JASA Volunteer Ventures Expo- June 7, 2011

JASA, the largest nonprofit organization in New York City serving older adults, is pleased to announce the annual JASA Volunteer Ventures Expo, a free conference and volunteer opportunities fair for adults 50+ on June 7th from 10am-1pm at UJA-Federation of New York, 130 E.59th Street. This event is being produced in association with UJA-Federation of New York, New York City Department for the Aging, NYC Service, New Yorkers Volunteer/State Commission on National and Community Service, Retired Senior Volunteer Program, New York Cares and The Transition Network.

JASA recognizes the immense talent and experience that older adults bring to nonprofit organizations. The JASA Volunteer Ventures Expo provides older adults with the opportunity to find dynamic and engaging volunteer and civic engagement programs in their communities, and connects New York City nonprofits with talented and experienced older adult volunteers.

At the JASA Volunteer Ventures Expo, adults 50+ from across the New York Metropolitan area will meet with representatives from top New York City nonprofit organizations. Volunteers and staff members from a wide variety of nonprofits including, advocacy, arts, environmental, faith-based and cultural organizations, will answer questions about volunteering with their organizations.
Since 1968, JASA and its affiliates, with its 3,000 staff and volunteers, have provided social, recreational, health, cultural and educational programs for older persons, regardless of their race, religion or ethnicity, to help sustain them in their homes and communities and to offer opportunities for a better quality of life. These services are available in Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, Bronx, Nassau and Suffolk Counties.

Admission to the Volunteer Ventures Expo is free for adults 50+, but advanced registration is required.

For more information about the Volunteer Ventures Expo or to register please visit http://www.jasa.org/ or call (212) 273-5222 or email lbelcic@jasa.org. Organizations interested in sponsoring a table at the Volunteer Opportunities Fair can also register at http://www.jasa.org/ or call (212) 273-5222 or email lbelcic@jasa.org.

NextAct: lively and engaging programs for adults 55+.  

Thursday, April 14th • 6 –7:30pm

WHAT NOW? FINDING YOUR LIFE’S WORK IN YOUR 50’S AND BEYOND

Speaker: Lynne Morton

Location: UJA-Federation of New York, 130 E. 59th Street

**A wine and cheese reception follows the event.

A must-attend event for anyone looking for meaningful employment or considering a career transition after age 50. An expert panel led by Lynne Morton, a globally recognized executive coach and expert on talent management, will provide tips and strategies for finding meaning in work and life in your next act. This panel also features Diane Levine of The Transition Network and Nancy Perlman of UJA Northern New Jersey.

Lynne Morton is a frequent speaker and author of Integrated and Integrative Talent Management: A Strategic HR Framework, Talent Value Imperatives and Differentiating Talent Management. Lynne recently received the HR Leadership Award at the World Human Resources Development Congress in Mumbai, India, in recognition of her accomplishments.

This event is $15 and requires advanced registration.

Please contact Sara Tornay at (212) 273-5304 or

stornay@jasa.org to register.

This event is co-sponsored by The Transition Network.

JASA has many programs for recently retired individuals, or those thinking about retirement. We know that you want to use your time wisely, pursue your passions, explore new interests, meet new people and have fun! JASA is committed to working with YOU as you plan for your NextAct. The Transition Network is an inclusive community of professional women 50 and forward whose changing life situations lead them to seek new connections, resources and opportunities.

JASA Participates in "Pack It Up For Purim!"

Every year Jews around the world celebrate Purim, commemorating the deliverance of the Jewish people in ancient Persia from Haman's plot to annihilate them.

As Jewish New Yorkers prepare to celebrate this special holiday, UJA-Federation is teaming up with Americorps'  to help defeat hunger in our community.

Pack It Up for Purim,  is a communitywide effort to create 1,000 food packages for needy New Yorkers. You too can become part of the Purim tradition of mishloach manot: to offer a food package to a neighbor.

JASA centers around the city will serve as drop-off sites for food packages from March 3 to March 10.

  
  Purim Package Shopping List:
  1 box of whole-grain cereal or oatmeal

  1 box of pasta

  1 can of vegetables (carrots, tomatoes, corn)

  1 bag of rice

  1 box of 100 percent fruit juice

  1 package of dried fruit or granola bars

  1 can of tuna
  1 package of dried beans (or canned beans or peas)
  1 jar of peanut butter (plastic containers only)

  1 dessert (non-perishable)

Team up with your neighbors, your friends, your family and arrange a package today. Then drop off your package at the most convenient JASA site starting March 3 thru March 10. Your generosity will provide a safety net for the impoverished in New York!



From JASA with LOVE this Valentine's Day

On Thursday morning, February 10th, 2011, a warm gesture was underway at JASA’s Club 76 despite the biting chill outside. Club-goers teamed up with members from TimeBanksNYC to make Valentine cards for patients at the Metropolitan Hospital.

