Ben Bochner, 56 Austin, Texas Job: Singer-songwriter Previously: Video production and songwriting on the side This fall, Bochner left steady work as a videographer in his longtime home of Eugene, Ore., to pursue music in Austin. Why Change?: “I fell in love with Texas nights. I felt I understood why cowboys wrote songs. There’s a…
Esther Merves, 54 Springfield, Va. Job: Adjunct professor at George Washington University and standardized medical patient, both part time Previously: Full-time staff research scientist at GWU A doctor of sociology, Merves was laid off from her full-time position several years ago. After fruitlessly searching for another fulfilling full-time job, she is “still in the process…
Gail Pierris, 62 New York City Job: Executive assistant to the business manager of DC9, the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades Previously: Executive assistant at the New-York Historical Society Pierris has degrees in museum education and art history, and has worked in everything from travel and publishing to finance. She enjoys the perks…
Burt Gitlin, 58 North Bergen, N.J. Job: Actively looking Previously: CEO of Bond Bedding, a small custom mattress and box spring company Gitlin was CEO of Bond Bedding in Hudson County from 1999 to 2012, when it closed due to the economic downturn. Since then, he has volunteered in the wake of Hurricane Sandy while…
Jane Trigere, 64 South Deerfield, Mass. Job: Textile artist and community volunteer Previously: Director of the Hatikvah Holocaust Education and Resource Center in Springfield, Mass., now closed. After leading the Hatikvah Center from 1997 to 2000, Trigere earned a master’s degree but was unable to find another job in the museum/arts administration field. She has…
It is no secret that Jewish communal organizations have taken a beating in the ongoing economic recession. Educational institutions, including schools and synagogue programs, have had to slash budgets, and bureaus of Jewish education have either scaled back or closed their doors altogether. Less apparent is the impact on individual lives. In the wake of…
Seasoned Jewish educational leaders make up a small slice of the older Americans struggling with unemployment. Health and social services agencies have been scrambling to support the demographic group having the hardest time finding new work — the millions of out-of-work baby boomers too young to retire and too old to start over. Profoundly concerned…
Jeff Weinberger would like to see the California State Employment Development department do some teshuvah this High Holiday season. The San Francisco resident, who was laid off from his executive-level hi-tech marketing job last month, received a notice to attend a “re-employment eligibility assessment appointment” on September 29, the first day of Rosh Hashanah. When…
100% of profits support our journalism
