With the High Holiday upon us, we would like to remind donors about our non-perishable foods donation guidelines.

All food should be newly purchased. 

Please avoid oversized containers and packaging (such as 5 or 10 lbs. bags of rice).

Please avoid glass containers which can break in transport or during processing. 

All items should be checked to verify they are not past their use by or expiration date. We do not accept any expired food. 

For health and safety reasons, we cannot accept any open containers, boxes or repackaged items.

Here are the most requested foods: 

Canned beans (red, pink, black eyed peas, cannellini, lentils, pigeon peas, butter beans, roman beans)

Cereal  – all types

Boxed oatmeal, Steel cut oatmeal, cream of rice.

Soups & Broths (all varieties canned or carton)

Microwavable Pasta and meals

Microwavable Rice pouches

Canned Fruits or fruit cups  

Boxed Pasta (angel hair, fettuccini, shells, bowties, rigatoni, orzo, pastina, ditalini, penne, ziti, bagged egg noodles)

Canned Chili, Stew, Canned chicken

Solid White tuna

Canned vegetables such as Carrots, potatoes, spinach, sauerkraut, beets, mushrooms

Tea, coffee (ground or instant) and hot chocolate

Join us the the JFS Inclusivity Celebration on Friday, August 16, 2024 celebrating Rachel Scolnic Dobin’s new position as Inclusivity Director at the JCC. The event will be from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. (brief program at 12:15 p.m.) in the Vine Auditorium, 360 Amity Road in Woodbridge.  The event will bring together members of our Holocaust Survivors Program the JFS Shalom Group; the Cafe J team from The Schleifer Center at Chapel Haven; past & present Board members, JFS staff and our JFS donors who generously support our mission.

January is National Soup Month and it’s time for our Annual 2024 “Soup”er Bowl of Caring.” During January and the first two weeks of February leading up to the televised championship football game, the JFS Food Pantry & Food Assistance Program will be collecting all things “Soup.”

You can join our team to help in our battle to fight hunger in our local community.  Here’s what you can hand off to us during this special non-perishable soup collection:

Meat based soup (beef, chicken all varieties)

Kid’s soup (chicken & stars, chicken & rice

Cream soup (cream of chicken, cream of mushroom, potato, clam chowder, cream of broccoli, split pea)

Dry soup mixes

Broths (chicken, beef, turkey, vegetable) cans or cartons

Low sodium or healthy soups

Single serve microwaveable soup

Kosher soup mixes

Organic soups

Donations can be dropped off at the JFS Food Pantry, 1440 Whalley Avenue, New Haven beginning January 3^rd on Wednesday and Thursdays between 8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. If you will be dropping off a large quantity of items, or need a different day and time, please contact us so we can schedule your donation drop off.  If you have any questions, please contact the Pantry at (203) 397-0796 or Sandy Hagan at shagan@jfsnh.org.

Jewish Family Service of Greater New Haven is offering opportunities to participate in
community programs, an offering made possible by a generous Community IMPACT grant
from our Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven. SAFE SPACES TO GRIEVE is a community, peer-support approach to coping with and remembering loved ones who have died. The groups will be led by Certified Grief Educator Barb Segura, LPC.

For more information, or to register for any of the groups listed below, contact Barb Segura, LPC, or Dinesh Perera, LMFT, at griefgroups@jfsnh.org. You will receive zoom link and password.

COMMUNITY SPACE TO GRIEVE AND HEAL

SUNDAY October 22nd, 12 PM on ZOOM – THIS GROUP WILL MEET ONE TIME

MOURNING AND MITZVAH: ONGOING GROUP
This group meets twice a month and uses the guided journal Mourning and Mitzvah by
Rabbi Anne Brener, MAJCS MS, LCSW. This book will be provided free for the first 20 group participants who return to the second group meeting. The group will start November 7th from 3 PM – 4:30 PM and is scheduled the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of each month.

OPEN TOPIC GRIEF EXPLORATION GROUPS: WILL BE OFFERED FOUR TIMES
Group attendees with facilitator’s support, will be able to identify the most emergent topic
related to loss, grief, and healing. Topics range from a focus on personal and/or community
responses and impact from loss and grief.
Meeting Time: TUESDAYS 7 PM – 8:30 PM on ZOOM
November 14th, December 12th, January 9th, February 13th

Barb Segura, LPC creates a sacred space for healing and transformation. Grief is often unacknowledged in our fast paced, youth-oriented culture. The grief journey is an individual journey, as unique as fingerprints. If tended to, grief can guide our healing and enrich our lives. She provides grief education, consultation, coaching and facilitates support groups. Some support groups are offered specifically for the Jewish mourner.

September signifies back to school, cooler weather, the return of Pumpkin Spice food & coffee, Jewish High holidays and National Hunger Action Month.  Hunger Action Month highlights food insecurity and how individuals, businesses and organizations can and do help those in their community and beyond.

Feeding America estimates approximately 1 in 6 people turned to charitable food assistance for additional support in 2022. In its last Feeding America Map the Meal Gap survey, 16.3% of households in New Haven; 6.7% of households in Woodbridge; and 5.2% of households in Orange were food insecure. 

Since the start of 2023, the JFS Food Pantry has served 1530 duplicated households and helped an additional 202 new households seeking emergency food assistance from the above town and others in Greater New Haven county.   

In recognition of Hunger Action Month the JFS Food Pantry & Food Assistance Program will be collecting non-perishable foods to help stock the JFS Pantry shelves.  Here are the most requested foods and our food donation guidelines (especially if you will be donating to your local synagogue High Holiday food collection/drive): 

Cereal  (all types for adult and children)

Soups and broths (cans and boxed)

Canned meals/meats such as Canned Chicken, Stew, Chili, Chef Boyardee or store brand canned pasta

Boxed Pasta (angel hair, fettuccini, elbows, shells, bowties, rigatoni, orzo, ditalini, penne, ziti, bagged egg noodles, rotini, tri-color rotini, linguine, spaghetti, whole grain)

Gluten Free  pasta such as chick pea or lentil pasta

Condiments such as BBQ sauce; salad dressing; mayo; mustard; ketchup

Canned vegetables such as corn or creamed corn; sliced carrots; French style green beans; potatoes (diced, sliced or whole); beets; sauerkraut

Canned Fruits or fruit cups (especially those in water or light syrup/no sugar added) such as applesauce, mandarin oranges, pineapple (all types), pears, peaches, fruit cups.

Tea bags/Instant, decaf or regular coffee Things to Keep in Mind:  Avoid oversized containers and packaging, as they are awkward and difficult to carry and transport home by our pantry guests and many of our visitors are one and two member households.  Check and verify that all items are not past their use by/best buy or expiration date.   Please avoid glass containers, as they can break in transport or during processing.  Please remember, due to health and safety concerns we cannot accept any open/partial containers or boxes, repackaged items; or homemade items – this includes items without a label.  If you have any questions, please contact Sandy Hagan at shagan@jfsnh.org or 203-397-0796.

Jewish Family Service of Greater New Haven has scheduled their Annual Spring Event Fundraiser for Sunday, April 7, 2024 at the Jewish Community Center in Woodbridge. Check back here and our Facebook page for additional announcements about this event as the date nears.