A $1,000 donation to JCFS Chicago recently provided some residents with the opportunity to pay it forward. The anonymous donor of the generous gift made one request—that residents of JCFS-supported integrated community living homes use the funds to purchase gifts for others.

JCFS has long been a trusted resource for Skokie Public Library patrons. In turn, the library has served as such a dedicated collaborator to JCFS that the agency named the library its 2025 Community Partner of the Year.

Alliance Ground International (AGI) has been a strong employer partner to HIAS Immigration & Citizenship, providing cargo, shipping and receiving warehouse positions to candidates—regardless of their English proficiency.

During the government shutdown, JCFS Chicago provided one-time emergency grocery support to SNAP-eligible individuals and families, including grocery cards for people in our HIAS Immigration & Citizenship program whose benefits were suspended. JCFS stepped up quickly to ensure people did not go without food, putting the agency’s shared values into action and affirming that every person counts.

Distributing almost $150,000 in grocery gift cards, JCFS provided funds that enabled approximately 800 people to receive food, including 110 families of four or more, 63 families of two or three, and 37 individuals.

For many immigrants, applying for U.S. citizenship can seem overwhelming. Take Agnes Enriquez, a Montessori preschool teacher who immigrated nearly 20 years ago: she didn’t apply for citizenship after receiving her green card in 2008 because she was busy raising her children and worried she would not have time to study.

But recent news of valid green card holders being denied reentry into the United States after traveling out of the country gave her pause.

When Alan reflects on his career and personal journey since working with JVS Career & Employment, he can’t believe how far he has come.

The plight of refugees has been a constant life theme for retired attorney and former college educator Fred Wellisch, a JCFS Chicago HIAS Immigration & Citizenship volunteer.

Bikes & Music was launched in 2020. They collect used bicycles and musical instruments, refurbish them, and get them to families via various nonprofits – including HIAS Immigration & Citizenship here at JCFS Chicago.

HIAS (founded as Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society) Immigration & Citizenship volunteer Ken Obel’s reason for honoring the Jewish value of ‘helping the stranger’ began long before he was born.

“Like most people’s in this country, my family story involves immigrants, and for Jewish people, it’s often not that long ago,” said Ken.

Alexis and Jerry Bednyak have become a driving force in Chicago’s philanthropic community. In 2016, the couple founded the Alexis and Jerry Bednyak Foundation to support a variety of causes, including immigrant and refugee rights, educational inequities, medical research, and children’s mental health. While their reach is broad, the couple focuses on “paying it forward” by donating to causes they are personally connected to.