuts, which may help to alleviate some of the more devastating cuts to safety-net programs.

 Advocacy & Capacity Building Initiatives

• In 2013, JFNA launched the “HSPP Ambassador Program,” which brings trained lay leaders to communities to hold interactive discussions about domestic human service needs and trends and the work of JFNA’s Washington office.

William Daroff, Vice President for Public Policy and Director of the Washington Office of the Jewish Federations of North America, is a leading advocate for the American Jewish community’s agenda in the nation’s capitol. As the chief lobbyist and principal spokesperson on public policy and international affairs for the 154 Jewish federations and more than 300 independent communities, Daroff ensures that the voice of Jewish federations is a prominent force on Capitol Hill and in the Executive Branch. He can be found on Twitter at @Daroff

Save the Date - Lou Dunst: My Bargain with G-d

JCC Presents: Take the Guesswork Out of Parenting

Federations Responds to New Iran Sanctions Legislation

"We applaud all efforts to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.  We share your conviction that a nuclear Iran is unacceptable. Of course all of us would prefer to prevent a nuclear Iran through diplomatic means and given Iran's record of duplicity, we need to be as vigilant in verifying Iran's adherence to the provisions of the accord as it was in pursuing it. Further, we continue to believe that all options, including an intensification of economic sanctions, must remain on the table in order to ensure that Iran is never able achieve a nuclear weapons capability."  said Michael Sonduck, President and CEO of Federation.

From JFNA:
The Jewish Federations of North America support the bipartisan introduction of the Nuclear Weapon Free Iran Act in the United States Senate today. If negotiations with Iran for a comprehensive agreement fail or if Iran violates the terms of the interim agreement with the P5+1, the legislation would impose tougher sanctions aimed at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

"We believe a diplomatic solution to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capacity, a threat to the entire world, is vital. We stand firmly with President Obama as he and our P5+1 allies seek to negotiate a comprehensive agreement," said Michael Siegal, chair of the JFNA Board of Trustees.

"We recognize economic sanctions have been successful in bringing Iran to the negotiating table, as well as in expressing the resolve of the global community," Siegal added. "The threat of additional sanctions, with the appropriate Presidential waivers in this legislation, ensures that Iran knows this and all other options are on the table should negotiations fail."

The Senate bill is consistent with the resolution passed by the Jewish Federations last month, after the JFNA General Assembly in Jerusalem, which called for the "complete dismantling of Iran’s capability of producing nuclear weapons."

We are encouraging Senators to co-sponsor the legislation, and to swiftly pass it upon their return to Washington in January.

Dr. Ruth Calderon of the Knesset Hosts Special Briefing at Federation

Michael Sonduck, Ruth Calderon and Debbie Kornberg

On Thursday, December 12, Jewish Federation of San Diego County was proud host to Member of Knesset Dr. Ruth Calderon for a special briefing. Calderon, a member of the Yesh Atid Party, is the Deputy Speaker of the Knesset, serving on the State Control Committee, member of the Education and Culture Committee and Acting Chair for the Lobby of Jewish Renewal. 

Calderon’s pioneering work to pave the way in religious pluralism has contributed to the changing nature of Israeli civil society. While most new MK’s discuss their political aspirations in their inaugural address in the Knesset, Calderon chose words of Torah and emphasized the importance of uniting all Jews and showing how all of us --, both secular and religious -- can learn from one another.

During her talk at Federation, Calderon spoke of the Jewish renaissance taking place in Israel. She discussed her efforts as a Knesset member to make the state more democratic, while acknowledging the challenges of navigating religious pluralism in a Jewish state. 

It was an honor to host Calderon, and to hear her discuss her journey from a “nondenominational Jewish” home, to an academic career in Talmudic studies, and finally a to her position in the forefront of Israeli politics as a Knesset member. Her unique perspective on moving Israel forward while staying true to the religious and Zionist values encouraged thoughtful questions and dialogue, as she reminded the audience that each of us has a part in the story of Israel.

Ruth holding her newly English
translated edition, Bride for One Night

It is with deep gratitude that Federation acknowledges and thanks Rabbi Gilad Kariv, the Executive Director for the Israel Movement for Progressive and Reform Judaism (IMPJ) for his efforts in coordinating the morning briefing with MK Ruth Calderon. The Israel Movement for Reform & Progressive Judaism (IMPJ) is the umbrella organization of all the Reform communities and institutions in Israel. They seek to integrate Jewish tradition with the realities of modern life, and believe in the right of each individual to shape their own Jewish way of life through a process of study and reflection. The Reform movement emphasizes the commandments concerning relations between humans, religious tolerance, and full equality between women and men in the synagogue and in all walks of life.