Remembering The Hungry
Continued from Page L-3
can get involved with to help Mazon reach its goal and feed the
hungry. First, there is the three percent plan. Families can send three
percent of the cost of a bar/bat mitzvah, wedding party or anniversary
party as its contribution to Mazon. At Cong. Beth Abraham Hillel
Moses, where Rabbi A. Irving Schnipper spearheaded Mazon in
Detroit, there is the Ezrat Mazon project. Since the numerical value
for the Hebrew letters which spell Mazon equal 103, congregation
members are encouraged to donate in amounts of $10.30, $103, etc.
Cramer said there is no end to the creative ways people have
been devising to send contributions to Mazon. A bar mitzvah boy sent
in $50 dollars from the gifts he received, and his parents were so
proud of him, that they matched the gift with their own check. One
contributor lost 40 pounds, and in celebration sent $40. A couple
celebrating their 50th anniversary sent a check for $50. In Phoenix,
Ariz., that city's Federation decided not to serve hors d'oeuvres at its
major dinner and sent the cost for them to Mazon. In fact, according
to Cramer, much of the money raised by Mazon comes through
tributes. There also are two appeals tied into the Jewish holidays. On
Yom Kippur, rabbis ask the congregations to estimate the cost of the
food they would normally have eaten had it not been a fast day and
Cramer said he wasn't loking for big numbers on
the checks Mazon receives. Rather he'd like to
see widespread participation in the Detroit
Jewish community and the national Jewish
community.
send three percent of that to Mazon. On Pesach, when Jews are
reminded to "let all who are hungry come and eat," it is suggested to
make a donation based on the cost of feeding one person.
Cramer said he wasn't looking for big numbers on the checks
Mazon receives. Rather he'd like to see widespread participation in
the Detroit Jewish community and the national Jewish community.
(Locally, participating synagogues and temples include Cong. Beth
Abraham Hillel Moses, Temple Emanu-El, Temple Israel, Temple Beth
El and Temple Kol Ami. Cong. Beth Shalom is currently discussing
undertaking Mazon as a congregational project.) "What we need is to
create a sense of family," Cramer said, "so that you go from your
synagogue to another synagogue, from a rabbi to another rabbi, from
lay person to lay person and say please join us in this. We want this
to be a community-wide effort."
On a national scale, several Jewish organizations have adopted
Mazon as a community service project. Among them are: Union of
American Hebrew Congregations, Central Conference of American
Rabbis, Rabbinical Assembly, United Synagogue of America, the
Reconstructionist movement, National Federation of Temple Youth and
National Jewish Community Relations Advisory Committee.
In Detroit, Rabbi Schnipper has taken up the call, when asked by
the Rabbinical Assembly to serve as its Mazon chairman here. "I got
the materials and then decided to do it," he said. In his congregation,
which he estimates has raised nearly $10,000 so far for Mazon,
contributors have their names posted on a special Mazon board. In
addition to personal checks and the Ezrat Mazon project, Mazon has
received $103 from children in the synagogue's religious school, from
money raised in a candy sale.
The soft-spoken Cramer said almost embarrassedly how proud he
was of the program, and is gratified by the response of the Jewish
community to it. "Mazon has become the principal vehicle in the
American Jewish community, after almost two years of operation in
facing up to the terrible scandal of hunger that exists in this country
and around the world. We're really very proud of it. What we're proud
of is our own behavior and we're proud of the Jewish community's
behavior in becoming part of this family that we're trying to create."
You Can Help Feed the Hungry
Families who would like a brochure about Mazon or who wish to
make a contribution can contact the organization by writing Mazon, A
Jewish Response to Hunger, 2940 Westwood Blvd., Suite 7, Los
Angeles, Calif. 90064, (213) 470-7769.
Psalm 100
A Psalm of Thanksgiving
Shout unto the Lord all the earth
Serve the Lord with Gladness: Come before His
presence with singing
Know ye the Lord He is God: It is He that hath
made us, and we are His,
His people and the flock of his pasture.
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving,
and into His courts with praise:
Give thanks unto Him and bless His Name.
For the Lord is good; His mercy endureth forever;
And His faithfulness unto all generations.
Help Sought For Hungry
The National Council of Jewish
Women, Greater Detroit Section,
needs volunteers to help deliver
"Meals on Wheels" to the elderly
and homebound.
Volunteers, women or men, are
asked to donate their time one
morning per week from about 10
a.m. to noon. They work in teams of
two. Twenty-eight people are needed
to cover 14 different routes each
day, Monday through Friday.
The "Meals on Wheels"
program, now 14 years old, serves
nearly 200 clients who are unable to
do their own cooking because of
age or illness. Each receives two
kosher meals per day, one hot and
one cold. All cooking is done by the
kitchen staff of the Jewish
Federation Apartments, where the
food is packed and volunteers begin
their delivery routes. Jewish Family
Service provides social workers who
screen and offer additional services
to Meals On Wheels clients.
Donate Wheels
For Meals
To sign up as a volunteer
for or to obtain information,
about Meals on Wheels, call the
NCJW offices, 258-6000.
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
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