EZRA MSC

At EZRA, our mission to help others happens not only inside of our doors, but out in the community. We hosted an event where we added some extra beauty to our Uptown neighborhood by planting flowers. Those who joined us were also able to paint flower pots and take home their own slice of nature!

Check our online calendar for more community events and programs: https://www.juf.org/ezra/

It's gardening season at EZRA ☀️
We will be growing produce all season long and will be able to take home the fruits (and vegetables) of our labor. We're happy to have volunteers or community members join our EZRA folks in the garden. If you're ready to get growing, meet us on Mondays in the EZRA lobby!

Chag Pesach sameach!

Passover is finally here and we held a Seder for our clients in our JUF Uptown Cafe. We are happy to have a space where we can remember the traditions, history and meaning of Passover with members of our EZRA community.

From our family to yours, we wish you a meaningful Passover.

Volunteer appreciation week is April 21st-27th.

We owe a huge THANK YOU to all of the volunteers who continue to help out at EZRA for events, fairs, pantry days, and more! We are truly and forever grateful for each and every one of you 💙

EZRA has annual, seasonal, and ongoing volunteer opportunities for those who are looking to give back and meet some new faces!

You can view our current volunteer opportunities here:
https://www.volunteermatch.org/s/srp/orgOpps?l=Chicago%2C+IL%2C+USA&v=true&k=ezra&opp=3799446&org=923556

You can also reach out about additional volunteer opportunities via our website:
https://www.juf.org/ezra/Get-Involved.aspx

EZRA Multi-Service Center held a new, interactive, program where attendees responded to prompts through writing and drawing.

This program was all about the history of Uptown and surrounding neighborhoods. Clients shared their personal knowledge and experiences of the area and talked about what changes they'd like to see in the future.

From hotline to life line | Jewish Chicago (The JUF Magazine) @ Jewish United Fund EZRA turns 40

EZRA Multi-Service Center's annual Relaxation Fair was an amazing afternoon full of activities designed for unwinding. Clients joined us at EZRA to enjoy a pizza bar, arts & crafts, nail painting, Feldenkrais sessions, and coloring. We hope everyone left feeling as refreshed and relaxed as we did! 💙

EZRA was proud to host a program that brought new, critical, information to our clients and community members. Live4Lali presenters covered the basics of Harm Reduction to better inform attendees about safe practices and overdose prevention, with an emphasis on promoting compassion, empowerment and hope.

Just taking a moment to recognize this sweet soul-
Kate Elterman (pictured), and some friends, hand-knitted scarves as part of her Bat Mitzvah project. She also requested donations to EZRA in lieu of gifts. We are so very grateful.

Thank you and Mazel Tov, Kate!

EZRA Multi-Service Center's Toys & Joys event was last night. We hosted a fun night for families with snacks, crafts, gift wrapping, resources, and of course, toys!

Thank you to Howard Brown Health and Boys & Girls Club for joining us last night and providing community resources. And thank you to all of EZRA's volunteers that helped run our holiday event!

Yesterday we had a thought-provoking lecture, straight from Israel, at our Center for Russian Speakers at EZRA. This lecture covered the history and fundamentals of Hanukkah. This program was well-attended by our Russian-speaking clients and all-around amazing!

EZRA is 40!!
In celebration of our 40th anniversary, we held THREE events:

1st- Our Center for Russian Speakers at EZRA (CRS) held a beautiful and meaningful 40th event with multiple performers. We had a huge in-person turn out; our clients got to sit and catch up with each other while celebrating EZRA's anniversary.

2nd- Our JUF Uptown Cafe held an anniversary party for clients during a Cafe dinner service. We displayed client art, had a slideshow of photos from years past, and enjoyed a 40th birthday cake for EZRA!

3rd- EZRA hosted an event for donors, staff, volunteers, and community partners. We displayed a timeline of EZRA's 40-year journey, our clients' artwork, client interviews, photos over the years, and our attendees collaborated to build EZRA's community quilt.

CRS and Community event photos taken by Robin Hochstatter.
Client event photos taken by Dylan Galindo.

EZRA turned 40 this year and we couldn’t be more thrilled to celebrate such a milestone! Use the link below to view our annual report and learn more about what we’ve been up to this past year.

https://www.canva.com/design/DAFJszlFKog/x5ZNXkICSHYH9DzFFugsGQ/view #1

Photos from our last 2 CDEL workshops at EZRA ⚖️

The 1st workshop covered information about wills and advanced planning. Then clients were able to come back and have Power of Attorney documents made.

Thank you to for continuing to partner with us, bringing crucial legal resources to our clients.

