Kung Pao Kosher Comedy
2009 Beneficiaries

In keeping with the Jewish tradition of tzedakah (charity, in Hebrew - tied in with a sense of duty and social responsibility), each year Kung Pao donates partial proceeds to organizations and causes we believe in. This year's recipients are...

THE NATIONAL MS SOCIETY NORTHERN CALIFORNIA CHAPTER’s emphasis is wellness. The Chapter is committed to the empowerment of people with MS (Multiple Sclerosis), their families, friends, significant others, and all people affected by MS. They are committed to honoring and supporting the independence and self-sufficiency of people with MS by providing accurate and timely information, advocacy, material assistance, and emotional support. They are committed to dislodging prejudices, increasing understanding, and expanding the awareness of MS and issues of disability in themselves and in other people. The Chapter was chartered in 1954 and presently has three Northern California offices. They are the local resource for more than 12,500 people with MS in a 40-county area. www.nationalmssociety.org

JEWISH FAMILY & CHILDREN’S SERVICES (JFCS)/EAST BAY’S REFUGEE & IMMIGRANT programs help over 3,000 refugees and immigrants from more than 30 countries each year. Drawing on over a century of experience in resettling waves of new immigrants as well as a strong commitment to learn from the Jewish historical experience of persecution and exile, JFCS/East Bay is proud to serve Russian, Afghan, Bosnian, Iranian, and Latino refugees and immigrants in Contra Costa and Alameda counties. JFCS/East Bay provides a broad range of programs and services: initial resettlement; staff and volunteer assistance in acclimating to US life; navigating healthcare, education, financial, and other systems; mental health services dealing with post-traumatic stress, intergenerational conflicts, and other issues; health education; child abuse prevention and family support; services for seniors who tend to get isolated due to language, lack of transportation, and other factors; assistance with benefits, green cards, and full citizenship; and organizing community-building cultural events and holiday celebrations. Most of the program’s multicultural, multilingual staff came to this country as refugees themselves and have been with JFCS/East Bay for many years. The Jewish, Muslim, and Christian staff have built a strong team that is a microcosm of how people from different backgrounds can build deep relationships while working together to strengthen communities.

Past beneficiaries have included…

2008

• Jewish Family & Children’s Services "Food Pantry"
• The 100 Friends Project

2007

• The Jewish Free Clinic
• Jewish Family and Children’s Services “Chicken Soupers”

2006

• The Jewish Home's "Esther Weintraub Comedy Clinic"
• The Reutlinger Community for Jewish Living's "Komedy Club and Library"

2005

• The Jewish Home's "Esther Weintraub Comedy Clinic"
• Clowns Without Borders

2004

• The Bay Area Jewish Coalition for Literacy
• Laughing Stock

2003

• Familial Dysautonomia Hope Foundation
• The LGBT Family Assistance Project at Jewish Family and Children's Services

2002

• Jewish Home Comedy Clinic
• Gay-Straight Alliance Network

2001

• International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission
• Bay Area Jewish Healing Center

2000

• SFJCC's Montefiore Senior Center
• Lesbian & Gay Senior Services Collaborative

1999

• Breast Cancer Action
• The Holocaust Center of Northern California's Tolerance Education Program

1998

• Women Organized to Respond to Life-Threatening Diseases (WORLD) - A social and information network for women with HIV/AIDS
• Bay Area Council for Jewish Rescue and Renewal - Promoting freedom for Jews in the former Soviet Union & reuniting families in the Bay Area

1997

• Charlotte Maxwell Complementary Clinic -A clinic for low income women with cancer
• Shalom Bayit- Jewish Women's Task Force on Domestic Violence

1996

• International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission
• Jewish Family & Children's Services AIDS Project

1995

• SF Jewish Film Festival - Program of Jewish humor short films
• Family Link– a hospitality house for visiting families of people with AIDS

1995 - Los Angeles show

• L. A. Jewish AIDS Services
• Aunt Bee's Laundry Service - offering free laundry and house-cleaning services to people with HIV/AIDS.

1994

• Women's Cancer Resource Center
• GESHER: Bridge to Understanding- a joint project of Congregation Sha'ar Zahav & Community United Against Violence

1993

• The late Tamar Kaufman – A Northern California Jewish Bulletin writer battling cancer