PROTECT YOUR VALUABLES!! HAVE YOUR OWN We Offer Complete Delivery & Installation Hurricane Katrina HOMELAND SECURITY Safes Unlimited has safes you can depend on for your survival and the security of your most important possessions. •Wall Safes •Floor Safes •Gun Safes •Many sizes & styles to choose from Communal Vow Houston Jews step up for hurricane victims. Peace of Mind. At Home & Work. MICHAEL C. DUKE Jewish Telegraphic Agency 3361 Orchard Lake Rd. • Keego Harbor, MI 48320 248-738-1500 1017670 Join Now 2 for 1 011 EL1J:).1 (11 S A1III:_) c00Ze. Make your friendship more rewarding. *split service fee with fiiend Now at Curves, join with a friend and split the service fee. A great deal con- sidering that people who work out with a friend usually have greater success and more lasting results. Come just 30 minutes, three times a week and soon you'll be seeing a lot less of each other. The power to amaze yourself! Over 9,000 locations worldwide. (248) 258-9030 248-336-9030 633 S. Adams Birmingham, MI 48009 3184 W. 12 Mile Rd. Berkley, MI 48072 248-244 9030 248-355-9030 158 W. Maple Rd. Troy, MI 48084 23920 W. Nine Mile Rd. Southfield, MI 48034 curves com *Offer based on 1st visit enrollment, min. 12 mo. C.D. program. Not valid with any other offer. Valid only dun participating locations thru 11/12/05. 1018850 DR. MICHAEL GRAY INTRODUCES... Reduce Cellulite Now! Skin Deep now offers the latest, proven method for cellulite reduction, the Dermosonic® Method. An initial series of treatments and minimal follow-up can make it look like you've been going to the gym regularly. DermosonicO is the first system to incorporate two complementary modalities, Ultrasound and Non-Invasive Subdermal Therapy (N.I.S.T.) into painless and comfortable treatment sessions that act on the circulatory causes that lie behind cellulite. Why wait? DA. 101014111Y 0111V, D.O. Michigan Cosmeffc Surgery Center Stop by and give your lace a drink of • SHOWERS•HOLIDAY•NEW BABY•BIRTHDAYS•AN.NIVERSARIES•NEW BABY* AS SffN IN PLATINUM MAGAZINE g UNIQUE HOLIDAY GIFTS •fall Handbags • Hip Belt Buckles •Lucious Lotions 411 9/15 2005 82 Bar/Bat Mitzvah Memory Books ACCESSORIES2YOU § z • Unique Accents for Home fashion ccc. fun o 2900 Orchard Lake Rd., Keego Harbor 48320 • 248.682.3125 Hours: Mon-Wed, Sat 11-6 6 (between Middlebelt & Cass Lake Road) Thurs-Fri 11-8 >, ..SHOWERS- H - OLIDAY.NEW, OAI3Y 131RTHDAYS., ANNIVERSARIES*NEW O ■ o Houston n the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Houston's Jewish com- munity has been instrumental in the relief effort for Jewish and non- Jewish victims. Joe and Joy Kaplan are two of the many Jewish Houstonians who have put in hundreds of volunteer hours helping non-Jewish evacuees from the Gulf Coast since the disaster struck. Members of Operation Compassion, an interfaith initiative responsible for food and humanitarian services at the George R. Brown Convention Center and other shelters across the city, the Kaplans said their participation in the relief effort is nothing out of the ordinary. "We're just regular people who want to help in any way we can," explained Joe Kaplan during his eight-hour shift on Saturday. Under the auspices of Houston Mayor Bill White, the con- vention center has been converted into a two-story, temporary city, out- fitted with most amenities, including a fully operational hospital and laun- dry service provided by the Hilton Hotel next door. Kaplan, one of the 750 volunteers scheduled to work that day, spent the morning directing evacuees to places they needed to go — .where to get breakfast, take a shower, find medical care and transportation. He also spent time visiting with several of the 15,000 residents, listening to their sto- ries, playing with children and offering messages of hope. Houston's Jewish community has also been working to ensure that its new Jewish neighbors from New Orleans are comfortable and provided for. Current estimates are that more than half of the Crescent City's Jewish community is now living in Houston, and these 5,000 individuals have been blessed with food, clothing, trans- portation, medical and financial assis- tance, religious and educational servic- es, and housing. Non-Jewish evacuees also need help, as Diane and Stephen "Skip" I Brezner can attest. According to Diane, the local Jewish federation learned that a non-Jewish employee of the National Council of Jewish Women's New Orleans office was staying at the Reliant Arena shelter along with her family. Jewish resi- dents volunteered to pick up Nettie Thompson and her husband, two daughters and three grandchildren and find them more comfortable liv- ing conditions. This entire ordeal has been heart- breaking for us all," Diane Brezner said. "And we're just glad to be able to help — black, white, green — any- body who's in need. That's our obliga- tion as Jews." The Thompsons first were taken to the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston. There the children took showers and were given new clothes. The family was then taken to the Brezners' house, where they were given food and places to sleep. The adults were able to wash themselves, change into clean clothes, and relax for the first time in more than a week The next day, the Thompsons secured a home of their own, where the first month's rent was paid by the Jewish community. Besides having food, water, clean clothing and a roof overhead, Houston's newest residents repeatedly have said that getting their children into school is the next step in maintaining a sense of normalcy in Katrina's aftermath. The principal of Parker Elementary School, Carol "Cappy" Selig, is one of several Jewish educators in the Houston Independent School District who have done everything in their power to help evacuees from southern Louisiana and Mississippi achieve this goal. Parker, a top music elementary school in the district, operates at capacity each year. "We received our first student from New Orleans on Sept. 1," Selig said. 'And even though we have a waiting list for Parker that is a mile long, I didn't have the heart to turn this child and her family away. Parker has accepted eight more stu- dents and has coordinated with other "