Following Shabbat dinner at Fleischman Residence, this bright rainbow
appeared — seemingly a symbol of hope.
Detroit. Checks, made out to Jewish
Apartments & Services may be sent to:
JAS, Hechtman Fire Fund, 15000 W. 10
Mile, Oak Park, MI 48237. More than
$25,000 has been raised so far.
Pe41e-to-people outreach began
immediately after the fire began.
One of the first to step up was
restaurateur Matt Prentice, who gave
sandwiches to rescued seniors and
to staff as well as refreshment to the
firefighters. Among his businesses,
Prentice operates Milk & Honey in
the nearby Jewish Community Center
and supplies the food service for Meer
Apartments.
"My part is nothing:' he said. "I've
always had a lot of respect for police
and firefighters. Seeing what I saw
there that day brought it to a new level.
Seeing six guys up on the roof trying to
cut through a roof that might collapse
under them brought new admiration.
Afterward, I saw them walk to a hill
and down they went from exhaustion.
They worked their butts off. Any idiot
can make a sandwich; I was just pitch-
ing in like anyone else!'
A group of mitzvah-minded
students at Hillel Day School of
Metropolitan Detroit decorated shoe-
boxes and got to school early last
Friday to collect money from parents
in the carpool line as well as from fel-
low students.
"I do the `Dor L'Dor' program at
Fleischman Residence and some of the
seniors are from Hechtman," said Alex
Sherman, 11, the sixth-grade daugh-
ter of Stuart and Eileen Sherman of
Birmingham. "I was shocked. I wor-
ried about my friend, but they got her
out"
The idea emerged to create a "donate
drive-through line The goal was to get
$1 from each of Hillel's 582 students.
Instead, they raised $3,317.38.
"I was really happy," Alex said.
"People were still bringing in money
this Monday. Hillel is a Jewish day
school — we have to look out for our
Jewish seniors and follow derech eretz,
[the respectful way].
Alex was assisted by fellow sixth-
graders Maddi Gonte, Dean Benyamin,
Sara Weinfeld, Adam Birndorf, Reid
Fursmidt, Brian Langas, Ittai Svidler
and Ila Mindel, some older students
and staff members Alyta Cyrlin and
Elisa Sternberg.
Another grassroots effort was
launched by a group of girls who soon
will celebrate their b'nai mitzvah at
Temple Israel in West Bloomfield. The
girls — Natalie Bloom, 13, Hannah
Kohn, 12, Brittani Friedland, 12, and
Amanda Goodman, 12, all of West
Bloomfield — wanted to show their
appreciation for the fire and police per-
sonnel who battled the blaze.
In between baking treats for gift
baskets, the girls met on Sunday morn-
ing to create thank-you cards for the
heroes. On Monday after school, they
met at Nibbles and Nuts in Farmington
Hills to fill and wrap the baskets.
Owner Ron Asmer donated baskets,
shrink wrap and staff time to complete
the project.
Then the girls, a few more friends
and their moms delivered the baskets
and cards directly to the fire and police
stations. The same group already talk-
ed of what they could do to welcome
residents back to Hechtman II when
the time comes.
One of the first senior-to-senior
outreaches came from those who
live at Fleischman Residence. They
invited their neighbors at Hechtman
I to Shabbat dinner. Amid the glow of
the Shabbat candles, the seniors could
relax and enjoy each other's company,
forgetting for a moment the tragedy of
the fire.
And then, amid a tornado watch that
brought fierce wind and rain, emerged
a bright rainbow — the welcome sym-
bol of God's covenant with the Jewish
people and a thankful reminder that
no harm had come to any of the elderly
residents.
❑
The coordination and scheduling tasks of
the volunteers and hours of operation will
be managed by Donna Pelon, executive
assistant at the Fresh Air Society, (248)
252-0227.
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April 17 • 2008
A13