Larry and Gail Berkove with their four Israeli grandsons.
Whe Is
M als 0
Kosher service
Teens engage in
"Name That Faith"
a
activity
I
Interfaith program brings teens
together to share faith backgrounds.
A
Jew,
a
Muslim and
a
...
synagogue,mosque,gurd
temple or church. But not a
bar, and this isn't the beginning of
a joke. It's the result of the efforts of
wara,
Bloomfield Hills student named
Josh Morof, who wanted
circle of friends and
to widen his
Synagogue in Farmington
Hills, participants gathered for
worked with WISDOM
some
75
high
West Bloomfield
school students
a
the
Jewish Community
Center to hear from
and
at
Presbyterian
imam, a rabbi
minister about the
an
Abrahamic faiths, followed by a panel
of Muslim, Jewish and Christian teens.
This
was
the kickoff for
a
general
on
traditional Jewish dessert) and listened
to Rabbi Aaron Bergman speak about
of the basic tenets of Judaism.
Bergman explained
vices, saying the
occur on
the
the
same
daily
readings
ser
Torah
same
day
in synagogues
around the world. He also
explained
that in his synagogue, men and
women are treated equally and that
lead the
to Faith events is the Teen Forum at the
dents from Metro Detroit
a
together
religions.
Having fun, learning and creating
opportunities for dialogue, the group
has participated in making and break
ing bread together, team-building
exercises, learning sessions, games and
dialogue as ways to break down myths
to
learn about diverse
and stereotypes and increase respect
and understanding.
Over the last three years, 50 to 75
gathered at various houses
teens have
of worship to learn about different
faiths and to discuss their
common
alities.
Leadership
•
chance
to
ask
questions about their faiths,
covering topics like the hijab that some
Muslim
women wear,
meaning
an
baptism and the
of a bar mitzvah.
Face to Faith
event at St.
its
with
began
Mary's Antiochian
season
December. The
gathering will
Synagogue in West
Bloomfield on Thursday, Feb. 5. Other
next
be at Shir Shalom
will be at the Muslim
upcoming
Unity Center in Bloomfield Hills and
at Song and Spirit Institute for Peace.
If you are interested in attending
events
Face to Faith event, visit the IFLC
•
2015
to
register or contact Meredith
Skowronski at Meredith.skowronski@
gmaiLcom.
D
in
75,
said program coordinator Rick Emmer
of Bloomfield Township. He says the
decline is due mostly to the increase in
senior
apartment facilities that provide
meals.
Generally, MOW clients are over age
60; a handful are younger, but have dis
abilities. that limit their ability to handle
meal preparation.
Most clients
get lunch and dinner
delivered every weekday by a
crew
volunteer drivers. The
and she didn't want
includes food for the weekend. Some
-
come
and
doesn't cook. The
for her.
care
couple
ask
to
Larry
relied on
Friday delivery
choose to get only one meal or to skip
some of the days, Emmer said. Because
friends, who plied them with food.
"But here came Pesach,' Berkove said.
the portions
"My friends were tied up with their
own Passover preparation:' she said.
them.
"How could I ask them to
$50, but the fee .can be adjusted for
my kitchen,
forme?"
come
clean
change my dishes and cook
Kosher Meals
couples
generous, some
request only one meal between
A full week of Meals
Wheels
would have
Wheels
came
thought of Meals
Foundation, NCJW/GDS and private
tion:'
Life's Prentis
on a
Two friends, Alicia Nelson,
a
volunteer, and
MOW
social
Phyllis Schwartz,
worker, suggested she apply. She called
Jewish Family Service (JFS), which
a
handles intake for MOW
JFS staff member visited the
as soon as
an
so
did
and,
daily
where volunteers
only for the eight
of
but
that
days Pesach,
jump-started
me:' Berkove said. After the holiday, she
resume
food preparation
herself.
Drivers
for clients in the Oak Park-Southfield
area pick up their
packages at Prentis.
Meals for clients in the Farmington
a
distribution
point near
14 Mile and
Northwestern for drivers to
vate homes or
pick up.
for
some
residents of the Prentis and
nearby Teitel apartments, who receive
dinner five days a week but not lunch.
To
Jewish Detroiters are aware of
Kosher Meals on Wheels, a program of
the National Council of Jewish Women,
Greater Detroit Section
pri
apartments, MOW serves
nursing home residents who want kosher
food. The program also provides lunches
Helpful Service
Most
gather every weekday
morning to pack the meals.
In addition to clients who live in
"We got the meals
able to
Jewish Senior
Apartments in Oak Park,
Hills- West Bloomfield area are taken to
assessment
Passover started,
MOW is based at
meal delivery.
was
Wheels costs
supported by the U.S. federal
government through the Area Agency on
Aging 1- B, by the DeRoy Testamentary
to
(MOW)
temporary
basis:' she said. "It was the perfect solu
A
on
clients who can't afford that much. The
donors.
on
are so
program is
on
rescue.
never
of
Israel, Pennsylvania and
Berkoves' home to do
Orthodox Church in Livonia in
com
Oak Park has assumed coordination
January 29
a
website www.detroitinterfaithcouncil.
Council of Metropolitan Detroit in
22
circle and have
gather
in
each other
a
New Coordinator
This year, the Interfaith
large
evening.
The teens
Chicago
"I
program
called Face to Faith, created as a pro
ductive way to bring high school stu
end of the
-
Berkove's
any knowledgeable person
religious services.
Participants say the highlight of Face
can
town
them to
kosher Jerusalem
Pizza and seven -layer cake (a Detroit
and
Dialogue
to bring
some
about their interests. The
participating
panel of Chaldean and Jewish youth,
Morof, then a junior, was inspired to
expand the interfaith dialogue. He
Detroit)
by stating
and their faith traditions
names
teens then dined
Outreach in Metro
Larry, a
adult children but they all live out of
questions
(Women's
Berkove and her husband,
themselves to each other
grounds.
Interfaith Solutions for
brief
a
retired English professor, have three
and "broke the ice" with
on a
ents. The number is now about
major
surgery last
mixer in which the teens introduced
to include those of many faith back
In 2011, after
Coming
home after
and stagger to the couch:'
continuation of its
following an illness, acci
surgery.
at its
Adat Shalom
as a
or
The program started in 1973 and,
peak, served more than 200 cli
Writer
Contributing
Religious Diversity Journeys for sev
enth graders.
At a typical Face to Faith event at
their
understanding
dent
Barbara Lewis
February, Gail
Berkove was unpleasantly
surprised.
"I was totally unprepared for how little
energy I had:' said Berkove, a psycholo
gist who lives in Southfield. "I barely had
enough energy to get up, brush my teeth
of the program
a
Christian walk into
short time
a
Face To Faith
together
help those
needing temporary assistance.
in 2011.
one
can
in 2012. Face to Faith started
inquire about Kosher Meals on
Wheels service, on a temporary or ongo
ing basis, call Jewish Family Service at
(248)
592-2313. Additional volunteers
but few know the service is available for
pack and deliver meals are always
welcome. To sign up, call Rick Emmer at
people like Berkove, who need it for just
(248)
(NCJW/GDS),
to
967-0967.
D