During Mental Health Awareness Month, we want to call attention to the recently published Surgeon General Advisory report on the epidemic of loneliness and isolation.

The Jewish community has come a long way in acknowledging addiction as a significant issue and in supporting community members struggling with addiction and those in recovery. JCFS Chicago and the Chicago Board of Rabbis invite you to continue this forward momentum.  

JCFS Chicago addiction services, in partnership with Live4Lali, is encouraging Jewish communal organizations to hold Overdose Prevention and Reversal (Narcan) Training for staff and community members.  We all have the responsibility to know how to save a life and with Narcan, it couldn’t be easier. 

The JCFS chaplaincy program develops its services based on this cultural, religious, historical, geographical, and emotional context within the Russian-speaking Jewish community.

JCFS Chicago’s chaplaincy program is a national leader in the emerging field of Jewish community chaplaincy. JCFS’s chaplaincy serves anyone in the Chicago area Jewish community who might benefit from the services.

Overdose deaths have reached unprecedented levels in recent years, particularly due to the increased stress, isolation, and barriers to addiction treatment brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The good news: we can learn to recognize symptoms of opioid overdose and administer the rescue drug Narcan (brand name for Naloxone), which can reverse opioid overdose symptoms within minutes.

What do Jewish chaplains do? The same as any chaplain, regardless of religious denomination. They care for the living, counsel those in need, or the most sacred work, honor the dead. Chaplains provide spiritual help and care for people who are suffering and need that type of support.

Most of us would agree that gratitude is indisputably good. It is therefore reasonable to ask: if gratitude is so obviously good and valuable, what are the barriers to gratitude?

November is National Adoption Awareness month, a time to shine a spotlight on families formed through foster care and adoption. There's a good chance you are touched by adoption through family, friends, or community. How can you best support those on this lifelong journey?   In more ways than you can imagine! 

In 1989, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) established National Recovery Month as a national observance to promote and support new evidence-based substance use treatment and recovery practices.