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JSSA’s Fall Event, Billy Joel - Elton John Face 2 Face Tribute Show
Feet on the Pedals!
Reflections from JSSA’s New President
Sixty-One Years and Counting
JSSA Shines!
A Sweet and Special Holiday Delivery
A Financial Snapshot
A Philanthropic Role Reversal
Hand in Hand with The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington
Welcome to JSSA!
JSSA 2011–2012 Board of Directors

JSSA’s Fall Event, Billy Joel - Elton John Face 2 Face Tribute Show

Save the Date! Sunday, December 4, 2011. JSSA presents The Billy Joel – Elton John Face 2 Face Tribute Show at the Woodmont Country Club in Rockville, Maryland. For sponsorship and ticket information please contact Lesley Schrier at 301-610-8342 or lschrier@jssa.org. Click here to view event information.

Feet on the Pedals!


Ken Kozloff, CEO

At the High Holidays we are reminded to reflect on where we have been and where we are going. At JSSA, we know that keeping our agency vital and secure is even more critical during this time of economic difficulty and widespread unemployment. Our mission to help all those who turn to us in need regardless of their religious or economic background must remain our primary focus. As an avid biker, I’m especially fond of Albert Einstein’s quote, “Life is like riding a bicycle – in order to keep your balance, you must keep moving.” This metaphor describes exactly what we at JSSA have been doing this past year – keeping our balance while continually finding ways to move forward. We have introduced many innovative new services, we have greatly expanded our visibility, and we continue to build strong community partnerships across Maryland, DC and Virginia. Our unwavering drive to serve as many in our community as possible has resulted in an unprecedented 20% increase in individuals and families served this year compared to last.

To paraphrase Einstein, we know we must maintain our balance by moving forward diligently in every way. From the board of directors to senior management to volunteers and all levels of staff, we wholeheartedly embrace this challenge. Join us on the journey in whatever capacity you choose – charitable giving, volunteering, helping plan special events or providing pro bono professional services - just a few of the many giving opportunities available to JSSA supporters.

Keep an eye on JSSA. I promise you that we will do more than move forward – together we will reach new heights! Wishing you and yours a very happy and sweet New Year.

Reflections from JSSA’s New President

I am truly honored to take the helm of an institution that for more than 118 years has served as our community’s premier safety net organization. Annually, JSSA now helps nearly 35,000


	Cherie Artz, Board President

individuals throughout the greater DC area. Our clients range from the very young to the most frail elderly among us, with their needs covering a broad range of emotional, social, and physical challenges.

While the gavel passes to me as the incoming president, the daunting task of carrying JSSA’s critical work forward falls on every one of us. I cannot do this alone. All of us on the Board of Directors, as well as JSSA's many generous supporters in our community, must work together to clearly define our roles so that we can most effectively address all the needs of this wonderful organization.

I strongly believe in the positive power of successful partnerships – both within JSSA and within our community at large. In addition to establishing policies that promote JSSA's long-term strength, our Board is here to take the lead on educating our family, friends, colleagues and neighbors about the critical work JSSA professionals do each and every day. I also invite community members not serving on the Board to partner with us in promoting JSSA, whether through sitting on a Board committee, volunteering, or making a financial contribution. We can all encourage others to refer to JSSA services and programs and to contribute financially. We can – and we will – ensure that JSSA goes on supporting those most in need in our community. Everyone can make a difference! Together we will carry the agency’s life-sustaining work forward for the next 118 years, ensuring that JSSA’s sacred mission of healing and nurturing endures. Shana Tova Umetukah. May you and your loved ones have a happy, healthy and very sweet year, filled with many reasons to celebrate!

Sixty-One Years and Counting...

Sixty-one years. That’s the number of combined years Suzy and Sol Levy have been serving JSSA. The couple was introduced to JSSA through the Federation Young Leadership Program, they got involved and never looked back.


Sol Levy

Over the years, Suzy and Sol served on and chaired various committees, with Board terms spanning four executive directors.

In 1989, the couple received JSSA’s Jac J. Lehrman-George M. Pikser Volunteer Service Award. The honor is one of many high points in their experiences with JSSA.

Suzy has been volunteering for 22 years as a Meals on Wheels driver for JSSA through the B’nai Israel Congregation Sisterhood. Meanwhile, Sol, a retired Captain in the U.S Public Health Service, has been volunteering since the early 80s delivering Passover, Rosh Hashanah and Thanksgiving baskets to frail seniors.


