American Heart
Association.,
Synagogues
Fighting Heart Disease
and Stroke
Visiting Loved Ones
Clockwise: Anne Roberts at the grave of her family member.
Volunteer Ed Royal stands at a gravesite with Rosalie
Friedman.
Rose Mathis wipes away a tear.
Russell Barnett places a stone on
his grandfather's grave at
Machpelah Cemetery.
©1995. American Heart Association
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Volunteers assure seniors of traditional
pre-Yom Kippur cemetery trips.
visits
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SHELLI DORFMAN
Staff Writer
4
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F
MICHAEL A. JONAS
PHOTOGRAPHY
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Specializing
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And Fine Celebrations
BIRMINGHAM, MICHIGAN
(248) 647-5060
9/24
1999
"The Difference IS The. Difference!"
60 Detroit Jewish News
life." With a new friendship
struck up with the Barnetts, who
accompanied her, and plans to
keep in touch, Roberts is confi-
dent that next year "I know I'll
have a way to go back and visit."
The second annual event, co-
chaired by Marc Siegler and Ida
Nemzin, became intergenerational with
the involvement of 16-year-old Melissa
Roberts. The week prior to the visit, the
Temple Israel Youth Group social action
chair organized teens to place memorial
flags on many of the 250 graves to be
visited. They found the sites using maps
provided by the Kaufman Chapel.
At each cemetery last Sunday, a car
transported visitors from the buses to
gravesites if the walk was too far. A few
seniors visited up to 12 loved ones.
"To help the elderly who had no
opportunity to visit on their own was
one of most meaningful experiences that
I have ever had," said Herbert Kaufman.
In spite of the day being "emotion-
gravesites of loved ones on the Sunday
ally draining," Provizer said, "both the
between Rosh HaShana and Yom
seniors and the volunteers really
Kippur, Herbert Kaufman said.
looked forward to it." Many made
Seven mini-buses — stocked with
plans to re-visit the cemeteries togeth-
song books, prayer books, snacks, flow-
er and continue social relationships
ers and tissues, all provided by the
throughout the year.
chapel — picked up volunteers at
A longtime Temple Israel volunteer,
Temple Israel as well as senior residents
Russell Barnett found the Kever Avot
of six local apartment complexes and
program "a very moving and spiritual
nursing and assisted-living facilities.
experience."
Those boarding the buses brought
He called the day "incredibly mean-
memories that turned to wonderful,
ingful" on two counts. In addition to
heart-warming stories after the visits.
providing support for senior Anne
For Anne Roberts, it had been several
Roberts, he made it a personal experi-
years since she was able to visit her hus-
ence with a first-time visit to his grand-
band and son, buried beside one anoth-
father's grave. He said the effects of the
er at Machpelah Cemetery in Ferndale.
program stayed with him as he attended
The resident of Elan Village in
Kol Nidre services that same evening,
Southfield said she does not drive, and
with a feeling of being "in a whole dif-
"it broke my heart to not be able to visit
ferent time and space."
the two most important people in my
1
or Russell and Mary Barnett
of Bloomfield Hills, the slo-
gan "A Mitzvah of a Lifetime"
is the perfect description of
the feeling they experienced Sunday
morning.
"The tagline caught my eye," said
Russell Barnett, referring to the Temple
Israel ad that spurred him and 75 other
volunteers to accompany 34 seniors in a
visit to loved ones interred at 10 local
cemeteries.
Kari Provizer, director of the Temple
Israel Family Life Center, organized the
Sept. 19 Kever Avot (graves of our ances-
tors) program with Ilene Kaufman
Techner of the Ira Kaufman Chapel in
Southfield. It's a Jewish custom to visit