This section is sponsored by

• Congregation Shaarey Zedek of Oakland County
• Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit

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At Yad Ezra are Director of Development Lea Luger, Knesset member Moshe Kahalon, former Yaz Ezra President Paul Finkel and Director of Operations Elaine Ryke, and

Augie Fernandez of Gleaners food bank.

Shelli Liebman Dorfman
Senior Writer

W

hat a group of Detroiters saw in
Israel a year ago was shocking,
heartbreaking — and, until
recently, pretty much a secret.
During the visit, they learned that more
than 22 percent of Israeli citizens —
approximately 1,100,000 individuals — are
food insecure, meaning they have limited
or uncertain availability of nutritionally
adequate foods.
"We usually see the 'Jerusalem of Gold'
when we're in Israel, but what we saw
was a much grittier side, people strug-
gling to survive,' said Rabbi Eric Yanoff of
Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Oakland
County, who participated in a mission co-
sponsored by Mazon: A Jewish Response
to Hunger and the Forum to Address Food
Insecurity and Poverty in Israel.
During a much more positive side to
their visit, the group surveyed the progress
of what Rabbi Yanoff called "one of the
most ambitious efforts to combat food
insecurity in Israel: the creation of Leket:

Israel's National Food Bank.
many of those who manage and envision
"Israelis are very strong people, with
the future of Israeli society also had not
courage; but the country's funds go into a
allowed themselves to see anything but the
security and defense budget and not into
fanciful image of a 'Jerusalem of Gold' or a
food banks," he said. "Many passionate indi- "land flowing with milk and honey:" said
viduals of all denominations
Yanoff, who traveled with
and backgrounds organized
Dr. H. Eric Schockman,
(350) non-government run
president of the Los
agencies, each working sepa-
Angeles based-Mazon; the
rately to purchase, gather,
agency's vice chair, Joel
staff and transport food:'
Jacob of West Bloomfield;
But these agencies' efforts
and Agostinho "Augie"
provided only 25,000 of
Fernandes of Gleaners
140,000 tons of needed food.
Community Food Bank of
"Combining their monetary
Southeastern
Michigan in
OPAPAUNITY CARE
power and human power
Detroit.
could help meet this
Now Leket is becom-
On Th e Cover
demand:' he said.
ing a reality, from the
And that notion is what
support of a group of
created Leket, through the
Israeli lawmakers along
work of those who are raising funds and
with the fundraising and advocacy efforts
lobbying for laws allowing the acquisition
of Americans — many of whom are
of more food items to distribute.
Detroiters.
It took a while to get enough government
support to get started, with some Israelis
A Detroit Education
not wanting the world to see them as
Last month, key members of the Israeli
unable to care for their people. "Sadly, too
government visited Detroit on a whirlwind

Leket-sponsored trip to discuss the attitude
change, share news of the progress of Leket,
discuss further needs and learn from our
community.
They spoke with students at Hillel Day
School in Farmington Hills and the Frankel
Jewish Academy in West Bloomfield and
visited with political leaders, donors and
the news media. They visited the Holocaust
Memorial Center in Farmington Hills and
toured Jewish Detroit. And on Shabbat,
members of the group spoke to congregants
at Shaarey Zedek and Temple Israel in West
Bloomfield.
With a focus of the trip to glean informa-
tion to take back home, the Israeli delega-
tion — which included members of the
Knesset (Israel's Parliament) — visited
Gleaners, Yad Ezra in Berkley and Forgotten
Harvest in Oak Park.
Detroit's hunger-based agencies are
a model for others, according to Lea
Luger, development director of Yad Ezra,
Michigan's only kosher food pantry
"Our community serves as a working

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January 17 • 2008

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