	Suzy Levy

Our community is fortunate that the Levys’ involvement has enriched several agencies at once. Sol, experienced as chairman of JSSA’s Aging Committee, also represented JSSA for many years on the Jewish Council for the Aging (JCA) board. Suzy, a trained speech pathologist, taught Hebrew school for over 20 years at several synagogue schools and at Sh’ma V’ezer, a community special needs program. She was the first chair of the JSSA Board’s Committee on Outreach to Disabled Persons and their Families, continuing for 12 years in this role. Suzy and her committee evaluated local Jewish institutions (including JSSA) for accessibility of facilities and programming, opening eyes to new needs.

Suzy also chaired the first JSSA subcommittee to investigate establishing group homes for disabled adults. Ultimately, the idea was approved and became the mission of a new community agency, Jewish Foundation for Group Homes (JFGH), which Suzy then served as executive vice president. In fact, the JFGH charter was signed at the Levys’ kitchen table.

In addition to the Levys’ passion for the Jewish community, they are passionate about their family -- two children who grew up volunteering alongside them -- and now three grandchildren as well. Looking back on their long dedication to JSSA, Sol says, “We have used JSSA’s services. There is no question who we would turn to for help.” Suzy notes, “We believe in the mission of JSSA – that’s why we stay involved. JSSA keeps to its core commitment to the community. That’s important.”

JSSA Shines!

Staff members and programs at JSSA have been honored recently by several community and professional organizations. Our agency is very proud to have won the following awards:


Mutual of America Award Recipients, Dawn Kaye (JSSA) and Melissa Hochberg (JCCNV)

The Federation’s Ted Farber Award recognizes a local Jewish communal professional or inter-agency team who has made an outstanding contribution to Jewish community-building in Greater Washington. JSSA’s Dawn Kaye was named a recipient for her partnership with JCCNVstaff in creating the innovative Going Places! Social Club for young adults with Asperger’s syndrome, now in its third year.

Going Places! was also selected for the Mutual of America Award honoring the contributions made to society by nonprofit organizations in partnership with public, private and other social sector organizations.


	IAJVS Honors Judy Smith

The Benjamin Loewenstein Award of the International Association of Jewish Vocational Services (IAJVS) Award honors a professional in the IAJVS network who has exhibited an exceptional commitment to the field. Judy Smith, JSSA Career Coach in Employment and Career Services, received this honor for her innovative approach, enthusiasm and dedication to the betterment of the community in a time of crisis, which has made a significant difference to hundreds of community members.

The Gazette Top 25 CEO Award honors Maryland business leaders for the success of their companies and their charitable work in the community. CEO Ken Kozloff has been named one of the 25 CEOs You Need to Know by The Gazette of Politics and Business. Read the Gazette article.

For the third year in a row, JSSA remains a Charity Navigator 4 star rated nonprofit organization. Keeping administration and fundraising costs low, 87.8 percent of every dollar donated directly supports our programs and services, impacting individuals and families in need daily. Charity Navigator, America's premier independent charity evaluator, works to advance a more efficient and responsive philanthropic marketplace by evaluating the financial health of over 5,500 of America's largest charities. Help us continue to minimize costs -make your next donation online!

A Sweet and Special Holiday Delivery


The Zemel Family

Every year, JSSA partners with Ohr Kodesh Congregation and other area synagogues to provide 500 Rosh Hashanah baskets to community members who might otherwise be unable to celebrate with symbolic holiday foods. Ohr Kodesh congregants of all ages have been a critical part of the success of this program, underwriting 200 baskets and donating their time to coordinate many details of this project, including procuring the kosher items and assembling the baskets. The baskets are delivered by dedicated JSSA volunteers and volunteer groups from area congregations to grateful individuals and families.

This year, baskets were delivered to 500 individuals and families on Sunday, September 25. Many thanks to all the wonderful donors and volunteers for sweetening the new year for so many.

Interested in joining this community-wide effort? IIndividuals, families and groups can help make all holidays a little sweeter for those in need by sponsoring and/or helping deliver holiday baskets. If you or your group would like to help, please contact Keren Korman at 301-610-8395 or kkorman@jssa.org.

