Metro Volunteer Patty Shook of West Bloomfield sorts food. Humble Beginnings An agency for Jews in need arose from grassroots efforts. SHELL( LIEBMAN DORFMAN Staff Writer ad Ezra was founded in 1990 to provide kosher food to needy Jewish families in southeastern Michigan. "The families involved were receiving [government] food os stamps, which only provided enough food for part of the month, so we stepped in to supplement the rest," said Mickey Eizelman, one of five founders of the agency, along with Gary Dembs, Eliezer Kaplan, Howard Zoller and Jim Macy, then executive director of the Food Bank of Oakland County. "The idea at the beginning was to help provide a food package that could be com- bined with food the clients may have already had." Jeanette Eizelman, Mickey's mother and a former caterer, was recruited as Yad Ezra's first executive director. Rabbi Schnipper "She created a menu of items that could help stretch out that food," said Mickey Eizelman, a Yad Ezra past president. "We were shocked at how many people came to us right from the start," he said "We went from zero to 100 families in no time By the end of the first year, Yad Ezra had more than 600 clients. No one ever expected that amount" Yad Ezra, which means "helping hand" in Hebrew, was start- ed with seed money from the Max M. Fisher Foundation. An independent agency, Yad Ezra has always relied on cortbibu- tions. The first major donations came through Rabbi A. Irving Schnipper, then rabbi of Beth Abraham Hillel Moses, now Beth Ahm in West Bloomfield. "He made Yad Ezra the house charity for his shut," Eizelman said. "We never thought there were Jews on the poverty line," Rabbi Schnipper said "When we realized it, I wanted everyone to get on the band wagon. We hung signs in our synagogue ask- ing for donations in multiples of chat [181." His members also were among Yad Ezra's first volunteers. "Some months, what we could distribute was based on how well the fund-raising went," Ezelman said. Humble Beginnings on page 59 Volunteer Joyce Sachs of Ranklin works on a package while volunteers Bert Stein of West Bloomfield and Hermina Hirsch of Southfield fill orders. A Helping Hand from page 57 In addition, appropriate foods and other Jewish holiday essen- tials are distributed prior to Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Chanukah, Tu b'Shevat, Purim and Shavuot. The pick-up process runs as smoothly as possible. "It is so important that clients are made to feel comfortable said Yad Ezra's President Paul Finkel. "There is no shame in asking for assistance for so many other things, like if someone is sick, but we know how difficult it can be to ask for food. That's why our building has the privacy of a parking lot that enters off a side street and private meeting rooms for clients:' he said. Added Luger, "Our volunteers are very respectful of clients, treating them with dignity" "I understand no one wants to be there says longtime volunteer Jerry Saginaw of West Bloomfield. "So I like to be the first one they see at the front of the line, to shake hands and say hello." One thing Stacey Nelkin noticed was respect for clients' time. It took only 15 minutes for her aunt to park and return to the car with groceries. YAD EZRA OFFERINGS A- DAIRY - PROTEIN FRUITNEG CARBS 58 Voluntee r Satisfaction At designated times five days a week, voluntee rs distribute food to clients. Som e teens who help are fulfilling ba r and bat mitzvah community sery ice hours; some adults have been volunteering since the agency's founding 15 years ago. "I remember, wh en I was a lit- tle girl, my mother c ollected coins and food befor e the holi- days for people who n eeded help:' said Dotty Smi of West Bloomfield, a longtime weekly volunteer. "Jews always help Jews, so I walked into Yad Ezr a and A Helping Hand on p age 60 Dry milk Margarine Cottage cheese Macaroni and cheese Tuna Chicken Ground Meat Peanut Butter Gefilte fish/salmon Eggs Juice Oranges/apples Canned fruit Tomato sauce Hot and cold cereal Noodles and soup mix Rice Pasta Potatoes Onions Canned vegetables Kasha Matzah/crackers Flour Bread September 29 2005 J