Pittsburgh's Jewish Community Center back in operation after receiving $2.5 million JHF grant
Brian Schreiber takes daily morning walks past the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh in Squirrel Hill.
“I live less than a mile and a half away, and when we were closed (because of the pandemic), I would walk by and think ‘my baby needs help,’ ” said Schreiber, president and CEO at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh. “I would see that it was closed. And that hurt. This is a place where thousands of people come for everything from fitness to early childhood learning. A piece of me was dying when this closed, but it was therapeutic to walk by and check on it and know it was still there.”
When he walks by these days, he can feel good because he and his team have spent the past months reopening this well-known community resource. The reopening began June 5 when Allegheny County moved to the green phase.
The space houses fitness and wellness facilities, aquatics centers, gymnasiums, playgrounds, auditoriums, dance studios, classrooms and meeting areas.
Programming and services include child care and preschool, after-school and school’s-out programs, day and overnight camping, senior adult activities, fitness and wellness programs, special needs services, arts and cultural activities, and others. Some programs have not yet opened and others are still offered virtually.
We are your JCC, and we are here for you. To see all the virtual resources we have available, check out #JCCPGHVirtual: https://t.co/505ZAJDHft pic.twitter.com/pwWtgbvOmo
— JCC Pittsburgh (@JCCpittsburgh) May 19, 2020
With the closure, the community center lost more than $6 million and has added expenses to meet safety protocols, Schreiber said. That’s why when the Jewish Healthcare Foundation this month awarded a $2.5 million emergency grant over two years to the community center, he was ecstatic.
The money will be used at the Squirrel Hill and the Scott Township/Mt. Lebanon area locations as well as the day camp in Monroeville.
“This grant provides us with monies we need, and we are so grateful,” said Schreiber, as he sat in the empty auditorium in Squirrel Hill. “This auditorium will be full again, and we will come back again. For the people who work here this is more than a job. This is a way of life.”
That dedication was evident, said Karen Feinstein, president and CEO of the Jewish Healthcare Foundation.
“They do such wonderful work for so many people,” Feinstein said. “It is a privilege to be able to help them. I hope this will take some of the pressure off of them at such an unusual time. What a heroic effort on their part. They are a model for this region on how to get back to some normalcy.”
Every precaution is being taken, beginning with temperature checks outside. They’ve spaced out exercise equipment and swimmers are one per lane.
There are sanitizing stations. An outdoor space is being utilized for spinning classes.
They have different entrances to minimize exposure and host blood drives with Vitalant.
They’ve provided over 23,000 grab-and-go lunches and delivered meals to seniors and school age children, officials said.
“When we have people who come here for the lunches, we can keep an eye on them and see how they are doing so this is a way to still do that,” said Schreiber. “It’s not just about the money. It’s a statement that what we do matters and it’s important. For us, it’s a validation.”
Before the pandemic, the Jewish Community Center had over 20,000 members.
Around 80% of the agency’s revenue comes through membership and program fees from its day care, fitness and wellness centers, summer camps, after-school programs and senior services, all of which were reduced significantly, officials said.
When early childhood learning centers reopened June 1, there were 135 enrolled and they have had 1,974 campers this summer. They’ve spent $250,000 on cleaning and disinfecting, handled 850 blood donations, and have done 5,052 wellness checks on seniors.
Schreiber said they worked with the Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative, an operating arm of JHF, to develop procedures to safely reopen health and fitness activities, child care and day camps, permitting parents to feel comfortable returning to work.
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region's diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of "A Daughter's Promise." She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.
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