Newspapers / The Charlotte Jewish News … / Sept. 1, 1992, edition 1 / Page 8
Part of The Charlotte Jewish News (Charlotte, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
Page 8-THE NEWS-September 1992 LEWIS PAMILY SERVICES Thoughts from Adrienne By Adrienne Rosenberg, JFS Director JFS Participates in An Agency Evaluation By Lynne Sheffer Chair JFS On August 2-5, Jewish Family Services participated in an agency evaluation process. This study was initiated by the JFS board to help evaluate the present level of services as well as to assist in prioritizing and planning for the agency’s future. The study was conducted by Bert Goldberg, director of the National Association of Jewish Family and Children’s agencies in Kendall Park, New Jersey. We hope to achieve many things from this review. The board wanted to know the following about Jewish Family Services: • Are we providing good care? • Are record keeping and documentation as it should be? • What are the Agency’s strengths and weaknesses? • How do we compare to other Jewish communities our size? • Are we properly staffed and are we operating efficiently? • Are we offering too few or too many services? • How can JFS better serve the Jewish community? • What is our potential for the future? • What are the next important steps for long range planning? The board will prepare a report for the Federation and the community which will reflect the fmdings of the agency and its influence on future goals and objectives for Jewish Family Services. 1 recently received a telephone call asking me to write an article for the October issue of the Next Step. This is a monthly news paper for an organization known as Step One. Step One is located in Winston-Salem and is the Governor’s Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse among Children and Youth. I was asked to write this article on alcohol and drug abuse from the Jewish perspective. 1 am not the expert on this topic. But I do know because of what I’ve seen as Director of Jewish Family Services and in my work on one of the subcom mittees of the Mecklenburg County Drug and Alcohol Com mission that Jews of all ages do indeed abuse alcohol and street or prescription drugs. It is the stereotype that there are no Jewish alcoholics and the shame if one is identified that help keep denial in our communities. In fact, studies indicate that per haps the greatest deniers of alcoholism among Jews are Dear FRIENDS: The board of Jewish Family Services thanks the Jewish coimnimity for its wonderful support of our annual Friends campaign. This 1992 campaign was a tremendo\is success. We were able to raise $21,000 which was over a 50% increase from the previous year. Thank you to the many people who have supported the Agency in the past several years as well as to the many families who gave their first contribution this year. We are very excited and appreciative of the financial support we have received, as well as your confidence and concern for the welfare of this Agenqy. Jewish Family Services is vital to the Charlotte Jewish commimity and your dollars will enable JFS to provide needed services and programs this coming year. “Thank you” is such a simple word to say, but please know that we say this from our hearts. Sincerely, L3rxme Sheffer Chairperson physicians and rabbis. The ret icence of the Jewish community only perpetuates the myth of Jewish immunity to addictions, which makes someone Jewish feel they cannot get support frorti the Jewish community. I have chosen to indeed write the article in hopes that if someone reads it who is Jewish and who has a problem, they can know there is support from the Jewish community. I also hope our Jewish professionals who encounter these problems will learn more about what the symptoms of substance abuse are and what community resour ces are available. Denial, shame and ignorance only add to the problem. A copy of the article follows. Please feel free to call me at 364-6594 and give me your reaction. Addiction and the Jewish Perspective In 1798, Immanuel Kant wrote that Jews do not get drunk because “they are exposed through this eccentricity and alleged chosenness to the atten tion and criticism of their com munity, and thus cannot relax in their self-control.” Unfortu nately, Kant was wrong. But this stereotype has continued, and it is the stereotype that there are no Jewish alcoholics that creates denial in our communities. Jews don’t do bad things. They do not drink to excess, pop pills, snort cocaine, or smoke pot. Good Jews don’t abuse their spouses or their children. Good Jews don’t get AIDS. Good Jews don’t have eating disorders, and they certainly are not addicted. However, the truth is that statements such as these are not grounded in reality. Jews are as susceptible to social problems as anyone else. Alcohol and drug abuse are no less prevalent in the Jewish community. But, they are rarely discussed or seen as a Jewish “problem.” National estimates indicate from five to 20% of the general population have some type of addiction. And this number includes Jews. One of the problems for Jews who want recovery and support groups is the feeling that their Jewishness is not emphasized. One significant way of helping people control addictions is the Twelve-Step programs such as AA (Alcoholics Anonymous). Spirituality and “the Higher Power” are integral parts of AA’s tried and true “Twelve Step” recovery program. But for Jews in recovery, the spiritual aspect can become problematic because the majority of many A A or other Twelve-Step pro grams that meet are held in churches. The recovery process and the words, “Higher Power,” are meant to be non-denomina- tional. But because the meetings are held in churches, the settings and program are perceived to be Christian oriented. Thus, Jews can feel uncomfortable and alienated. With this in mind, a new nation-wide organization has sprung up called JACS (Jewish Alcoholics, Chemically Depen dent Persons, and Significant Others). But there are only about 35 chapters of JACS in the entire country. The purpose of JACS is intended to provide a network for Jews in recovery to meet other Jews who are experiencing the same problem. The Jewish setting is a source of spiritual comfort and identity and is a supplement to the Twelve-Step programs. Jews struggling to overcome an addiction or family members trying to cope with the abuse (be it alcohol, prescription or illegal drugs, food, or sex) often face problems of denial and alien ation more severe than non- jews. For all the beneficence the Jewish community showc thp world, for all the programs Jews take in, the myth still holds that Jews aren’t subject to the disease of addic tion. Thus, the guilt Jewish addicts feel is immense. They often feel that if you say you are an addict, you are not a good Jew. I was recently sent a book entitled Twelve Jewish Steps to Recovery by Rabbi Kerry M. Olitzky and Dr. Stuart A. Co pans with introductions by Rab bi Sheldon Zimmerman and Dr. Abraham T. Twerski. Those cli ents who 1 have encouraged to read it have found it to be com forting. There can be support from other Jews. It also gives me hope that there is less denial among some Jewish profession als. Then we can be responsive to those Jews within our com munity in a more helpful way. The CJN appreciates the gener osity of Mullen Publications for their donation of the “color” for this issue. —R.M. Allan S. Oxman, CLU, ChFC • Life & Disability Insurance • Employee Benefits, Group Insurance • 401 (k) & Retirement Plans • Financial & Estate Planning Gilley, Oxman, Riggins and Ownbey 1108 East Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28203 704-342-2277 Fax 704-375-3834 WE CAN HELP YOU SEE YOUR BEST yregBMiLCompteliengwfgyecxiro Is easy (sses cs» iveaf dxm CONVCSBSfr »Qi«S - ora 7 nmA W DOCTORS OF OPTOMETRY nexttoLENSCRAFTERS V DR. JEFFREY I. MUSLER & ASSOCIATES Eastland Mall Carolina Place Mall Southpark Mall 563-7655 541-8232 364-7982
The Charlotte Jewish News (Charlotte, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Sept. 1, 1992, edition 1
8
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75