Jewish Council For The Aging Of Greater Washington Inc

Senior employment services:jca's career gateway, 50+ employment expos, and senior community service employment program (scsep) provide coaching, training, and networking opportunities for the 50+ jobseeker, helping them to find and keep jobs.jca's virtual 50+ employment expos give job seekers opportunities to network with area employers. In fy 2024, 2,640 people attended 10 virtual 50+ employment expos, including jca's first ever in howard county, provided in partnership with howard county office on aging and independence.more than 120 people attended career gateway sessions in fy 2024. Career gateway helps jobseekers aged 50 and older improve their job search skills through an interactive multi-day intensive workshop. The scsep provides on-the-job training and a minimum wage for low-income adults age 55+ who live in montgomery and frederick counties. Scsep provided 201 people with training and 47 scsep job seekers found meaningful work in fy 2024.

Intergenerational programs: jca's austin heyman interages center build bridges across generations and has been recognized nationally by generations united as a program of distinction for its intergenerational programs. Interages connects older adults with children and youth through mentoring, tutoring, literacy, and other volunteer programs in public schools and community organizations. Interages programs help students by narrowing the achievement gap and support older adults' social well-being by reducing isolation and loneliness. Interages programs serve economically disadvantaged youth by utilizing older adult (age 50+) volunteers as mentors and tutors to support students' academic achievement and social and emotional development. The array of programs is broad and includes in-class support, reading programs, art and music programs, intergenerational book clubs, and opening minds through art oma), an award-winning, evidence-based intergenerational program to help older adults with memory loss create abstract art projects to engage their minds and break through cognitive barriers, which partners interages student volunteers with kensington clubs members. In fy 2024, 234 volunteers aged 50 and older from jca's heyman interages center gave a total of 4,530 hours and 201 students volunteered 535 hours. Interages volunteers mentored 1,583 students in 19 montgomery county public schools.

Adult day programs: jca's samuel j. Gorlitz kensington clubs are social-model adult day programs serving older adults living with early-stage memory loss and their care partners. Kensington clubs give people diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment (mci) or early-stage alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ad/adrd), meaningful cognitive and physical activity in safe and comfortable surroundings while offering support and respite for caregivers. Kensington clubs started kesher caf, the first free young onset dementia (yod) social engagement group in montgomery county, in december 2023, to address the needs of the increasing number of people diagnosed with yod. In fy 2024, the number of people with early-stage memory loss and their care partners served by jca's samuel j. Gorlitz kensington clubs grew by 36% from fy 2023. Jca's three samuel j. Gorlitz kensington clubs in rockville, white oak, and germantown served 109 people with an early-stage memory loss diagnosis and their care partners.information, education & outreach: jca offers resources to families seeking information and support around aging through its senior helpline and state health insurance assistance program (ship), which provides montgomery county seniors and adults under 65 with long-term disabilities with health insurance counseling, enrollment guidance, and assistance and problem resolution for issues relating to medicare benefits and other public and private health insurance sources. Calls to jca's senior helpline increased by 37% in fy 2024. Helpline staff and volunteers responded to more than 460 inquiries from people seeking transportation, housing, support, and resources for themselves or an aging family member. Certified counselors from jca's ship program assisted 1,689 medicare beneficiaries.