JEWISH WOMEN'S FOUNDATION OF METROPOLITAN DETROIT Enhancing the Lives of Jewish Women Announcing the Jewish Women's Foundation's 2013 Grant Cycle The Jewish Women's Foundation of Metropolitan Detroit is pleased to announce that it is now accepting requests for funding in 2013. Students in grades 1-4 from the girls school enjoyed a beautiful day in September. Letters of Intent are due no later than noon on Tuesday, February 12, 2013. Yeshiva from page 12 For the grant guidelines, instructions and forms, please visit our website: www.jewishdetroit.org/jwf and click on 2012 Grant Guidelines and Instructions or contact Helen Katz, Director Katz@jfmd.org or 248.203.1483 The Jewish Women's Foundation of Metropolitan Detroit is dedicated to expanding opportunities and enriching the lives of women and girls through strategic grant making and education. The Foundation empowers its Trustees as philanthropists, social advocates and leaders. 1800610 an You! Yad E zra Building On Solid Foundation Yad Ezra's leadership extends heartfelt thanks to those who partner with us in helping alleviate hunger in our community. Our recent fundraiser, honoring Rissa and Sheldon Winkelman, is helping provide the funds to purchase and distribute thousands of pounds of nutritious, free kosher groceries every month. Every $1 donated buys the equivalent of $2 worth of groceries purchased from a store. Family size 2 5 Yad Ezra cost for groceries $52.61 $85.67 Retail avg. cost for groceries $107.85 $164.06 Yad Ezra operates a total choice pantry for vulnerable families living in southeast Michigan. Client families* choose the items that they desire from a variety of chicken, meat, fish, dairy items, fresh and canned produce, eggs, grains, juices, soup, toiletries and household cleaning items. For more information about Yad Ezra, call (248) 548-3663, visit our website www.yadezra.org or email info@yadezra.org ' \\‘ ‘v \ 4* I \ *To qualify for assistance, +, household income should fall within 200% of the national poverty guidelines 14 December 13 • 2012 0 . 44. Because of space and zoning issues, the current Meer Preschool building itself cannot be expanded. Similarly, the Bais Yaakov Girls' School has near- ly doubled its student population since buying the former B'nai Moshe facility, on Church Street in Oak Park, with the assistance of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit. As a result of the Yeshiva's growth, and combining the two needs, the Yeshiva has embarked on a major proj- ect to build a new school for both the Meer Preschool and Girls' High School on land leased from the Federation and United Jewish Foundation at the corner of 10 Mile and Church Street, alongside Temple Emanu-El in Oak Park. r A "The Federation purchased the 10 Mile Road property several years ago to preserve it for the Jewish community:' explains Dorothy Benyas, Federation's chief financial officer. "Over the years, the Federation and the United Jewish Foundation have made significant investments in the important Oak Park and Southfield areas. Building and sup- porting our schools are top priorities." From vision to blueprints to ground- breaking, the school building project has been on a remarkable fast track, made possible by a strong manage- ment team in place including Todd Sachse, United Jewish Foundation president; Douglas Etkin, United Jewish Foundation past president; Lee Hurwitz, Real Estate Committee chair; Gary Torgow, Yeshiva Beth Yehudah president; and Rabbi Eli Mayerfeld, the Yeshiva's executive director. The new 55,000- square-foot building is designed by French and Associates and is being built by Rand Construction to house both the preschool and high school on separate floors. The school is scheduled for opening before the 5774 academic year in August 2013. New Design And Amenities The first floor of the new building will house a state-of-the-art pre- school, including 14 classrooms, an expanded resource room area, a large outdoor playground for the children, a gym and a multipurpose room. The new facility will give the preschoolers more room to play, while staff will use the area for instructional play and specialized learning. The second floor of the new build- ing will house the Bais Yaakov High School. Having a completely sepa- rate entrance from the preschool, the high school will be constructed with numerous high-tech amenities in classrooms, science labs, com- puter labs, a media library, a resource room, a student lounge and a multi- purpose dining room. The preschool building project committee is chaired by Ephraim Singal; the Bais Yaakov building com- mittee is chaired by Elana Berlin. Both chairs and their committees have worked very hard, together with the Yeshiva administration and representatives of the United Jewish Foundation Real Estate Committee, along with architects, builders and design teams, to build a beautiful facility. Ellenberg is excited by the progress and pleased with the growing Oak Park and Southfield areas. "We've built a community here where people want to be," he said. "We can give the Jewish Federation a lot of credit for that. Detroit has become a destination city where people want to live and raise their children. The schools are excellent, the community is very supportive, and Detroit has become a draw for many young families." ❑ Vivian Henoch is a writer/editor at myJewishDetroit.org, where this story first appeared.