A Financial Snapshot

Numbers tell the story of the value of our services, the client’s rising need for assistance and where JSSA stands overall financially.

The program service fees provided 46% of JSSA’s revenue in FY2011. Of that, $723,134, or over 10%, was provided to clients at a reduced rate or at no charge.
Contributions overall, including contribution to the Endowment, are down by 21% from 2010. This clearly illustrates the impact of the downturn on our economy has had on JSSA’s public support.

87% of the total Salaries and Benefits ($10,239,888) funds JSSA employees who provide direct services to our clients. The remaining 13% supports Management & General and Fundraising. Note: Percentages on graph note percentage of JSSA’s total expenses.
Direct program expenses are the expenses associated with providing direct care to our clients.
Financial assistance includes emergency financial assistance, charity care in the form of sliding scale fees to those with a demonstrated need, and scholarships.

A Philanthropic Role Reversal

Anyone connected to a nonprofit organization knows how difficult it can be to receive grants. Most of the time, nonprofits seek out grants from funders. But in late 2009, JSSA experienced a rare reversal of the grantseeking roles when we received a call from Suzanne Oliwa, Executive Director of the Wolpoff Family Foundation, asking us how their foundation could help JSSA accomplish its important work.

The Wolpoff Family Foundation’s mission is attracting, supporting and motivating established organizations that demonstrate true vision. It champions organizations that create opportunities for others through learning something new, stimulating creativity, strengthening community or advancing research.

After initial conversations with JSSA, the foundation awarded our agency a generous grant of $50,000 for clients in need of emergency financial assistance. The following year, a grant of $25,000 helped to fund JSSA’s popular Job Search Boot Camp, a two-day intensive course offered monthly for people in career transitions of all kinds. This coming year, the foundation will again fund a grant of $50,000 to support JSSA's employment and career services.

Carol Wolpoff, Vice Chairman of the Foundation, is a trained counselor with a career development background. “I know the pain and anguish people go through when they’re displaced,” she says. The foundation’s other trustees are Harry Wolpoff, Chairman; Sharon Wolpoff, Grants Committee Director; Adrienne Wolpoff, Donors Committee Director, and Ron Staines, CPA, Chief Financial Officer.

Carol says, “Our goal for the foundation is to help people help themselves, or help other organizations who do the same thing.”

Harry explains, “Each of us has always been philanthropic, but not in an organized way. In 2007 I was involved in dissolving a law practice, which gave my family an opportunity to create a foundation. We enjoy visiting the organizations we fund to see what they’re doing and how we can help them achieve their goals.

“JSSA is doing a phenomenal job,” he said. “I didn’t realize how many different problems the agency is capable of addressing. The services are very professionally run.”

Through frequent contact and communication, JSSA and the Wolpoff Family Foundation have formed a truly gratifying partnership – one based on mutual concerns, an honest approach to finding solutions, and a sincere desire to empower the people in our community.

Hand in Hand with Federation

Great partnerships can accomplish so much! Think of Bogey and Bacall or Fred and Ginger on the silver screen, Watson and Crick discovering the structure of DNA and the Wright brothers designing the first airplane. Here in the Jewish community of Greater Washington, an example of a successful partnership is The Jewish Federation and JSSA. This past year, our two agencies have collaborated on several important community projects designed to connect individuals to the wonderful resources in our Jewish community of over 1500 square miles.

Two projects in particular are JLink and the new Jconnect website portal. In just one year, the free JLink program, staffed by JSSA career specialists and counselors, has helped many of the unemployed in our community improve their job search skills and form strategies to help them get back to work. With funding from The Jewish Federation’s Community Crisis Assistance Fund, JSSA was able to offer a broad range of JLink services including career counseling and financial assistance to those most directly impacted by the economic downturn. Dedicated to making accessibility of services a priority, JLink operates in six locations throughout Maryland, the District and Northern Virginia.

The Jconnect website an even newer feature of our community, is your single gateway to everything Jewish in Greater Washington. The Jconnect site, launched in September, was developed by Federation working jointly with community organizations such as JSSA, congregations, day schools and others in order to offer a central online location for searchable information about our community. Through Jconnect, community programs and services, events, job postings, volunteer opportunities, a virtual Israel Center and so much more are now at the fingertips of all who seek to participate in local Jewish life.

