The values that underpin our Seniors Programs are very close to our hearts. These programs exist to facilitate social connection for people living independently in their own homes. Our program coordinators and volunteers have been reaching out to our program participants on an individual basis, checking that they are safe and well and inquiring about their needs.

While some programs are in a hiatus for the moment, we are adapting what are normally large group programs to the times. The Golden Age Clubs will meet in small groups up to 6 people facilitated by our coordinator Nellie Khoroshina, using telephone conferencing and Skype. They will continue the educational program connecting participants to Judaism and celebrating the chagim.

Watch this space for more updates on the Seniors Programs operations. #StrongerTogether

The Jam Project team was quick to adapt the program to the COVID-19 era. With the incredible cooperation of our Jam buddies and Year 9 participants, The Jam Project now offers weekly one-on-one catch-ups via phone or FaceTime (previously fortnightly).

In addition, the Jam team has initiated a weekly newsletter, packed with Stay-Home activities and good vibes.

Furthermore, group activities are held via ZOOM (last week the Buddies enjoyed a meditation and relaxation session).

The Jam Project is focused on building strong connections – now, also virtually.

We would like to thank the The Jam Project's supporters : Gandel Philanthropy, Spotlight Foundation and Besen Family Foundation. 

National Council of Jewish Women of Australia and Melinda Jones will be holding a special virtual ZOOM event “Pesach fun in the age of Corona Virus”. The event will explore some fun ways to use the Haggadah and Pesach to connect and reflect on the power of being a Jewish woman. Monday 6th April at 4:30pm (https://zoom.us/j/983033840 Meeting ID: 983 033 840).

Women are still having babies, becoming mothers, new siblings are being brought home, and all those wonderful new challenges are taking place amidst the additional challenge of COVID-19.

Caring Mum’s focus and values, those of emotionally supporting new mums and sharing in their journey of motherhood, have not changed – but the way in which we go about things has. The Caring Mums team continues to offer weekly meetings with the mothers and their volunteer via phone/FaceTime.

As mothers’ groups have ceased as have all other gatherings – Caring Mums is excited to launch a new initiative: Caring Mums Together - Virtual Mothers Group. Caring Mums Together is facilitated by Michelle Kornberg, Caring Mums Coordinator, educator, family counsellor, parenting, relationships and grief specialist.

The meetings will be held via ZOOM and they are capped at 10 participants. For more information contact the Caring Mums team on caringmums@ncjwavic.org.au

NCJWA Vic’s Next Gen Committee made a difficult decision to postpone our International Women’s Day celebration with superstar Rachel Griffiths AM, scheduled for Sunday 15 March 2020. NCJWA Vic, together with the entire community, continues to monitor the outbreak of Coronavirus (COVID-19).

All of our speakers, including Rachel Griffiths AM herself, have supported this decision and each expressed their enthusiasm to participate at a later date when the circumstances have settled. We recognise that this cancellation may cause disappointment to many, including us, but we feel strongly that the health of our community is paramount.

Whilst we look to reschedule this exciting event, we are unable to commit to a date at this time. Once a new date has been determined, refunds will be offered to those unable to make it.

Wishing you and your families good health and we look forward to seeing you later in the year!

NCJWA VIC has responded early to the coronavirus. We developed a policy to deal with COVID-19 as the situation unfolded.  We postponed our International Women’s Day Event a week ago and have now done the same for our Annual Bridge Day. Our program of events will be on hold until it is safe to reschedule them. 

Earlier this week we took steps to adapt our programs to the new environment. In this difficult time, it is more important than ever that we continue maintaining social contact with those in the community who are vulnerable or socially isolated. The current situation requires that we make adjustments to our programs to protect the health and well-being of our participants, volunteers and staff.   

Caring Mums and The Jam Project continue to operate using technology to replace face to face contact. Our Caring Mums team are in close contact with our volunteers and participants. Weekly catch ups with mums are being maintained as are supervision sessions. The Jam Project catch ups continue, and the team have introduced a weekly newsletter to families.

