16 | SEPTEMBER 1 • 2022 

A 

major donation from a 
local dental practice is 
the most recent mile-
stone of Congregation Shaarey 
Zedek’s efforts to provide aid for 
Ukraine.
Since Russia first invaded 
Ukraine in February of this year, 
the synagogue has launched 
numerous cam-
paigns to gather 
financial support, 
medical supplies, 
hygiene kits and 
more to help 
Ukrainians impact-
ed by the ongoing 
crisis.
Tru Family 
Dental of Bingham 
Farms is the latest 
donor to contribute 
to these initiatives. 
The dental prac-
tice has recently donated 1,000 
toothbrushes, 1,000 rolls of 
dental floss and 2,000 tubes of 
toothpaste to send to Ukraine 
— a team effort that the dental 
practice’s Dr. Sumant Ram says 
“takes a village” to support.
“
After one of our longtime 
patients told our front office 
staff about the Ukraine support 
efforts at Congregation Shaarey 
Zedek, our team assembled,
” 

Ram explains. “We decided 
immediately that this was some-
thing we wanted to support.
”
Karen Couf-Cohen, who 
serves on Shaarey Zedek’s Board 
of Trustees and is chair of the 
Social Action Committee, which 
handles many Ukraine initia-
tives, added, “If you’re stuck in 
a warzone without resources, 
brushing your teeth is a big 
deal.
” 
Through Sam Rozenberg, a 
Shaarey Zedek member who 
originally hails from Ukraine, 
the Social Action Committee 
has learned about the most 
pressing needs the country is 
facing because of the ongoing 
war, and hygiene products rank 
as a top necessity.
“There’s a desperate need 
[for these supplies] in eastern 
Ukraine,
” Couf-Cohen says. “We 
want to help, and we want to 
help with where the need is.
”

A COMMUNITY EFFORT
To continue these efforts, 
Shaarey Zedek is hosting a Pack 
for People event on Sept. 9 at 
4:30 p.m., where the commu-
nity is invited to come to the 
synagogue to help pack boxes 
of critical supplies to send to 
Ukraine. Repair the World 

Detroit’s Rebecca DeGroot will 
also join the event to share how 
it connects to Jewish service.
The packing event will 
include assembling the hygiene 
kits donated by Tru Family 
Dental, as well as other essential 
supplies the synagogue is cur-
rently sourcing such as ibupro-
fen, socks, underwear, combs, 
hairbrushes and shampoo, 
among others. The synagogue 
is also working closely with Yad 
Ezra to gather many of these 
items.
Each kit will include hand-

written cards created by Shaarey 
Zedek youth to give recipients 
a bit of cheer and to let them 
know people are thinking of 
them on the other side of the 

world. “We want the best for 
you, we’re praying for you, and 
we want you to stay safe,
” Couf-
Cohen says of the messages that 
will be included in the cards.
Kits will then be transported 
to eastern Ukraine through the 
points of Lviv and Poltava. Once 
they’ve reached the east side of 
the country, kits will be deliv-
ered by the Ukrainian human-
itarian organization Just People 
to families of one or two affected 
by war. 
Recipients will include seniors 
who aren’t mobile enough to 

leave their homes, and women 
and children who stay to be near 
their husbands. Many Ukrainian 
men of fighting age have left 
their families to serve with 

OUR COMMUNITY

Major dental donation marks latest 
milestone for Congregation Shaarey 
Zedek’s Ukraine relief efforts.

Ukraine 
Relief Efforts 
Continue

Karen 
Couf-Cohen

ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Sam 
Rozenberg

Michelle Stehney, 
hygienist, and Wendy 
Riley, front desk, with 
donations.

“ROLLING UP YOUR SLEEVES AND 
GETTING INVOLVED IS ONE OF THE 
BEST WAYS TO FEEL LIKE YOU’RE 

REALLY MAKING A DIFFERENCE.”

— KAREN COUF-COHEN

