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to show children to do what I do, not
just what I say."
Barbara Lewis of Hospice of
Southeastern Michigan related a
recent visit to the Hospice offices by
a 2-year-old who brought with him a
Shabbat tzedakah box stuffed full of
coins. Lewis was told the little guy
delighted in finding coins in his
grandfather's pocket every Shabbat
and dropping them into the box to
hear the sound they made.
"He didn't know exactly what was
going on but his mother said they
wanted the money to go to one of
Rabbi Bunny (Friedman's) programs,"
Ms. Lewis said.
Having the pre-schooler and
school-aged child participate in the
action of giving is another important
lesson, Pont said.
This is something the Pogoda fam-
ily of Franklin practices regularly.
Adam, 10, and his brothers Daniel,
8, and Michael, 4, are each given a
weekly allowance for performing regu-
lar household tasks such as taking out
the garbage, retrieving the-newspaper,
setting and clearing the dinner table.
Their parents, Lori and Maurice
Pogoda, divide their allowance into
thirds with one portion going toward
savings, another for spending and the
last for tzedakah.
Last year, the boys pooled their
tzedakah money, reviewed a list of
potential recipient charities and
decided to donate the money to a
new Hospice facility at 11 Mile and
Middlebelt. They bought a brick in a
garden path which they dedicated to
the memory of their grandparents, I.
Edward and Sylvia Pogoda, who were
cared for in a Hospice in New York.
"It made me feel good that I was
helping someone," said Daniel. "I
look forward to giving tzedakah again
next year."
"We teach them that it doesn't
matter what you give but that it is
important to give," Lori Pogoda said.
"They are very aware of their respon-
sibility to help others."
As the child gets older and more
capable of handling decisions, allow-
ing them to choose their causes and
regulate their own activity are appro-
priate ways to encourage them to
continue giving, Pont said.
Also continuing to act as a role
model for tzedakah shows the child
that performing acts of charity is a
lifelong responsibility, not something
to be given up after the b'nai mitzvah
blow out.
The Hoffman family of -
Farmington Hills is a good example
of this.
Jerry and Sue Hoffman, members
of Temple Shir Shalom in West
Bloomfield, have been active in tem-
ple life since the congregation began
in the mid-1980s. The family regu-
larly attends services and the
Hoffmans are involved in the reli-
gious school and youth activities.
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Children learn
acts of charity
are a lifelong
responsibility.
Their son, Michael, a 14-year-old
Eagle Scout candidate who celebrated
bar mitzvah last year, began his acts
of tzedakah early, his dad said.
"When he was little, he -had to
have his own money to put into the
tzedakah box at Sunday school each
week," Hoffman recalled.
Michael continued to help others,
popping quarters into charity cans
near store cash registers and tutoring
other children in Hebrew.
But his biggest act of giving thus
far was a recent blood drive he orga-
nized and hosted between Temple
Shir Shalom and Congregation B'nai
Moshe. Michael enlisted the help of
other scouts and adults, signing them
up to either solicit donors, help on
the big day or donate their blood.
"I am very proud of him," said
Jerry Hoffman of Michael.
"We have always taught him that
to live as a Jew means more than to
go to services three times a year. He
sees us go to Friday-night services
regularly and comes with us. He sees
us work on committees and give our
time to the temple," he said.
Michael credits his parents with
being good role models, teaching him
tzedakah by example.
"I guess you could say I look up to
them," he said.
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