SHARON LUCKERMAN

Editorial Assistant

Hania Shane of
Southfield with her
volunteer helpers:
Yisroel Yelen, 10, of
Oak Park (behind
rake with glasses);
Yaakov Krell, 10,
of Oak Park;
Eliyahu Britvan,
10, of Southfield;
Eli Bakst, 10, of
Oak Park; and
Rabbi Eli Gordon
of Southfield.

liff ore than 160 children and
adults, student groups and fami-
lies have packed the Jewish War
Veterans Building in Southfield
on this morning of Sunday, Nov. 5, awaiting
their Fall Fix-Up assignments. The mood is
upbeat as the volunteers munch doughnuts,
bagels and apples. Rakes, mops and buckets of
supplies line the walls, ready for use.
Co-chair Dr. Steven Dunn explains that the
Jewish Family Service program, now in its
fourth year, sends small groups of volunteers
to help elderly residents with outdoor clean-
up or minor home repairs. This year, 50 households in
the Southfield/Oak Park area signed up for this assis-
tance. Most of the seniors are homebound.
"We found that in the fall, some of our clients could-
n't physically do the work anymore," said Dave Moss,
JFS marketing and development director. "But they

couldn't afford help." So JFS created the Fall
Fix-Up program. Volunteers do a variety of
chores, including cleaning windows, mopping
floors, changing light bulbs and winterizing
windows and doors.
What strikes many people this morning is
how many children and young people have
volunteered.
Later, at the home of Henia Shane of
Southfield: "I was surprised when the little
guys came marching in," she said warmly of
her crew of helpers, fifth-graders from Rabbi
Eli Gordon's class at Yeshivas Darchei Torah in
Southfield.
"Last year I had college boys," she said,
"but look how these boys cleaned the win-
dows!" Pleased, she also points to bags of leaves the boys
are playfully filling in her yard.
Volunteers at the Fall Fix-Up also include older stu-
dent groups, such as the Volunteer Impact Project stu-
dents from West Bloomfield High School, and many
families. The Goroshes from West Bloomfield, for exam-

