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Mazel
Toy!

DEBBIE WALLIS LANDAU

Special to the Jewish News

is 8:45 on a Wednesday morn-
ing, and the sweet-and-spicy
aroma of home-cooked stuffed
cabbage fills the air of the Teitel
Jewish Apartments' kosher kitchen in
Oak Park.
With practiced cadence, Virgil Revels
scoops individual portions of the savory
entree into containers. Mixed vegetables
follow. A potato wedge, a slice of bread
and, finally, a fruit dessert is added.
Down the line of volunteer packers
go
in forma-
b
b the meals. Like a regiment

tion, each packer knows the drill: Check
the contents. Secure the lid. Load the
carriers. Make certain both a cold lunch
and hot dinner are provided for each
client.
Another day at Meals on Wheels is
under way.
Monday through Friday, 136 home-
bound clients in Oakland County
benefit from the kosher meal delivery
service pioneered by National Council
of Jewish Women 29 years ago. Each
day, 18 two-person teams service their
routes.
Some volunteers pack and drive
because of a shortage of volunteers.

VOLUNTEERS

KEEP MEALS

ON WHEELS

ROLLING

ALONG.

Andrea Asarch of Oak Park,
foreground, heads a team of
volunteers packing Meals on
Wheels. Behind her are Barbara
Kux of Southfield, Florence Ashin
of Oak Park and Virgil
Revels of Detroit.

There's one salaried part-time driver
who delivers to Detroit and West
Bloomfield, but Meals on Wheels day
chairwoman Andrea Asarch of Oak
Park hopes to find a second to relieve
the load. She's also praying for at least
10 new volunteer drivers.
"It's just a fact of life with this pop-
ulation, that we're going to have snow-
birds in our group. By November, our
volunteer list is going to shrink," she
says.
Each volunteer makes at least a two-
hour, one-weekday commitment. But
the schedule's rarely rigid.
"You know that people get sick, or

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43

have car problems or, worse, lose loved
ones. Someone then works an extra
day, or adds to their own route,"
Asarch says.
"They are about the most dedicated
people I've ever met," she adds. "They
are a gift to work with."
And their average age is 75 years old.
Despite the commonplace chal-
lenges of one's later years, the volun-
teers under Asarch's supervision are
loyal and tenacious.
"Why do I do this?" says Rhoda
Rosin of Detroit. "Because I'm a Jewish

HOME DELIVERY on page 37