nity. It is one of the ways Jewish people
need to give back.”
According to Forgotten Harvest,
500,000 individuals in the tri-county
area live in poverty, many facing “food
insecurity” — a USDA term that refers
to individuals who don’t know where
their next meal is coming from. Lea
Luger, executive director of Yad Ezra,
says that 1 out of 20 Jewish families in
the area rely on the kosher food pantry
to supplement their food supply at no
cost. Yad Ezra enables 1,300 families
to select groceries as well as health and
household items on a monthly basis.
Yad Ezra also works to raise aware-
ness of the hunger problem through
hunger seders, meetings with legislators
and collaboration with other food pro-
viders. Mazon has funded a staff person
and related costs for Yad Ezra to help
register individuals for SNAP, Michigan’s
food stamp program for low income
residents.
ALTERNATIVE METHODS
Karen “Chava” Knox, a resident of Eden
Gardens on Detroit’s east side, was con-
cerned some of her neighbors lacked
good food and that area children didn’t
understand the importance of healthy
eating. Older people without cars or who
could no longer drive were particularly
limited in terms of food options.
Knox is a board member of the Isaac
Agree Downtown Synagogue (IADS)
and was also interested in bringing the
black and Jewish communities together.
She is African American and a convert
to Judaism.
Establishing a community garden
seemed like a good use for vacant land
in Eden Gardens as well as a potential
source of fresh produce. Around the
same time, IADS wanted to “make
a connection with a Detroit neigh-
borhood,” says Arlene Frank, IADS
executive director. Blair Nosan, also
a synagogue member, began working
with Knox to create a community farm
in Eden Gardens. The Jewish Women’s
Foundation provided an initial grant,
and neighborhood residents as well as
synagogue members joined together to
prepare vacant land and plant crops.
Today, Eden Farms encompasses
three city lots planted with produce.
Children learn about growing crops
and the value of eating healthy foods.
Neighborhood and IADS volunteers
continue to work on the farm. Knox
says this year’s crop was given to neigh-
borhood residents and to IADS. Next
year, she hopes to donate some food
to Forgotten Harvest and sell some at
Eastern Market.
Detroit is considered a national leader
in such urban gardens and farms, with
an estimated 1,400 operating, according
to Keep Detroit Growing, a nonprofit
that works with community groups and
others to establish gardens. They help
neighborhoods by increasing the supply
of accessible fresh, healthy food.
Noam Kimelman,
29, who has a mas-
ter’s degree in public
health management
from the University
of Michigan, was
doing volunteer work
in Detroit and also
was concerned about
Noam
fresh
food access.
Kimelman
With one-third of
households lacking
a car and sparse public transportation,
he realized many Detroiters relied on
neighborhood convenience or party
stores for food, despite their focus on
pop, liquor and salty snacks.
Kimelman and Val Waller decided to
co-found a company, Fresh Food Cafe,
to make and package healthy lunches
and snacks for sale at neighborhood
gas stations and convenience stores.
They allowed prospective customers
to sample their products to encourage
sales. Their food is sourced locally, and
now their products are distributed to 36
Detroit stores.
In addition, they sell healthy lunches,
some of which are subsidized, at local
community centers at Fresh Corner
Pop-Ups and at work sites, and provide
catering at city events.
The root causes of hunger, food
insecurity and malnutrition, including
poverty, food distribution issues and
inadequate transportation, are complex
and chronic. However, sources of better
food — sometimes locally grown — are
expanding in and around Detroit.
Lis points out the U.S. is the breadbas-
ket to much of the world, growing and
distributing massive quantities of food,
so the plight of Americans struggling
with hunger and poor nutrition is espe-
cially ironic and disturbing.
*
Fighting Hunger
Many of these organizations seek
donations and volunteers:
• www.Detroitinterfaithcouncil.com
(affiliated with Mazon)
• www.edengardensblockclub.com
• www.forgottenharvest.org
• www.Freshfoodcafe.com
• www.gcfb.org
(Gleaners is a nonprofit that collects
food and donations from individual
and corporate donors.)
• www.Hazon.org/about/
where-we-are/Detroit/
• www.Yadezra.org
(kosher food pantry)
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