The State of California appropriated $3.6 million to create the California Holocaust Survivor Assistance Program, the first California-funded program that ensures that Holocaust survivors are able to live out their lives with dignity. The proposal for the program was initiated and stewarded by Jewish Family Service of San Diego, in partnership with the Jewish Public Affairs Committee of California.
The money will be used to fund and supplement services including home care, case management, home-delivered meals, transportation and emergency financial assistance for approximately 600 additional elderly Holocaust survivors throughout California who are currently underserved by existing resources.
“Holocaust survivors in California are becoming increasingly vulnerable as they face the challenges of aging,” said Jewish Family Service of San Diego CEO Michael Hopkins. “According to the State Treasurer’s Office, there are roughly 20,000 Holocaust survivors living in California today and at least one-third of them are frail and living in poverty. While Jewish Family Service agencies throughout the state provide wide-ranging care to more than 3,300 survivors each year, many of these programs have waitlists and have reached funding capacity. The funding from this new program will help fill the gaps.”
The new funding will establish a competitive grant program and will supplement the established Home and Community Based Service systems for Holocaust Survivors and their caregivers by providing quality, person-centered services that help survivors remain independent and safe in their communities.
Jewish Family Service of San Diego will use the funds to increase the depth and scale of its “Serving Older Holocaust Survivors” services to 129 vulnerable Holocaust survivors in San Diego living month-to-month, and at risk of losing their independence because of unmet medical, homecare and housing needs.
The program has also been advocated for and supported by three additional California-based Jewish agencies: Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles, Jewish Family and Children’s Services of San Francisco and the Jewish Public Affairs Committee of California.
For more information about Jewish Family Service of San Diego’s “Serving Older Holocaust Survivors” program, visit www.jfssd.org/sos.
Preceding provided by Jewish Family Service of San Diego