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May 19, 2011 / 15 WAR 5771

Hands-On

Breaking
Down
Barriers

EMU Hillel helps
out in L.A.

By Ben Henig

Makom program
at U-M offers
a safe place to talk
on serious topics.

Ypsilanti

By Danielle DePriest

Ann Arbor

In our ever-present struggle
for civility and mutual under-
standing, dialogue has become
an important way to build
relationships and break down
barriers. In a place as diverse
as the college campus, this
quest for understanding comes
at even higher stakes.
University of Michigan
senior Robbie Dembo of
Glenview, Ill., has created sub-
stantive conversation around
a variety of contentious issues
impacting Jewish students on
campus with the creation this
semester of Makom, Jewish
Dialogue Group.
Through Makom, 15 dia-
logue participants worked
through issues such as sexual-
ity, the Israeli-Palestinian con-
flict, gender identity and clas-
sism, all through a Jewish lens.
Dembo reminds us that
"people who are comfort-
able take the community for
granted." Makom seeks to
empower participants with
the tools to break through
tensions and create a more
open Jewish community, one
that has a Makom (or place in
Hebrew) for everyone.
Makom, which is under the
Hillel umbrella and funded
by a grant, takes a two-
pronged approach to dialogue.
Participants first address a
contentious issue and then
work to understand how to
create a space that is support-
ive even despite disagreement.
And disagree they will.
Program participants were
selected from applicants of
all walks of life. The 15 par-
ticipants included graduate
and undergraduate, LGBTQ

Barriers on page 40

Metro Detroiters'Brad Millman, Laura Flusty and Joey Eisman co-chaired
Univeristy of Michigan's Relay for Life, raising a record $325,000.

Tikkun Olam

Metro Detroit students lead U-M Relay for Life
to a fundraising record.

By Laura Flusty

Ann Arbor

M

ore than 3,000 students, faculty mem-
bers and Ann Arbor residents gathered
April 9 at Palmer Field on University of
Michigan's campus with these goals in
mind: to celebrate, remember and fight back.
Under the leadership of three Metro Detroit Jewish stu-
dents — Joey Eisman, Brad Millman and me — the Relay
For Life Planning Committee was able to raise more than
$325,000 for the American Cancer Society, surpassing any
amount the university event has ever raised before.
Relay For Life is one of the Society's signature fundrais-
ers. The overnight event is designed to celebrate survivor-
ship and raise money for cancer research and programs.
The university's Relay brings together diverse student
organizations across campus to form teams. Each team tries
to keep at least one member on the track at all times.

This year's event featured entertainment from campus
a capella groups, dance teams and comedy troupes, food
from local businesses and activities, including volleyball,
dodgeball and sunrise yoga. In addition, speakers discussed
their experiences with cancer.
"We rallied with our fellow university community and
made our voices heard," said Eisman of West Bloomfield.
"By bringing in influential speakers like a former Ameri
can Cancer Society president and a former U-M football
player who has been diagnosed with cancer, we were better
able to engage our personal campus community and pro-
claim the importance of our impact at the university and in
the nation."
This university annual event began in 2003. What started
off as an 800-person event raising a total of $87,190 has
grown to be one of the largest and most successful colle-

Tikkun Olam on page 40

During EMU's spring break,
11 students from Eastern
Michigan University and
Washtenaw Community
College traveled to Los
Angeles to roll up their sleeves
and provide much-needed
volunteer power and engage
in tzedakah, or social justice,
work.
The group, led by facilitators
from Jewish Funds for Justice,
worked with two non-profit
agencies: Los Angeles Family
Housing and Tree People.
During the one workday at
L. A. Family Housing, students
learned about the many causes
of homelessness and found
a new appreciation for the
hardships faced by the work-
ing poor. The rest of the week
was spent with Tree People,
enhancing local city parks that
needed a facelift by planting
and mulching trees.
Through the physical work
of feeding the homeless and
mulching hundreds of trees,
students acted on the prin-
ciples of teamwork and com-
munity building, increasing
their drive to take on problems
that most people ignore.
Tree People facilitator
Daniel Carmichael explained
that importing 11 unskilled
laborers from Michigan was
not the most effective way to
mulch trees; rather the point
was to use the experience to
learn about the importance of
contributing to one's commu-
nity, building public spaces and
maintaining the quality of the
environment; all key compo-
nents to quality of life.
While volunteering with
Tree People, Hillel at EMU
students had the opportunity
to work with a group of vol-
unteers from a local Catholic
high school. This provided a
true leadership experience as
the high school students were

Hands-On on page 40

May19

2011

39