Spirituality
Project, adds Greenberg. Some have
paired with particular organizations and
some host a Purim party when they
deliver the parcels.
Adat Shalom Synagogue in
Farmington Hills paired up with many
JARC-homes. Congregation Beth
Shalom in Oak Park slurred with
Menorah House in Southfield.
Congregation B'nai Moshe of West
Bloomfield brought parcels to Jewish
residents at nearby nursing homes.
The Jewish Community Center's
Sarah and Irving Pitt Child
Development Center in West
Bloomfield has adopted the Southfield-
based Dorothy and Peter Brown Jewish
Community Adult Day Care Program.
Jewish Family Service will give parcels to
homemakers and aides who care for
homebound patients.
"This projects works because its a
win-win situation — the community
feels good putting packages together and
they bring Purim cheer to those who
receive them," Isaacs says.
-
Lesley Jacobowitz, 12, of West
Bloomfield wraps Purim parcels.
Harold Folkoff of Oak Park and Debbie
Rosenberg, a JEFF coordinator, put
parcels into bags for delivery.
executive director of AJE, "is that some
congregations prepared parcels ahead of
time on site."
Synagogues and other agencies have
expanded the Great Purim Parcel
Kosher Comedy
Standup comedian Mark Schiff
doesn't need to offend to be funny.
SUSAN TAWIL
Special to the Jewish News
What's unique about Schiff's per-
formance is that it is 100 percent
clean: no foul language, no 'insults,
or funny-man Mark Schiff,
no mean spirited material. "I try to
Torah observance is just
keep away from lashon hara," he
"another extension of my
says, referring to the Torah prohibi-
craziness."
tion against hurtful speech.
Although a bit of an anom-
There's plenty to laugh
aly in the world of show biz,
about without being offensive,
Schiff hasn't let his commit-
he maintains.
ment to mitzvot slow him
• "Mark's act is really funny,"
down.
says Aish director Rabbi Alon
The comedian has appeared
Tolwin. "He makes up his own
on The Tonight Show with Jay
material, drawing from every-
Leno, Late Night with David
day life; his stuff is very fresh."
Letterman, on HBO and
The standup comedian was
Showtime cable TV specials, in Mark Schiff
born in the Bronx. Always a
sitcoms, nightclubs and stage
funny kid, Schiff saw Rodney
shows and has performed with stars like
Dangerfield's show when he was 12 and
Jerry Seinfeld, Diana Ross, Tim Allen
decided then that he, too, wanted to be
and Eddie Murphy.
a comedian. At 18, he started writing
On Sunday evening, March 3, Schiff jokes, and at 22 he went professional
will take his act to Detroit, appearing at
with a performance at Improvisation, a
Mark Ridley's Comedy Castle in Royal
New York comedy club. From there,
Oak to benefit the Aish Center in
Schiff hit the comic circuit, working the
Birmingham.
clubs — sometimes playing as many as
six shows a night.
r,
2/22
2002
50
Unexpected Surprises
By noon, almost all the packages are
made. Individuals and families divide
into groups to deliver them. Four adults
While in Los Angeles 15 years ago,
he met Rabbi Nachum Braverman,
head of Aish Los Angeles branch. Schiff
took a trip to Israel and has been study-
ing Torah ever since.
"When I was young, my parents sent
me to yeshivah for four years, so I had
been around Orthodox people before.
They didn't scare me," he explains.
Schiff, now 47, lives in San Antonio,
Texas, where he met his wife while there
"on a gig." The couple have three chil-
dren, ages 5, 8 and 10, who attend the
local Hebrew day school in what Schiff
describes as their "small, but strong"
Jewish community.
Admitting that observing Shabbat
poses problems in a profession whose
most popular show times are Friday
night and Saturday, Schiff says he com-
pensates by writing more, working on
material for plays and TV shows.
When he acted in sit-corns Mad
and four 12-year-olds drive to the
Harriet and Ben Teitel Jewish
Apartments in Oak Park with more
than 150 Purim parcels. They are greet-
ed by the building's geriatric social
worker, Jennifer Epstein Rube.
"The residents here have been calling
the office all week asking when your
Purim Parcels were coming," she says.
"They can't wait, and they especially like
when the kids come."
Although there's a diverse group of
residents — Jewish and non-Jewish —
Rube says, with the atmosphere of
goodwill, everyone enjoys this event.
Before sending the volunteers off to
deliver the packages, she teaches them
two Russian words: previat (hello) and
do svidaniya (goodbye).
Piling the parcels into carts, the chil-
dren and their parents take the elevator
to the second floor, and begin knocking
on doors.
One woman opens her door, and
takes the package the children hand her.
She closes the door quickly. A moment
later, the woman reopens her door and
calls to the children, already down the
hallway. When they return, she is smil-
ing and hands the young ones "Purim
gelt" — a dollar each — and thanks
them for their special gift. ❑
About You and Roseanne, producers let
him go home early on Fridays. Other
Jewish comics are very 'supportive of his
observance, he says, adding, "We love
shmoozing together."
Schiff does about 20 benefit per-
formances for Jewish organizations a
year and finds the audiences "very
appreciative."
"They're happy that I'm sensitive to
them, that they can enjoy a clean act.
"The power of laughter is tremen-
dous," he says. "It helps you forget your
troubles. Beyond a shadow of a doubt,
we all need to laugh now more than
ever before. "El
For information or to reserve tick-
ets for Mark Schiff's March 3 per-
formance at Mark Ridley's
Comedy Castle, call the Aish
Center at (248) 593-5138.
Temple Offers Support Group
Temple Israel's Family Life Center offers
a support group for families with gay
and lesbian children. Meetings will be at
the temple the first and third Tuesday of
every month at 7:30 p.m.
The group will provide a comfortable
place to talk and share thoughts. It will
help in understanding a Child's feelings
about his/her sexual orientation. The
group will be facilitated by Harold Kaller
and is free of charge to the community.
Privacy and confidentiality will be
assured. For information, call Kari
Provizer, (248) 661-5700.