The wonderful partnership between The Jewish Federation and JSSA exemplifies that together we can accomplish more for our community than any one of us accomplishes alone. We are proud of this partnership and optimistic about all that our two organizations will continue to achieve together for our community.

Welcome to JSSA!


Lori Schor Ulanow

We are pleased to welcome Lori Schor Ulanow and Shira Oler to JSSA’s Development Department.

Lori Schor Ulanow joins our team as JSSA's Chief Development Officer. Lori will oversee a wide range of development activities--annual giving, planned giving, special appeals, special events, cultivation of new and potential donors, stewardship of existing donors, grants and government contracts. Bringing more than 25 years of professional experience in charitable and political fundraising to JSSA, Lori worked for 21 years at the American Hospital Association, where she was responsible for significantly increasing the financial resources of its political action committee (AHAPAC), the second largest health care PAC in the country. Prior to AHA, Lori raised funds for AMPAC, the political action committee of the American Medical Association. As an active community member, Lori has been involved as a volunteer fundraiser for UJA Federation, Capital Camps and Retreat Center, the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School and Giving Together, which funds local charities assisting women and children. She has a BA in Public Administration from Miami (OH) University and a Master of Public Administration (MPA) from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University. Lori brings a vast professional experience, a diverse skill set and strong leadership qualities to JSSA. Our senior management team, board of directors and the development staff are delighted to welcome Lori to JSSA and we are confident that her enthusiasm and knowledge will bring new momentum to our fundraising efforts.


	Shira Oler

We are also delighted to welcome Shira Oler to JSSA’s Development Department as the Director of Planned Giving and Major Gifts. Shira will be a key innovator in managing JSSA’s Planned Giving Program and will be responsible for defining and expanding the program through the identification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship of current and prospective donors, the management of planned giving materials and the creation of partnerships with essential third parties. Shira has more than 20 years of professional fundraising experience. She comes to JSSA from Suburban Hospital in Bethesda where she has worked since 2000 as the Director of Leadership Giving. In addition to her work on Major Gifts and Planned Giving; she was responsible for the hospital’s $85m campaign activities. Among her many accomplishments during her term at Suburban Hospital , Shira stewarded the receipt of more than $8m in bequests; solicited and closed multiple 6- and 7-figure gifts; established the charitable gift annuity program; and grew the hospital’s legacy society from 22 members in 2000 to 126 in 2011. Shira is a graduate of the University of Maryland, College Park and began her career as a school teacher in Howard County. She is active in her professional community having served as the president of the National Capital Gift Planning Council from 2008-2010. She and her husband are active members of B’nai Shalom of Olney where Shira is also a past president of the congregation.

JSSA 2011–2012 Board of Directors

Executive Committee
President Cherie Artz
First Vice President Jeffrey Abramson
Vice President Leslie Shedlin
Vice President Lawrence Kline
Secretary Sandy Sellers
Treasurer Mark Ellenbogen
Assistant Treasurer Russell Bregman
Member At Large Harriet Tritell
Member At Large Steven Suissa

Board

Abbey, Frederick	Haskin, Richard	Samakow, Susan
Abramson, Jeffrey F.	Hoffmann, Susan	Scheinberg, David
Artz, Cherie B.	Kaplan, Leslie	Schnitzer, Rabbi Jonathan
Bart, Linda	Kaplan, Nancy	Seested, Vic
Bergner, Jane C.	Kline, Lawrence	Segal, Mark
Bernad, Martha	Krauthamer, Harold	Sellers, Sandra A.
Bindeman, Martha K.	Lebbin, Deborah	Shedlin, Leslie
Bregman, Russell	Levy, Captain Sol	Silverman, Leslie
Brodsky, Cathy	Levy, Suzanne	Sunshine, Suzanne
Chasen, Lyn	Nannes, Carole	Swire, Andrew
Cooper, Edward	Normandy Dolberg, Jan	Tritell, Harriet Q.
Eichler, Stephen	Oppenheim, Judith	Turnbull, Susan W.
Ellenbogen, Mark	Ottenstein, Grant	Waldstreicher, Jeffrey
Finfer, Robert E.	Perlis, Barry R.	Weinberg, Jonathan
Gottlieb, Sherri	Priven, Lew	Youngentob, Stuart
Green, Scott	Rothenberg, Steve
Greenhouse, Steven	Rothman, Howard