By 
By Jonathan Cane
Ten years ago, law professor Jessica Fink went out for a run through her Carmel Valley neighborhood and found herself thinking about her son. “Leo was about five,” she recalls, “and I remember thinking, he has no idea how good he has it. How do I teach him to give back at this age?”
That question sparked something bigger than she ever imagined: Little Mensches, a hands-on community service program for children ages 4 to 8. Co-founded by Fink, along with Judy Nemzer and Vivien Dean who also lead the Shalom Baby program at the Lawrence Family JCC in La Jolla, Little Mensches invites young children and their parents into a life of empathy, responsibility, and action.
Jessica vividly remembers the moment it all began. “I called Judy because I knew she knew of every child-related opportunity in town. I asked if she knew of any volunteer programs for young kids, and she said, ‘I don’t, but why don’t you come in and we’ll talk.’” That conversation, shared with Judy and Vivien at the JCC, became the seed that grew into a movement. “We didn’t even have a budget,” Jessica says. “We just started calling friends for donations. We thought 25 people might come. Instead, 150 children and their parents showed up. We knew then there was a need for this program.”
In its first decade, Little Mensches has reached hundreds of families across San Diego. The events are as varied as they are meaningful: packing school supplies for underserved children, creating activity kits for patients at Rady Children’s Hospital, writing letters to U.S. troops and I.D.F. soldiers, assembling necessity kits for people experiencing homelessness, and cookie-decorating for local first responders.
Every event starts the same way: with a circle of children discussing what it means to be a mensch, a person of integrity and kindness. “We always ask them, ‘Can a kid be a mensch?’” Fink says. “They shout back, ‘Yes!’ And they’re right. You don’t need to be a grown-up to do good.”
The Spark That Started It All
Before there was Little Mensches, there was Shalom Baby. And before that, there was Jean Gaylis, a young mother and new arrival to the United States who knew exactly what it felt like to be isolated and alone.
“I had nobody,” Jean once said. “No family, no friends, and a husband working seven days a week.” Her experience as a young immigrant mother in Minneapolis stayed with her. Years later, settled in San Diego and active in the Jewish community, she posed a simple but transformative question: What if no Jewish parent ever had to feel that way again?
The answer became Shalom Baby, a now-beloved program of the Lawrence Family JCC that turns 25 this year. It begins with a thoughtful gift bag filled with books, toys, and Jewish-themed resources for new parents. But the true gift is the connection that follows.
“Shalom Baby helped me find my people,” Jessica Fink says. “When I walked into my first meetup with a colicky baby and felt like a mess, I looked around and saw that everyone else was going through it too. It made me feel less alone.”
Over the past 25 years, Shalom Baby has welcomed thousands of families with warmth, intention, and Jewish spirit. It offers playgroups, music and movement classes, holiday events, and a gateway into Jewish community life. For many, it is the first step in a journey of belonging. For others, like Fink, it is the beginning of something even more lasting.
Big Impact on a Small Budget
Remarkably, Little Mensches operates on a tiny budget each year. “People are shocked when they hear that,” Fink says. “We make it work through grit, creativity, a lot of volunteer hours, and donations. What we could do with some real underwriting could change the world though.”
The need is growing. “We dream of expanding,” Fink says. “Of hiring a part-time staff person to handle logistics. Of reaching more families. Of bringing this model to other communities. There’s so much potential, but we need partners who believe in this vision.”
More Than a Mitzvah
For many families, Little Mensches plants the seeds of lifelong generosity. Fink tells the story of one family whose child, after attending a homeless kit event, insisted on making more kits at home. Another parent reached out to say their child’s Bat Mitzvah project was inspired by a past Little Mensches activity.
Fink’s own sons are shining examples. Her older son Leo volunteers regularly at the San Diego Rescue Mission and donated part of his Bar Mitzvah gifts to support their work. After one Little Mensches event, when he was perhaps 6 years old, he turned to his mom and said, “I just feel like there’s so much more to do.” For Fink, it was a moment of deep clarity and pride. “That’s when I knew it was working,” she says. “That this wasn’t just something we did. It was something he felt.”
To Fink, that’s the heart of tikkun olam, repairing the world. “I can’t fix everything,” she says. “But I can make sure that 200 kids start the school year with dignity. I can help a child feel proud of doing something good. And I can teach the next generation to carry that forward.”
A Call to Build the Future
For Fink and the Little Mensches team, the ultimate goal is simple but profound: to normalize community service so completely that it becomes “just something kids do, like soccer practice or piano lessons.”
To get there, they need support from donors who believe in early childhood as a critical window for shaping values and from philanthropists who understand that big change often starts with small hands.
“We always say: the grownups drove you here, but you did the work,” Fink smiles. “And it’s true. These kids are building a better world. One mitzvah at a time.”
Support the next generation of givers. To donate or learn more about Little Mensches and Shalom Baby, visit https://secure.givelively.org/donate/lawrence-family-jewish-community-centers-of-san-diego-county/shalom-baby-pj-library-little-mensches-2025-2026
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