Gmach

Non-profit volunteer organization (President: Rabbi Hershy Ten) helping people in need of health care in the Greater LA area. Furnishes apartments for visiting patients and families, provides home-cooked meals, coordinates discounts with local grocers and eateries, connects patients with physicians and rabbinical authorities, provides transportation to medical centers and airports, manages blood donor programs, subsidizes exams/medications/equipment, and offers visitation and support for patients and seniors.

Assistance for those dealing with drug abuse and alcohol abuse.

Adult and children's clothing available to those in need.

Serving Jewish children, teens and young adults with special needs, including developmental disabilities, learning disabilities, and attention deficit disorder. Etta Israel sponsors special educational services in most yeshivos and day schools, as well as stand-alone classes and a Talmud Torah. Shabbatons and social activities are geared to a range of ages and interests, while parent and sibling support programs help the family. Many Etta Israel programs are staffed by high school volunteers from area yeshivos and high schools.

Information and services for people with HIV and their families.

College scholarships for Jewish students in the Los Angeles area.

Information and aid for recent immigrants.

Counseling for the Orthodox community by Orthodox therapists.

We are a small group of highly dedicated volunteers focused on the belief that just because someone has made a mistake he/she should not be forgotten and written off by society. We believe the ancient sage who wrote: “helping the imprisoned is the loftiest of all charitable acts, superseding all other forms….” (Maimonides 1135-1204 C.E) Initially launched under the sponsorship of B’nai B’rith and now an independent entity, JPSI has grown to the point where we have volunteers across the country providing direct services to prisoners throughout the United States, Canada, England, France, Israel and Poland. Our volunteers come from all walks of life — businessmen, correctional facility employees, educators, lawyers, professionals, rabbis, even a judge. In addition, we have ex-offenders who, in the past, were recipients of the group’s help. Upon completion of their sentencing, they have joined JPSI to assist in maintaining our numerous outreach programs. One of our most notable successes is our professionally conducted Marriage Enrichment Seminar. This two-day program for Jewish prisoners and their wives is produced by Larry Karlin, JPSI vice-chairman, and conducted by Dr. Bernard Guerney, a former Pennsylvania State University professor of human development. He has adapted his “Relationship Enhancement Program” specifically to reduce the high rate of divorces attributed to the trauma of forced separation that is part and parcel of the incarceration experience. Also, in the past two years, we have matched hundreds of Jewish prisoners with compatible pen-pals. We have continued our holiday greeting card program in which we send Rosh Hashanah, Pesach and Hanukkah cards to prisoners so that they may, in turn, send them out to their family and friends. This helps them to maintain contact with their family and gives them a feeling of inclusion during the holiday as opposed to reinforcing their already heightened feelings of isolation and despair. Through our religious and educational outreach programs, we continue to supply books of Judaic interest, Jewish calendars, siddurim, Stars of David, tefillin and Torahs to our incarcerated brethren. In many cases, this is the only way that prison authorities will allow such materials into their facilities. Our free, Jewish, video-lending library is already a proven success throughout the nation. We have also affected can increase in volunteer participation in our prison visitation programs. Volunteers go into the prisons to visit prisoners on an ongoing basis to observe Shabbat, the High Holy Days, Pesach and other rabbinical and scriptural holidays. As we look to the future, JPSI’s leadership seeks to become more involved in the formation of Jewish post-release facilities, offering more support for the families of Jewish incarcerates, a bigger and better free video-lending library, an ever-enlarging pen-pal program, and a Judaica distribution center that will truly accommodate the spiritual-growth aspirations of all Jews who practice their faith behind the wire and walls. Clearly, our successes and achievements would be unrealizable without the support and commitment of the nation’s entire Jewish community. We hope that as you read of our mitzvot you will be inspired to join with us at any level or levels of participation that pique your interest. We are eternally grateful for your support and involvement. Reaching out to the forgotten and the needy—it’s what living Judaism is all about! FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: SID KLEINER, SEC./TREASURER JEWISH PRISONER SERVICES INTERNATIONAL, 10188 WINTER VIEW DRIVE, NAPLES, FL 34109-1520 PHONE/FAX: (941) 591-2649***ALT. FAX LINE: (941) 566-7702***E-MAIL: SKLEINER@AOL.COM WHAT ARE YOU WILLING TO DO FOR OUR INCARCERATED BRETHREN AND THEIR FAMILIES? Potentials and possibilities for participation in prison programs are numerous and varied. The Jewish Prisoner Services International, a not-for-profit, social service agency needs your help with the following: Pen Pal Programs – You can write to a lonely Jewish inmate. JPSI will sponsor and instruct you in corresponding with one (or more) of some 650 Jewish inmates currently on a national pen pal waiting list. Religious Materials/Judaica – New or used Torahs, prayer books and other Jewish religious, educational and secular materials are always needed. As an approved prison program, JPSI will send these items on your behalf to individual Jewish inmates and chapel libraries. Visits – Individually or with others, you can visit imprisoned Jews in your area on a regular or occasional basis. The JPSI will sponsor and instruct you in visitation programs. Families – In person or anonymously, you can assist a Jewish inmate’s family while their loved one is incarcerated. The JPSI will instruct and connect you with one of many such families. Mentors – You can help to guide a Jewish man or woman through the difficult post-release period toward a successful transition into the community. The JPSI will instruct you and connect you with a Jewish inmate prior to his or her release. Ideas – No one in the corrections field has all the answers, and your idea might lead to a successful new program. The JPSI is always looking for input from the community. Contributions – Even if you are unable to do something in person, your tax- deductible contribution will help defray our many and ongoing operating costs. Now, select your favorite mitzvah or mitzvot from above and contact: SID KLEINER, SOUTHEAST REGIONAL COORDINATOR JEWISH PRISONER SERVICES INTERNATIONAL AN OUTREACH/ADVOCACY AGENCY FOR JEWISH PRISONERS AND THEIR FAMILIES PEN PAL VOLUNTEERS CAN REACH SARAH JACOBS AT: PO Box 761156, Los Angeles, CA 90076-1156 or e-mail: neshoma@pacbell.net

