20 | MAY 12 • 2022

B

arbara Greenberg of White Lake has
been nominated to be our Volunteer
of the Week for giving her time to
the Chicken Soup with Love Program at the
Chabad Jewish Center of Commerce/Walled
Lake. The program is part of the Chabad
Jewish Center’s Smile on Seniors program
with the goal to bring cheer and companion-
ship into the lives of seniors.
Co-director of the program Estie
Greenberg (no relation to Barbara) says over
the years Barbara has become like family to
the Chabad of Commerce. “Her care and
concern for all those she visits goes above
and beyond. She is the highlight of the week
to so many when she visits them,
” Estie said
When Barbara retired, she became a ded-
icated volunteer to the senior community.
Before she started volunteering with the
center, she used to volunteer with a Jewish
hospice for about 12 years.
“I became involved with these people.
I got to know them, and you have to get

to know them in order to make the visits
worthwhile for them,
” Barbara said.
When she stopped volunteering at the
hospice, the loss became too much for her
and she wanted to find another way to give
back. “This opportunity came up where I
could deliver soup. So I started doing that
and talking to people, and it’s become the
highlight of my week,
” she said.
Almost every week, Barbara delivers
Estie’s chicken matzah ball soup to sick,
homebound senior citizens or anyone
who could use a taste of Shabbat in the
Commerce and West Bloomfield area. “The
soup provides a physical and emotional
nurturing connection with their Jewish
community. I am merely the conduit,
”
Barbara said.
Barbara says she’s happy to give back to
the community this way. “It’s a way to keep
an eye out — not just to deliver soup, but
to keep in touch. To see how they’re doing
and how the caregivers are doing. I get just

as much out of it, if not more, than I think
they do.
”
Barbara says she has become friends with
those she delivers to, such as Arlene Salter,
who she befriended several years ago.
“She’s amazing — the highlight of my
week,
” Arlene said. “When I am down, she
lifts me up.
”
Barbara said she is happy to connect with
people she delivers to and hear about their
lives and their family’s lives. “It’s actually
communicating with them and seeing how
they are and how their week has gone and
wishing them a good Shabbos because I
deliver on Fridays. I make that human con-
nection that Chabad likes to do and that’s
why I do it,
” Barbara said.
She plans to continue to volunteer with
Chicken Soup with Love for as long as she
can.

For information about the Chicken Soup with Love pro-

gram, visit www.jewishcommerce.org/smile-on-seniors.

Estie Greenberg and
Barbara Greenberg

Barbara Greenberg delivers more
than just soup to senior citizens.

Chicken Soup
& A Smile

RACHEL SWEET ASSOCIATE EDITOR

VOLUNTEER OF THE WEEK