Kelly Burroughs
Jewish Family Service is often tasked with medical and end of life decisions for its Personal Affairs Management (PAM) clients. After-life decisions are also fulfilled, regardless of the deceased’s religious affiliation.
For indigent clients who are Jewish, JFS works closely with Altmeyer Funeral Home to ensure they have a proper burial. In fact, JFS has been bequeathed several plots in the Jewish section of Forest Lawn Cemetery.
For non-Jewish clients, JFS fulfills after death wishes when these preferences are known. Ideally, family members take over this responsibility. For those clients who remain unclaimed, however, their cremains are respectfully stored in JFS’s newly dedicated Remembrance Room. JFS is currently the custodian of cremains for more than 100 clients.
JFS held its annual Memorial Service on Thursday, Oct. 26 to honor all of the PAM clients who died in the past year. Funding for this annual event is through the generosity of the Ronald N. Hyman Fund of the Jewish Family Service Foundation. Originally established in 1994, the fund was designated as an “everlasting memorial” to Ronald N. Hyman, who lost his life to cancer in October 1994. In 2000, the Hyman family broadened the outreach of the funds toward the area of healing. As part of that effort, it provides annual support to the JFS Memorial Service.
To better understand many complex issues related to health care and end-of-life decisions, some JFS staff members are taking the current Melton class on ethics. Program Director Dorothy Salomonsky, Clinical Director Lloyd Clemments, and Hospital Liaison Manager Nickole Gerhardt attend weekly class to explore past and current ethics important to these topics. JFS also has a multi-disciplinary panel of community members who offer guidance and advice in these very complicated matters.
To support JFS’ remarkable work, call Kelly Burroughs 757-321-2244 or Brooke Rush at 757-321-2253.
Memorial cards are also available through donations in honor of a loved one. Contact Janet Brown at 757-321-2271 for more information.