38 | MAY 25 • 2023 

NEXT DOR

A

t Oak Park’s Jewish Senior Life 
(JSL) campus on the afternoon of 
Sunday, April 30, generations were 
sandwiched together — literally and figura-
tively.
Packing Lunches with Love — an event 
presented by the Jewish Federation’s 
NEXTGen Detroit Volunteers, Repair the 
World Detroit, Moishe House Royal Oak 
and Reboot — was a mitzvah event that saw 
Jewish community members team up with 
JSL residents to prepare sandwiches to be 
donated to Detroit Community Fridge.
Detroit Community Fridge (DCF) is a 
grassroots organization and mutual aid 
project bringing food to those who need it. 
Located at five locations across Detroit, each 
fridge is outdoors, open and accessible 24/7. 
Anyone can make food for those in need, 
place it in one of the fridges, and those in 
need can pick it up whenever they want. The 
project started in August 2020 as a result of 
the pandemic. 
The volunteer event allowed attendees to 
make sun butter (with allergy-laden indi-
viduals in mind) and jelly sandwiches for 
those in need, meet and connect with senior 
members of the Jewish community, and 
learn about food justice and Reboot’s legacy 
project, Beyond Bubbie. 
Reboot, an arts and culture nonprofit 

seeking to design Jewish ritual in a differ-
ent way, partnered with Repair the World 
to create the Beyond Bubbie Social Action 
Cookbook, containing recipes people can 
make and donate to Detroit Community 
Fridge. The initiative is a combination of 
Reboot’s interactive community cookbook, 
Beyond Bubbie, with Repair’s mission of 
educating individuals on social justice issues 
as well as serving organizations in need.
Many event attendees added their family 
or personal recipes into the Beyond Bubbie 
Social Action Cookbook. 
Ellie Barnett, Detroit program coordinator 
for Reboot and Repair the World, says it’s 
important that everyone from the commu-
nity at some point engages with one another 
as we look toward an evolving Jewish future. 
“I think intergenerational programming 
is really important. People who live in these 
residences want to give back, and it’s import-
ant we do it alongside them,
” Barnett said. 
“The goal, overall, is people see how easy 
this is and then go do it themselves.
” 
Moishe House Royal Oak resident Sophie 
Dwoskin also loved the intergenerational 
atmosphere of the event, something they 
don’t get to engage in very often.
“Hearing the stories from the residents 
is nice and kind of puts into perspective 
that we’re the next generation of leaders, 

and they’re counting on us to continue 
the Jewish legacy and carry on tradition,
” 
Dwoskin said. 
In addition to making sandwiches to be 
dispersed among the fridges, many attendees 
also donated nonperishable food items. 
“It’s important for us to have opportunities 
for social action and volunteering so we can 
give back in addition to what the commu-
nity campaign does for Federation, to give 
our time to the community as well, both 
within our Jewish community and beyond,
” 
said Lauren Soifer, associate director of 
NEXTGen Detroit.
JSL resident Millie Mertz loved connect-
ing with the younger generation while also 
giving back. “I think it’s a marvelous thing,
” 
she said. “Jews are meant to help each other 
and events like these make it like a family, 
which the Jewish people have to be. It’s a 
wonderful community with so much to 
offer.
” 

To learn more about Detroit Community Fridge, visit 

https://detfridge.com. 

Jewish organizations and community members of 
all ages join together to give back to those in need. 

‘Packing Lunches 
with Love’ for Charity

DANNY SCHWARTZ STAFF WRITER

JSL residents Cindy Steinberg, 
Laura Gamina and Janice 
Stein make sandwiches with 
young members of the Jewish 
community.

Members of the Jewish community, 
including Carly Sanfield of Birmingham and 
Samantha Foon of Bloomfield Hills, make 
sandwiches for a great cause.

