013) Jewish Family Service

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G

Bill Birndorf and volunteers with some of

Bill and Holly Birndorf with their nephew

the turkeys bound for families

Ryan Flynn and daughter Jessica

Detroit, helps with organizing volunteers
as well as packing and delivering the
Thanksgiving kits. Birndorf was also able
to partner with Gleaners Community
Food Bank and garner sponsorship from
numerous corporations including Meijer,
Cooper Street Cookies, Jiffy Mix, Costco
and Coca-Cola to make his goal of 1,000
Thanksgiving dinners a reality.
Costco Commerce Township
employees this year are honoring Gail
Oenbring-Kinconnon, their store man-
ager who died last year, by donating
enough money to purchase 1,000 cans of
Costco-sized green beans for Birndorf's
Thanksgiving effort.
And, thanks to a generous donation
of $15,000 for this year and the next two
years from the William & Audrey Farber
Family Foundation, Higher Hopes! has
reached its goal of raising $60,000 to
feed 1,000 families a full and complete
Thanksgiving meal, from snacks through

desserts. Individual donations account
for nearly $40,000 of the donations.
"He is a visionary and a dynamic indi-
vidual:' says Karen Rubenfire, director
of programing and community outreach
for Project Healthy Community. "He
has an idea and doesn't give up until it's
accomplished, and then he wants to go
beyond:'
Case in point: His ultimate goal is to
give a complete Thanksgiving meal to
the 5,000-6,000 Head Start families in
Detroit
"We want to provide families with
an opportunity to prepare and enjoy a
Thanksgiving dinner in their own homes
so they don't have to go to a shelter or
forgo a holiday meal because they can't
afford if,' he says.
More information about Higher
Hopes!, including an online donation
form, can be found at www.
higherhopesdetroit.org . *

give the Oft,
of kindness.

Join us as we

Adopt a Family

and help
those we serve
celebrate the
holiday.

You can shop from
a wish list, purchase
gift cards, or make
a general donation.

By participating in our
program you'll help:

Nate and Nancy Goldberg with grandsons Jack and Max Ganezer

found it easier to provide recipients
with a gift certificate. All the food is
purchased by Yad Ezra and each basket
is generously filled, typically allow-
ing a family to have leftovers as well.
Goldberg says a $50 donation provides
a complete meal for one family.
"Our clients are so thankful to get
what they need to make a holiday din-
ner, and they take pride in making the
meal themselves," says Lindsay Leder,
JFS director of special events and vol-
unteer engagement. "We're very grate-
ful to have this partnership and the

generosity of the community to make
this possible."
Goldberg says volunteers are always
welcome at Yad Ezra the Monday
before Thanksgiving to assemble and
distribute the baskets.
Donations to the Goldberg
Thanksgiving Distribution can be
made online at www.jfsdetroit.org/
volunteers/goldberg-thanksgiving.
For more information about volunteer
opportunities or to donate by phone,
contact Lindsay Leder at Jewish Family
Service, (248) 592-2309. *

• A single mother
celebrate the holiday
•A shut-in older adult
receive some cheer
• A community
member receive basic
necessities

•

Register to participate at
www.jfsdetroit.org/volunteers/
adopt-a-family.

For more information, contact
Lindsay Leder at 248-592-2309
or Ileder@jfsdetroit.org .

November 19 2015

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