Program spotlight: JFS Volunteer Services
This month, we’re excited to spotlight our Volunteer Services department. We sat down with JFS Volunteer Services Manager Marissa Greene to learn about this remarkable team and their work throughout JFS and our communities.
Meet our Denver Volunteer of the Year
Since 2011, Fran Cohen has shared more than 1,350 hours of her time volunteering for JFS with her dedication to the ACC Friendly Visitor program, the Weinberg Food Pantry, Bright Holidays, and more. We are honored to announce Fran as this year’s JFS Denver Volunteer of the Year Award recipient. Read about how Fran truly personifies the spirit of JFS.
Building strong social connections
We have two volunteer opportunities to help build connections with older adults and help prevent social isolation—both of which are essential to promoting a healthy lifestyle. Get involved, foster friendships, have fun, and do good throughout our Boulder community!
Fostering intergenerational friendships and reducing loneliness
If you are looking for a way to make a real impact on the life of a local person, consider joining our Friendly Visitor program. Friendly visitors are matched with an older adult or an adult with a disability for weekly visits or phone calls.
So many ways to do good
At JFS, our volunteers use their strengths to make a difference inside of JFS and throughout their community. They step up and find ways to make life better for those who rely on JFS and help us adapt to meet the needs of those facing hardships and challenges. If you would like to join our dedicated volunteer team, we have an opportunity for you!
Become a Best Buddy
At JFS, our volunteers’ efforts can be seen and felt throughout the organization and community every day, and we are so thankful for their commitment. If you’re a Jewish adult and interested in creating deeper friendships and connections with other Jewish adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, we have opportunities for you!
Volunteer Satisfaction Survey Results
Thanks to all of you who completed the annual volunteer satisfaction survey last month. Your feedback will help JFS to improve the volunteer service program and other programs. The survey is not one and done, of course. Please know that Volunteer Services wants to hear from you - both the challenges and the successes.
Meet our Volunteer of the Year
Since 2015, Eve Verderber has shared more than 728 hours of her time volunteering for JFS with her dedication to the Boulder Advisory Committee, Golden West Ambassador, and Friendly Visitor programs and holiday celebrations and the Reel Hope event. We are honored to announce Eve as this year’s JFS Boulder Volunteer of the Year Award recipient. Read about how Eve truly personifies the spirit of JFS.
Do a Little Good
At JFS, we couldn’t help our neighbors thrive without our volunteers—both within the agency and throughout the community.
Friendly Visitor program: neighbors helping neighbors
The JFS Friendly Visitor program promotes connection, engagement, and fun between older adults and volunteers. Volunteers are individually matched with an older adult to provide an hour or so of companionship each week. Our volunteers find that they establish a rich connection with the individuals they meet. We ask our volunteers for a minimum commitment of six months, which gives them time to develop a relationship and form a bond.
Volunteering through generations
At JFS, we couldn’t help our neighbors thrive without the help of our volunteers—both within the agency and throughout the community. It’s exciting to see how we’re experiencing different generations of volunteers working together, making a difference just like their families have done throughout the organization and beyond. Recently, JFS clients were the beneficiaries of Carter, Wyatt, and Brody’s mitzvah projects as part of their bar mitzvah preparations.
Volunteers needed for the Boulder Jewish Festival
Join JFS Boulder at the 25th annual Boulder Jewish Festival on Sunday, June 12. Volunteers are needed at the JFS booth to help set up, work the booth, and tear down at the end of the event.
Shout-out to our volunteers!
At JFS, we often talk about how we could not do what we do without the work of our volunteers. It’s not a secret that JFS has some of the most dedicated and compassionate volunteers any organization could hope to have. Our volunteers’ efforts can be seen and felt throughout the organization and community. While we appreciate our volunteers every day, during National Volunteer Appreciation Week, this remarkable group of people deserves to be recognized for their impact and celebrated for their commitment to JFS.
Fighting Food Insecurity While Inflation Rises
March is National Nutrition Month, and it was created to call attention to making informed food choices and developing healthy eating habits. It’s also an excellent time to talk about JFS’s Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Food Pantry.
Voices of JFS: Jill Miller
Jill Miller and her family have a long history of volunteering with JFS. We talked with Jill to learn more about how she got started, her involvement with the organization, and why she chooses to spend her time helping JFS. Let’s learn about Jill’s dedication to JFS in her own words.
Thank You to Boulder JCC for Partnering in Fire Relief Efforts
Almost immediately after the Marshall Fire ended and the crisis emerged as many Boulder-area residents found themselves homeless, the Boulder JCC mobilized a community of volunteers to help JFS Boulder staff handle the large influx of people coming for help. JCC consultant Susan Rona shares how and why she and the JCC team quickly jumped into action to support JFS and the fire victims.
Helping Refugees Feel Safe and Protected
When Ellie, a seventh grader preparing for her bat mitzvah, heard about JFS helping to resettle Afghan refugees, she wanted to make a difference. As she learned about the struggles facing these newly resettled refugees, Ellie saw an opportunity to help women and created a meaningful mitzvah project.
Be Merry, Be Bright
The JFS Bright Holidays program began more than 20 years ago as a giving tree at Graland Country Day School. Every December since then, the holiday spirit spreads throughout the community and people’s hearts, as the program flourishes each year.
JFS Para-chaplain Work: Full of Surprising Encounters and Rewarding Opportunities
Joe Lukasik, a volunteer for more than a decade, shares his experiences and encourages others to become a volunteer para-chaplain.
Thank You to Corporate Days of Service Volunteers
A big thank-you to groups from Xcel Energy and Denver Community Credit Union who recently volunteered at JFS as part of their corporate Days of Service! See what each company’s employees shared about their positive experiences giving back to the community they serve.