TimeBanksNYC volunteers Shelly Simpson, Karen Martin, Chrissie Foo, Walter Richardson, and Nelly Hernandez arrived early for set-up. The table was neatly arranged with an array of art supplies and a box of kosher cookies. Before long, however, the table had transformed into the image of an artist’s palette with messy overlaps of colors and indistinguishable lines. Participants immersed themselves in all things card-making. Tamara Maas, Club 76’s Artist in Residence, enthusiastically cut away, designing creative and colorful cards for children. Meanwhile, Gert Steinberg, giving up an intense game of rummy, joined the table and made a handful of cards with heartfelt messages. Mel Stein, initially hesitant, quickly tapped into his artistic craft with the help of TimeBanksNYC’s Chrissie Foo. Among the card-makers were Judy Kronegold and Rose Tamari, who with a calm yet critical eye added detail after detail to their beautiful cards. The ornate cards were signed with love and encouraging wishes of a speedy recovery.

The event was overwhelmingly successful! Scores of beautiful cards were made and by the afternoon, they were on their way to the Metropolitan Hospital.

The project was initiated by TimeBanksNYC, a non-profit organization that connects individuals wanting to exchange skills and services. Similar projects will be held at TimeBanksNYC host sites around the city.

JASA would like to thank TimeBanksNYC for the partnership opportunity and we look forward to working with TimeBanksNYC and other organizations in projects that give back to and strengthen the communities we live in!

JASA TRAINS OLDER ADULTS TO BE EFFECTIVE ADVOCATES

Democracy requires an informed electorate, but it takes more than reading the newspaper to be a knowledgeable citizen. JASA’s Institute for Senior Action trains those 55+ to be advocates for issues affecting the elderly. The Institute for Senior Action program integrates critical aging policy issues with practical grassroots action ideas.

“It is important that seniors make their voices heard,” said Aileen Gittelson, JASA CEO. “The goal of JASA’s Institute for Senior Action is to help the elderly become informed advocates, speaking with authority and clarity on issues that directly affect them.” To date, more than 750 people have participated in the JASA program.

The 10-week course, which begins Thursday, March 17, focuses on: navigating the federal state, and local legislative processes; public speaking; understanding senior benefits and entitlements; techniques of social action; and intergenerational issues. The sessions will run every Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and will be held at the Hudson Guild Elliott Center, 441 West 26th Street, Manhattan.

To request an application, contact Bola Aribidesi,
Director of JASA’s Institute for Senior Action, 212-273-5261; ifsa@jasa.org.

Volunteer Spotlight On: Meish Goldish

Author, musician, and JASA volunteer Meish Goldish was the live entertainment for the Brooklyn Volunteer Expo and the JASA Senior Alliance Holiday Party. Mr. Goldish is an accomplished author who has published over 150 children’s books and has had several books of his poetry published by Scholastic. When he is not writing, he finds time to entertain as a musician and comedian.

On November 10th, Mr. Goldish was the live entertainment for the JASA Brooklyn Volunteer Expo at Brooklyn Borough Hall. Mr. Goldish played guitar and sang for four consecutive hours, stopping occasionally to introduce a new song or to select the winning ticket for a raffle. He entertained the audience with songs like the pseudo-Beatles cover Shalom, Shalom singing, “I don’t know why you say shalom, I say shalom.”

Mr. Goldish then accepted an invitation to play at the JASA Senior Alliance’s Holiday Party in Manhattan Beach on December 23rd. The set consisted of holiday songs, popular music, and traditional Yiddish folk songs. Mr. Goldish took requests from the center’s members for songs. One member even joined him on stage to play a traditional Russian ballad on the piano, while members danced traditional Yiddish dances.

The Volunteer Department would like to thank Mr. Goldish for all he has done for JASA and its members.



University of Mississippi Students Help Out at JASA

JASA was recently contacted by a group of college students from the University of Mississippi’s Honors College who, in the midst of planning a service trip to New York City, were looking to volunteer for two days with JASA. The students touched down in the city on December 11th, and on the 12th a group was off to attend the H.E.S. Senior Center holiday party. At the party, the students aided the H.E.S. staff in serving a multiple-course lunch. During their breaks from the kitchen, the students could be found on the dance floor, still clad in their aprons and plastic kitchen gloves. Caitlan Eeidt, the student group leader, said of the event, “It was a real joy to be a part of such a warm and festive event…We dreaded leaving, nor did they want us to!”

The following Monday, the students could be found at two of our other senior centers, one group up in the Bronx at Van Cortlandt Senior Center, and another down in Coney Island at the Luna Park Senior Center. At Van Cortlandt, the students helped with a craft project while socializing with the center’s members, then donned aprons and helped serve up lunch.
    
The Luna Park group spent time sitting with the center members, learning about life in Coney Island and sharing stories about their own hometowns. After serving lunch, the students accompanied center director Adrienne Slomin to Urban Neighborhood Services Inc., a local community organization. For the past weeks, members of the Luna Park Senior Center had been collecting coats to donate to UNS, and the delegation from Luna Park and their donations were well-received. One member of Luna Park, Morris, joined the students on a walk around Coney Island. “On the way, he showed them the home that he grew up in and some of the many Coney Island attractions he enjoyed as a teen, and the new ones that he enjoys now,” said Ms. Slomin.

“While other groups from our Honors College Sophomore Service trip did service projects including picking up litter and sorting books,” said Caitlan Eeidt, “I know that the groups that visited each of the JASA centers had an experience like none other.”