For help against evangelical Christians.

We provide short and long terms loans of car seats, high chairs, pak-n-plays, bouncers, booster car seats, baby swings and more. Phone: 323-243-7116. Leave message and call will be returned after 6 p.m.

24-hour crisis line for families and individuals dealing with abuse (including spouse abuse, child abuse and neglect or elder/disabled dependent abuse). The hotline receives calls from people who are hurting someone in their family, people who feel they are being abused, as well as concerned friends, neighbors, teachers and rabbis. In addition, people call with a variety of problems, including depression, homelessness, loneliness, and other problems about which they have nobody to talk to. NISHMA means “we will listen”, and the NISHMA hotline offers help to anyone, man or woman, Orthodox or not. All calls to NISHMA are strictly confidential and anonymous. NISHMA operates around the clock except for Shabbos and Yom Tov (the hotline stops about 2 hours before candlelighting and resumes about 1 hour after havdalah). In addition to the hotline, NISHMA offers sliding-scale counseling by licensed professionals and interns; referrals to counseling, legal, shelter and other resources; educational programs for the community; and consultation to rabbis, teachers and principals. NISHMA is staffed entirely by Orthodox trained volunteers and professional staff, and works under the guidance of a Va’ad Halacha of respected Orthodox rabbis. NISHMA is a project of the Orthodox Counseling Program of Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles. If you would like to apply to become a NISHMA volunteer, please call the hotline number (818) 623-0300 and ask to be connected to the NISHMA office.

Food deliveries for families in need.

Choson and Kallah wedding centerpieces available to borrow.

Wedding clothing for children available to borrow, sizes 8-12.