Our Seniors Clubs and Golden Age Clubs have suspended face to face sessions. Staff are in regular contact with participants and are currently conducting a needs analysis to ensure that those who are socially isolated have what they need, either directly or by referring them to appropriate services.  They are also putting in place small group virtual catch ups to maintain social connection. 

We will continue to monitor the situation and make such further adaptations as the circumstances require.

On Monday we took the unprecedented step of closing our offices for the time being. Staff are working remotely and continue to be available via email/phone/video/chat.   If you do not have our details please email office@ncjwavic.org.au or call the office on 9523 0535 and we’ll be in touch.

This is a time when we all need to work together to ensure our both our families and our community have the support they need. Fulfilling our mission is more important than ever.  As we continue our work, we appreciate your understanding and whatever support you are able to extend to us.

Stay safe and healthy,

Lee Ann Basser

CEO

We have been working on a new look for NCJWA VIC for several months and we are proud to unveil our new branding today.

An enormous amount of thought has been put into this project to ensure that we retain the heritage and the soul of the organisation whilst bringing it into the 2020’s. We believe this is a significant step forward for us and positions the organisation for the future. We had planned to introduce this new look to you with much fanfare. However, in the current situation we simply wish to share it with you.

Our rebranding project has 3 key objectives.

• 1.       Evolution Rather Than Revolution

NCJWA Vic has a proud history of over 90 years. From small beginnings, the organisation has grown and developed over the years. Given its rich history, it’s absolutely critical that we never forget where the organisation came from and the fabulous things that many inspiring women have achieved. That is why we approached this project as an evolution rather than a revolution.

At the same time, we had to look forward to the future and how we wanted the community to perceive us. We needed to ensure that we stayed relevant and meaningful in a changing environment. This included appealing to younger women and being an organisation that they wanted to engage with and be a part of.

• 2.       Family Connection

 As the organisation has grown, several programs and events have been added to the portfolio. Each has their own logo but, unfortunately, no obvious connection to the NCJWA Vic. Our current branding has no cohesion. There’s no unifying look or feel. We wanted to create a suite of logos that had a very obvious connection to each other. Our goal was to create a family of brands that look like they belong together but work equally well as individuals.

• 3.       Unique Brand Identity

It was important that we developed a unique appearance for the organisation. There are many, many community groups in Victoria and it was very important that we created branding that was easily recognisable and distinguished us from all the other organisations both inside and outside the Jewish community where we operate.

Below you can see our parent logo for the NCJWA Vic together with the suite of logos that make up our programs, signature events and fundraising activities. The parent logo is simple, strong and contemporary and there is an obvious family feel across the entire range of logos. This new branding will be gradually introduced over the next few months.

We’re very excited about the new branding. It gives us a strong, professional and contemporary presence and ensures longevity for a brand with a rich history.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, we will unfortunately need to postpone our annual Bridge Day, due to be held on 21 April 2020.

This event is an important one in our calendar and we would like to take this opportunity to thank you for supporting it.

Our Bridge Day directly funds one of our most important programs – Caring Mums which has helped many hundreds of new mums in emotional need.

Currently we are implementing measures for our volunteers to safely continue their support of anxious and isolated mums who are participating in this program.

Your support will help us continue this vital work which is needed even more so in these uncertain times.

If you would like to find out more about Caring Mums or any of our other programs and other ways to help please see our website www.ncjwavic.org.au

We will let you know the new date for the event as soon as possible.

Thank you for standing with NCJWA Vic and helping us power women and girls.

Yours sincerely

Debbie Strauch (Vice-President) and Joanne Gubieski

Our mentoring program The Jam Project is making its mark! NCJWA VIC is honoured to be featured in this week’s Australian Jewish News, in an article discussing volunteer-based mentoring programs for children.

President Miriam Bass was Henry Greener's guest on The Shtick, discussing NCJWA Vic's Gender Equality Pledge #MakeSpaceForHer. Click here to watch the interview.