The Jewish Healthcare Center ("JHC"; also known as "The Jewish Home" or simply "The Home" among the Worcester Jewish community) is a nursing home and rehabilitation hospital at 629 Salisbury Street in
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...
. The JHC services 2,500 clients per year, 70 percent of whom are not Jewish.Hedvig, Lynne. "New Namaste Program ‘honors the spirit within.’" Worcester Magazine, May 01 2014.
History
The Home was founded by Worcester's Jewish community leaders in 1914 as a home for Jewish orphans. In 1916, the community purchased a two-story home at 25 Coral Street and named it the "Jewish Home for Aged and Orphans."Kush, Bronislaus B., and Telegram & Gazette Staff. "Jewish Home Traditions of Caring Upheld." Telegram & Gazette: B.1. Oct 30 1995.
Beginning August 11, 1930 Worcester United Jewish Charities president Archibald Hillman enlisted New York fundraiser George Greenspun to lead a 500-volunteer campaign to raise $125,000 from the Worcester community for a new facility. This campaign was unique in that for the first time, Worcester's non-Jewish residents were asked to contribute to a Jewish organization in the city. In 1932, the Home relocated to 1029 Pleasant Street where it was able to care for 14 children and 22 senior citizens following the successful building campaign. In the mid-1930s the Home turned its focus solely to the needs of the elderly and was renamed "The Jewish Home for Aged of Worcester County." The Home expanded by 34 beds in 1948 following a $250,000 campaign.
The current 141-bed facility at 629 Salisbury Street, an example of Brick
Brutalist architecture
Brutalist architecture is an architectural style that emerged during the 1950s in the United Kingdom, among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era. Brutalist buildings are characterised by minimalist constructions that showcase the ba ...
, opened in February 1975 after another successful campaign raised $3.5 million.Collier, Geraldine A. "Healthcare Center to Burn Mortgage ; Gala to Celebrate Future Facility." Telegram & Gazette: A.2. Sep 20 1997. The Home's population remains largely Jewish as it is the only
kosher
(also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, yi, כּשר), fro ...
nursing home in Worcester.
On May 3, 1998, ground was broken on land immediately adjacent to the Home on The Gery and Emil Eisenberg Assisted Living Residence, an 80-unit facility named for the parents of
Denise Rich
Denise Rich (born Eisenberg; January 26, 1944) is an American-born Austrian singer-songwriter, socialite, philanthropist and political fundraiser.Astell, Emilie, and Telegram & Gazette Staff. "Assisted Living Plan Gets Off Ground // Jewish Healthcare has Brunch Breaking." Telegram & Gazette: B.1. May 04 1998.
In 2007, in recognition of a large donation from the Bailin Brothers Foundation, the campus at 629 Salisbury Street was named for the Bailin family.
On April 29, 2014, JHC launched the "Namaste Care" program, a new holistic approach to end-of-life care for dementia patients in which they experience massage, familiar foods and music (via iPods) and other comforts in a soundproof room.
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Englan ...
in 1959, 1962-1963 and 1967-1968
*
Georgia Gibbs
Georgia Gibbs (born Frieda Lipschitz; August 17, 1918December 9, 2006) was an American popular singer and vocal entertainer rooted in jazz. Already singing publicly in her early teens, Gibbs achieved acclaim and notoriety in the mid-1950s interp ...
, singer. Born Frieda Lipschitz on August 17, 1919, was sent to the home with her three older siblings after her father died when she was 6 months old.Bernstein, Adam. "Singer Georgia Gibbs, 87; Performed With Big Bands and on Radio Shows." Washington Post, Dec 12 2006.