What an exciting night!!
Yesterday was movie night, we watched Ghostbusters during dinner 👻
Alderwoman Angela Clay volunteered with us, and one of our amazing volunteers handmade hats for everyone to take home 💙

Внимание!

В следующий вторник, в преддверии праздника Рош а-Шана, состоится лекция из цикла "ГОЛОСА ИЗ ИЗРАИЛЯ".

Ведущий ДАВИД ВАЙНШТЕЙН - историк, лектор, экскурсовод из Израиля.

Регистрация на программу по ссылке:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdSF8DaN2FSXXDX6O2zDv6cIpKJ7xdyennI7zUlzet7Dgljrw/viewform?vc=0&c=0&w=1&flr=0

Просьба принять во внимание, что ссылку на саму онлайн-трансляцию мы пришлем всем зарегистрировавшимся после 3х часов дня за день до программы.

Анонс программ на первые две недели августа:

ВТОРНИК, 1 АВГУСТА, В 11 утра
«ТРИ ГРАЦИИ» Лекция из серии "Один
сюжет - разные художники, стили, эпохи".
Ведущая лекции - доктор философских наук, кандидат исторических наук.
_______________________________________________________
ВТОРНИК, 15 АВГУСТА, В 11:30 утра
«МИЛЛЕНИУМ ПАРК»
Добро пожаловать в виртуальное путешествие по Миллениум Парку в Чикаго! Это самое значимое и популярное место города. И неудивительно, ведь этот парк официально признан лучшим в мире в 21 веке. Здесь представлено творчество лучших мастеров со всего мира. В парке можно не только прогуляться, но и насладиться великолепной архитектурой, окружающей его.
***ВПЕРВЫЕ*** в Центре для русскоговoрящих в EZRA ИГОРЬ СЛАВИН!
ИГОРЬ СЛАВИН родом из Киева, прожил 10 лет в Израиле, где участвовал в археологических раскопках. В настоящее время он уже больше 20 лет проживает в Чикаго. Игорь является опытным гидом и проводит многочисленные туры по Чикаго и Милуоки.

While the JUF Uptown Cafe is open to clients year-round, volunteers are especially needed during the slower summer months to serve a kosher, restaurant-style meal. JUF Uptown Cafe is a great volunteer opportunity to do solo, with friends or family, or even with your colleagues!

For more information or to sign up, head to www.juf.org/jufuptowncafe

EZRA is forever thankful for all of the hard work our volunteers do. We're always accepting new volunteers and can answer any questions you have about getting involved.

Contact us today and give back to your community!

Our annual Health Fair was fun and informative!

We provided health screenings and resources for those who attended, but also a day full of snacks, games, and prizes.

As always, a huge thank you to all of the organizations who participated in our fair yesterday. We couldn’t do it without you:

JCFS Chicago | Asian Human Services | Prevent Blindness | Weiss Memorial Hospital | Aetna | Swedish Hospital | Agents of hope training and information center | Tapestry 360 Health

Many of our clients at EZRA Multi-Service Center have come to us from Ukraine and Russia, hoping to get away from the war. Read about one of their stories here and help us spread awareness of the struggles they face.

After fleeing Russia over war in Ukraine, Chicago family joins asylum-seekers in legal limbo Aleksei Eremenko is among those struggling to find legal aid as his family searches for stability in a new country.

Yesterday we held our Mental Health Fair with the help of many wonderful organizations: Apna Ghar, Inc. (Our Home), Asian Human Services, Thresholds, Swedish Hospital, Tapestry 360 Health, Community Counseling Centers of Chicago (C4) and Near North Health - NNH. Thank you again for collaborating with us at EZRA!

We are so grateful to everyone who found the time to come to our fair and learn more about mental health. We love holding this event every year and can't wait until next time!

We're always happy to have a visit from our friends at CDEL 💚

Thank you to all of CDEL’s April Community Partners! CDEL’s Community Partners allow us to conveniently and accessibly serve our clients in the communities in which they live.

Thank you to: Bloom Township Senior Services; Center on Addison (Center on Halsted) ; EZRA MSC; Hillard Homes; Howard Mohr Community Center; New Pisgah Haven Homes; Pathlights; Salvation Army Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center; Solutions For Care; The University of Chicago Law School; and West Suburban Senior Services.

We appreciate all you do for CDEL!

We are officially one month away from our annual Mental Health Fair! Be sure to save the date so you can join us for this event at EZRA. Please reach out with any questions, more details to follow.

At the end of March, we held an early Passover Seder at EZRA.

We gathered to eat a traditional Passover meal and told the biblical story of the Israelites escaping Egypt. We also listened to classic seder songs and read different versions of Haggadahs. This was a fun and meaningful way to spend our last meal before our Cafe reopens after Passover.

We hope your worries are thin as Matzah and they all Passover quickly!