22 | JANUARY 13 • 2022

faces&places

Helping others is a central value of
Judaism and of Congregation Beth
Ahm in West Bloomfield. Led by
Beverly Gale and Cathy Lichtman,
a team of more than 30 synagogue
volunteers, from teens to seniors,
prepared 350 lunches for the clients
of Crossroads of Michigan, a Detroit-
based social service agency.
The volunteers prepared a multi-
course meal from scratch — baked
pasta, green beans, salad, bread, fruit
and dessert. Working on-site and

interacting with the staff and clients
of Crossroads added extra meaning to
the volunteer experience.
Throughout the year, the Beth
Ahm tikkun olam team organizes
mitzvah opportunities to help those
in need. Whether it be collecting PPE
and assembling COVID safety kits,
feeding the hungry, providing school
supplies or distributing winter cloth-
ing, the tikkun olam team addresses
the basic needs of those in the Jewish
and broader communities.

Amy Brode gets some of the pots needed for pasta.

Stan Meretsky wraps bread.

FAR LEFT:
Mike Schmitz
performs the
final task of
clean-up.

LEFT: Beverly
Gale reviews
the menu
with Chef
Mike of
Crossroads.

Beverly Fradis, Elanor Fradis, Suzanne Prussian, Renee Fein and Miles Auster pack
lunches on the assembly line.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF CONGREGATION BETH AHM

Beth Ahm Members
Help Crossroads Clients