The Edith and Carl Marks Jewish Community House of Bensonhurst, sometimes shortened to "the J" or "the JCH", was incorporated in 1927 and has helped over one million Jews in the Bensonhurst neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City. The JCH initially served as a community center for Eastern European Jewish immigrants and their children. As the complexion of the Jewish community in Bensonhurst changed, its community center changed in accord. During the 1940s and 1950s, a large influx of Syrian Jews immigrated to the area. In the 1980s, a third wave of immigrants, this time from the former Soviet Union, once again shifted the focus of the community center.

Services

The JCH offers a number of social service programs. Included in those programs are: For the third wave (from Eastern Europe), much of their work with adults focuses on housing and job search. Many of these beneficiaries came with training, education and valuable skills, but in some cases age and new health issues created new needs for help. At times they assist in end-of-life situations. The community center focuses a lot on children and teens; establishing after school aid programs, tutoring classes, summer camps, Farber-Bruch early childhood center, Zehut teen center, and a Cammarata youth sports center.

Notable former members