10 | SEPTEMBER 17 • 2020 

community greetings
We Are Built for This Moment

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his has been a year like no 
other.
Without a doubt, we are 
living in a unique and difficult 
moment in our 
history. The global 
COVID-19 pan-
demic has affected 
every dimension of 
our daily lives, dis-
rupting our social, 
professional, educa-
tional and spiritual 
pursuits. Worst of 
all, of course, is the 
human toll it has 
taken, the friends 
and loved ones lost 
and the families 
wracked by grief. 
It is said that a 
crisis reveals who we are, as indi-
viduals and as a community. And 
if there is any good news to be 
taken from the pandemic, it can 
be found in the way that Jewish 

Detroit has responded. 
From the earliest days of the 
outbreak, our communal leaders 
and institutions came together to 
make sure that our most vulner-
able individuals were protected. 
They worked tirelessly to pro-
vide kosher meals and delivery 
services to seniors and others in 
need, emergency aid to struggling 
families, vocational training for 
growing numbers of job seekers 
and protective gear for frontline 
workers. 
This has been the most collabo-
rative effort in recent times, unit-
ing individuals from every corner 
of our community, every orga-
nization and stream of Judaism. 
We have seen an outpouring of 
concern and generosity, not just 
for local Jews but for our broader 
community as well. 
The Jewish Federation is 
proud to play a central role in 
this response. Our COVID-19 

Emergency Campaign raised $7.6 
million for critical funding to 
protect individuals and families 
as well as the Jewish organiza-
tions that are the heart and soul 
of Jewish life. Just as importantly, 
we are actively coordinating the 
response effort, working shoulder 
to shoulder with agencies, schools 
and congregations throughout 
Jewish Detroit on a daily basis. 
That is why we say: Jewish 
Federation was built for this 
moment. We’
ve been taking care 
of our community for more than 
100 years. And thanks to the sup-
port of more than 10,000 donors, 
we will continue to meet the vast 
and growing needs of all who are 
counting on us. As we look back 
across the year, we’
re deeply grate-
ful for each and every person who 
has volunteered, contributed or 
taken part in the response effort 
in any way. 
Now, as we turn to the new 

year, we know that uncertainty 
will persist. The challenge is far 
from over. Despite this, we will 
never lose confidence in the 
strength and vibrance of Jewish 
Detroit. The year ahead will 
surely be filled with challenges 
and with loss, but it will also have 
times of joy and celebration, con-
nection and meaning. 
For those that may find them-
selves in need, know that your 
Jewish community is here for you 
(jhelp.org is a good place to start). 
With the support of our extraor-
dinary community, we are Here 
for Good. 
May you have a meaningful 
holiday and a healthy, peaceful 
and joyful new year. 

Beverly B. Liss is president of the Jewish 
Federation of Metropolitan Detroit. Alan 
Jay Kaufman is president of the United 
Jewish Foundation of Metropolitan 
Detroit.

the JCRC/AJC is a partner.
• In New York, the Guardian 
Angels announced that it would 
begin patrolling Crown Heights 
in order to protect Jewish neigh-
borhoods. Curtis Sliwa, the 
founder, announced the decision 
and stated, “We have a moral 
obligation to make up for histori-
cal antisemitism.
”
• The U.S. and Israeli Air Force 
held its first ever F-35 training in 
Israel.
• Congress introduced the U.S.-
Israel Military Capability Act to 
deepen security cooperation with 
Israel.
• The Jewish community came 
out strongly in support of racial 
equality following the George 
Floyd murder, which included 
statements from a host of Jewish 
organizations, along with numer-

ous articles, webinars and demon-
strations.
• Israel celebrated 72 years of 
independence.
• Locally, the Jewish Federation 
of Metropolitan Detroit had a 
record annual fundraising cam-
paign, more than $34 million and 
more than 10,000 donors, and 
expanded its extraordinary work 
providing the community with 
emergency financial assistance, 
food and housing, mental health 
support, Jewish education and 
much more.
• Last but not least, we’
re still 
here! Approximately 2,600 years 
after the destruction of the First 
Temple, when our small band 
of ancestors were either killed, 
captured or sent scattering to the 
winds, Jews are surviving and 
thriving as we enter 5781. 

We lost 6 million people a 
mere 75 years ago, and today our 
entire world population is down 
to about 0.2% of the whole — 
roughly the size of Buenos Aires 
— and yet we are alive and well, 
with our own strong country 
and a steel will to meet the future 
with immense Jewish pride and 
determination. This feat alone, in 
and of itself, is nothing short of a 
miracle.
None of these items erase 
the very real danger to Israel 
today, nor the troubling spike 
in antisemitism. Israel has not 
known a true day of peace since 
1948, and antisemitism has been 
around since time immemorial. 
Let’
s not sugarcoat this. 
But in a world filled with hate 
and violence against Jews, we 
must know — and teach our chil-

dren — that there are also won-
derful and heartwarming exam-
ples of success and solidarity, and 
the Jewish people remain solid. 
We need not be dejected as 
we look to the new year. We can 
look to all the wonderful things 
around us, reject pessimism and 
choose to go into 5781 with hope, 
that essential Jewish value and the 
namesake of the Israeli national 
anthem, “Hatikvah.
” 
Golda Meir would be very 
proud of us if we did. 
L
’
 Shana Tovah! 

Mark Jacobs is the AIPAC Michigan 
chair for African American Outreach, a 
co-director of the Coalition for Black and 
Jewish Unity, a board member of the 
Jewish Community Relations Council/
AJC and the director of Jewish Family 
Service’
s Legal Referral Committee.

Beverly B. 
Liss 

Alan J. 
Kaufman

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