Through rich educational experiences and resources about the Holocaust and other genocides, the JFCS Holocaust Center inspires students to stand up courageously against hatred and intolerance.

Media Contact:

Alissa Steiner
JFCS Director of Marketing and Communications

Phone: 415-449-1245
Email: [email protected]

About Us • Our History • Staff • Events • Programs

About Us

The Holocaust Center is a program of Jewish Family and Children’s Services of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties.

We are dedicated to the remembrance, research, documentation and education about the Holocaust. As Northern California’s primary resource for education about the Holocaust and other genocides, our work increases awareness about Jewish history and the causes and consequences of antisemitism, racism, and bigotry. Through a deeper understanding of the Holocaust and patterns of genocide, our goal is to inspire moral courage and social responsibility in future generations.

Our Preisler Shorenstein Institute reaches more than 20,000 public and private school students and educators each year. Our Tauber Holocaust Library houses more than 13,000 volumes, an archive of more than 2,000 recorded oral histories, and many rare artifacts, memorabilia, and images documenting the Holocaust.

Many Bay Area Holocaust survivors are part of our Center’s William J. Lowenberg Speakers Bureau where they work with Bay Area high schools and colleges and share their stories of courage and resilience.

Jewish Family and Children’s Services (JFCS) is one of the oldest and largest family service institutions in the United States, founded in 1850 by immigrant pioneers who arrived in California during the Gold Rush and created an extended family to care for each other. Today, JFCS continues to be that extended family, serving thousands of people annually with the highest quality, research-based social services designed to strengthen individuals, strengthen families, and strengthen community.

JFCS’ commitment to Holocaust survivors is deep and abiding. Over the decades, we have provided support and services to thousands of Bay Area survivors that have given them comfort and strength. JFCS ensures that survivors’ needs are met through comprehensive services that may include, meals, transportation, social engagements, senior home care, counseling, and reparations claims.

Our History

What began as a protest against a Nazi bookstore in the Sunset District of San Francisco has become Northern California’s primary resource for Holocaust and genocide education. When the Holocaust Center opened in September 1979 (then known as the Holocaust Library and Research Center of San Francisco), the collection included 1,000 books and 200 documents, photographs, and artifacts.

The Holocaust Center has undergone many name and location changes over the years. Since 2010, the Holocaust Center has been a department of Jewish Family and Children’s Services (JFCS), a human services agency that assists more than 78,000 people throughout the Bay Area each year.

Today, the JFCS Holocaust Center holds over 13,000 books and several thousand documents, photographs, and artifacts in the Tauber Holocaust Library and Archives.

Watch the film below to learn more about the JFCS Holocaust Center’s origins.

Our Programs

Survivor Speakers Bureau
Members of the William J. Lowenberg Speakers Bureau teach students and adults about the Holocaust and genocide through eyewitness testimony.

Educator Programs
The JFCS Holocaust Center offers one-day workshops and individual consultations that help educators design thoughtful lessons about the Holocaust.

University Programs
The University Fellowship provides undergraduate and graduate students with the opportunity to become essential members of the Holocaust Center staff.

High School Programs
High school students have a rare and unique opportunity to study the Holocaust and patterns of genocide through two exceptional programs offered by the JFCS Holocaust Center.

Library & Archives
The Tauber Holocaust Library and Archives houses more than 13,000 volumes, an archive of more than 2,000 recorded oral histories, and many rare artifacts, memorabilia, and images documenting the Holocaust.

Rywka’s Diary
The newly discovered diary, written in the Lodz ghetto during World War II, is an astonishing historical document and a moving tribute to the many ordinary people whose lives where forever altered by the Holocaust. Accompanied by rich background materials, the book is destined to become an important source of inspiration for students of the Holocaust around the world.