18 | SEPTEMBER 1 • 2022

OUR COMMUNITY
H

undreds of volunteers gathered at Temple
Israel on Aug. 22 to pack individual first aid
kits for the Ukrainian Army. The event was
spearheaded by Rabbi Jennifer Kaluzny and lay leaders.
Temple Israel partnered with the Ukrainian-American
Crisis Response Committee of Michigan to organize
assembly line-style workstations to assemble the kits.
Dr. Philip Arbit said when his wife, Francine Arbit,
asked him to volunteer with her at Temple Israel to
assemble packages for Ukraine, he expected to be
putting together the kind of care packages you send to
a loved one.
The gravity of the situation in Ukraine and the
importance of the packing event hit home when he
saw that instead of candy bars the volunteers were

Temple Israel volunteers pack 1,000
first aid kits for the Ukrainian Army.

Critical
Help
Provided

STORY AND PHOTOS BY YEVGENIYA GAZMAN
SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

LEFT: Francine and Phil Arbit. TOP: Cheryle Lutwin, Shay
Chismody and Melanie Chismody. MIDDLE LEFT: Michael
Seltzer abd George McMillan at the vented chest seal station.

MIDDLE RIGHT: Zumrad Umanski and Tatyana Kapitonov.
BOTTOM: Blake Belgeri, Anya Nona and Lilia Sachovska.