58 | SEPTEMBER 26 • 2019 THEJEWISHNEWS.COM

“W

hen my mother 
was ill and died 
last year, our 
congregation dropped off more 
kugels than we knew what to 
do with. But when Laura died 
from the overdose, not one per-
son came over after the shivah 
to see how I was doing. No one 
asked if I wanted to talk about 
it … my congregation, my 
friends, even my rabbi did what 
needed to be done, but treated 
my daughter’
s death as if it 
were deliberate … as if I was to 
blame. But we did everything 
we could — counseling, three 
different trips to rehab, clearing 
every pill out of the house — 
and Laura tried so hard, too. 
But nobody wanted to hear 
about it — then or now.” — 
Leah G., after her daughter’
s 
death by a drug overdose
Many families and friends 
suffer when they discover that 
a loved one is using drugs 
(including alcohol). They are 
unsure where to go or what 
to do as they watch their 
loved one’
s life, and their own, 
begin to spin out of control. 
Unfortunately, Leah G.’
s story 
and her struggle to find any 
support within her Jewish com-
munity is becoming less unique 
throughout our country. 
In 2016, Marla Kaufman 
gathered a few friends in her 
Orange County, Calif., back-
yard to share her concerns 
about the paucity of services, 
resources and supports she dis-
covered when her own family 

realized 10 years earlier that 
their son was suffering from 
addiction. They knew they 
couldn’
t be the only Jewish 
family in their area facing the 
problem. Yet the “Jews aren’
t 
addicts” belief was there, caus-
ing families to feel stigma and 
shame. 
With their local Jewish 
Federation and Family Services, 
Marla and her family formed 
the Jewish Substance Abuse 
Task Force, collaborating 
across Jewish denominations to 
spread awareness, knowledge 
and resources throughout their 
area. She had the vision that 
addiction would become what 
she termed “a kugel illness” — 
something for which a family 
could expect the support of 
their Jewish community. 
In October 2018, finan-
cial support from the Jewish 
Federation allowed Jewish 
Family Service of Metro 
Detroit to partner with the 
T
ri-Community Coalition of 
Berkley, Huntington Woods, 
and Oak Park in bringing 
Kaufman to the commu-
nity. Her Jewish Addiction 
Awareness Network (JAAN) 
workshop titled “It Happens 
Here: Addiction and Mental 
Health Issues in the Jewish 
Community” is designed to 
help Jewish clergy, lay and 
community leaders grow in 
understanding the experience 
of families who love someone 
going through addiction, treat-
ment and the process of recov-

Addiction in a Family — 
 
Is it Kugel-Worthy?

MAUREEN LYN BERNARD SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

Jews in the D

ISTOCK

continued on page 60

27th Annual Celebration

Jewish Senior Life’s Eight Over Eighty 
recognizes eight distinguished leaders 
in our community, all over the age of 80, 
who have demonstrated a lifetime of 
dedication to the Jewish value of 
Tikkun Olam - Repairing the World.

CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

SAVE THE DATE

27th Annual 
Eight Over Eighty Fundraiser
Sunday, May 17, 2020

11:30am at Adat Shalom Synagogue

Without your generous support, Jewish Senior Life 
could not continue to provide quality services and 
programs that are so vital to the lives of the older 
adults and their families we serve.

FOR NOMINATION FORMS

jslmi.org/eight-over-eighty-event
or contact Beth Tryon at 
248-592-5026 TTY #711
Btryon@jslmi.org

Nominations will be accepted 
through December 2, 2019

over

