Edith and Carl Marks Jewish Community House of Bensonhurst

The Edith and Carl Marks Jewish Community House of Bensonhurst (known as the JCH, sometimes called "the J")[1][2] was incorporated in 1927[3] and has helped over one million Jews in the Bensonhurst section of New York City's borough of Brooklyn. It initially served as a community center for Eastern European Jewish immigrants and their children. As the complexion of the Jewish community in Bensonhurst changed, its community center changed in accord. During the 1940s and 1950s, a large influx of Syrian Jews immigrated to the area. It was during this period that Sandy Koufax, the son of Jewish immigrants, played on the basketball courts of the JCH. In the 1980s, a third wave of immigrants, this time from the former Soviet Union, once again shifted the focus of the community center.

Services

The JCH offers social service programs, including Nutrition Outreach and Education Program, financial and mental health counseling, citizenship application aid, Family Violence Prevention Program, Hurricane Assistance Center, and LGBT Refugee Center.[4] For the third wave (from Eastern Europe), much of their work with adults focuses on housing and job search.[5] Many of these beneficiaries came with training, education and valuable skills, but in some cases age and new health issues created new needs for help.[6]

At times they assist in end-of-life situations.[7]

Children

The community center focuses a lot on children and teens; establishing after school aid programs, tutoring classes, summer camps, Farber-Bruch early childhood center, Zehut teen center, and a Cammarata youth sports center.[8]

Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax

Former members

References
  1. Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska (December 17, 2013). "After Losing His Mother and His Health, a Man Takes Shaky Steps to Recovery". The New York Times.
  2. Stephanie Rosenbloom (November 13, 2004). "The Neediest Cases; Comforting Children Who've Had a Devastating Loss". The New York Times.
  3. "Fall Opening; 71 Units for the Elderly Poor". The New York Times. June 14, 1992.
  4. "Social Services, Counseling, Citizenship - Brooklyn, NY | JC H". Brooklyn, NY | JCH. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
  5. Jed Lipinski (November 30, 2011). "In Brooklyn, Surviving Loss of Job and Sight". The New York Times.
  6. John Otis (November 22, 2018). "She Had a Cold Life Above the Arctic Circle. Now Community Keeps Her Warm". The New York Times.
  7. John Otis (November 10, 2014). "A Final Tribute for a Daughter Who Died From a Secret Illness". The New York Times.
  8. "Children & Teens Programs, Activities - Brooklyn, NY | JCH". Brooklyn, NY | JCH. Retrieved 2017-06-22.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.