Muck Rakers

Adat Shalom students
learn about tzedakah firsthand.

JILL DAVIDSON SKLAR STAFF WRITER

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PHOTOS BY GLENN TR IEST

T

eri Muskovitz took one look
at the Detroit Zoo's trout
pond and said what was on
everyone else's mind.
"Yuck."
But despite their shared sen-
timents, the group of about 20
parents and children from Adat
Shalom Synagogue climbed the
fence and stepped into the muck-
filled dried pond to remove debris.
The volunteers were part of a
small army from the synagogue's
Hebrew school who were work-
ing on a lesson called Yad B'Yad.
Tzedakah Day. About 200 stu-
dents and their parents went to
27 sites to work on community
projects ranging from rehabili-
tating a house in Pontiac to as-
sembling food packages for Yad
Ezra.
The purpose of the day was to
take the lesson of tzedakah out
of the classroom and into the com-
munity by having the children
take part in an activity to help
others.
1
"Rather than teach it in school,
we thought we would give them
a hands-on type of experience,"
said Ron Leff, director of educa-
tion at Adat Shalom.
Last October, students gath-
ered in the synagogue to take
part in the first tzedakah day.
Each child was given a family sce-
nario and then had to seek help
from booths staffed by volunteers from local Jewish
agencies.
"We wanted them to learn about the Jewish com-
munity and the way the community helps individ-
uals," he said. "Having the community organizations
participate the way they did brought the lesson home
to the students."
School was cancelled for that Sunday in Octo-
ber as well as this past Sunday, an event that
pleased the children. But the pleasure was short-
lived as the students saw how much work there was
to do.
"I may be missing Hebrew class but I am won-
dering how I am going to get this done," 9-year-old
David Muskovitz said as he surveyed the mess at
the zoo.
His group of volunteers, armed with rakes and
shovels and wearing boots, began the task of scoop-
ing the six-inch thick muck into tall garbage cans.
Robyn King, a fourth-grader at Adat Shalom who
came with her parents and little brother Aaron, was
pleased with the opportunity to do some good for the
animals.
"I like cleaning stuff, especially when everyone
pollutes and stuff, so the animals can live in a nice
environment," she said as she sifted leaves out of
a six-inch deep puddle. "I feel like this is important."
Ben Raphelson agreed. When he grows up, his
aspiration is to either be a zookeeper or to own a pri-
vate zoo from his earnings as a professional base-
ball player. So cleaning the pond was a natural
choice for the Bloomfield Hills 9-year-old.
His father, Jeff, thought the program was an im-
provement over past tzedakah projects.
"This is what they should be doing to learn about
tzedakah," he said. "When they just hand things out in
school, it isn't as effective."

Top: The volunteers survey the work to be done.

Left: Adat Shalom volunteers carry away pond muck.

Above: Bryan and Michael Glick help their mom fill a trash can.

Mildred Pivoz, mother of volunteer Ben-
jamin Pivoz, was also impressed with the pro-
ject.
"There are different steps in the learning
process," said Ms. Pivoz. "There is a lot of dis-
cussion, but then you have to act." El