36 | AUGUST 24 • 2023 

J

ewish Family Services 
of Washtenaw County 
(JFS) held a grand 
opening event of the Shalom 
Commercial Kitchen and 
Specialty Food Pantry on May 
21. Over 100 guests attended 
the ribbon-cutting ceremony, 
led by Sue Sefansky, JFS past 
president, and Congresswoman 
Debbie Dingell. 
With the completion of 
the year-long construction 
of the new Shalom Kitchen, 
located in the JFS building on 
2245 S. State St., JFS Nourish 
Nutrition Services has signifi-
cantly expanded its Food Pantry 
capacity by adding new services 
that further solidify its role in 
the community as a unique 
provider of specialty food and 
nutrition services.
JFS’s Nourish Nutrition 

Services has come a long way 
since it began 30 years ago as a 
humble makeshift pantry in the 
CEO’s office to ensure that no 
one left the agency hungry. 
During the pandemic, ser-
vices were quickly and dramati-
cally increased, adding delivery 
options and extending the 
pantry’s operations to five days a 
week. Today, Nourish Nutrition 
Services has grown to become a 
preeminent Washtenaw County 
provider of nutrition services, 
serving all diverse members of 
the local community.
“Unlike the old pantry, 
which was designed to merely 
accommodate our existing 
building layout, the new pantry 
is designed exclusively and stra-
tegically with nutrition services 
in mind,
” said Christine Taylor, 
senior director of Community 

Assistance at JFS. “We’re really 
excited for clients and volunteers 
to experience the dramatically 
different space.
” 
Not only does the new 
multi-purpose area quadruple 
the capacity of the original JFS 
Specialty Food Pantry, but also 

the addition of a commercial 
kitchen provides new communi-
ty engagement opportunities. In 
addition to these new endeav-
ors, the commercial kitchen will 
serve as a business incubator 
for individuals wishing to start 
their own small food business-
es, including current Micro 
Enterprise Development pro-
gram participants, refugees and 
immigrants.
The variety and quality of ser-
vices provided by JFS’s Nourish 
program makes Shalom Kitchen 
unique within Washtenaw 
County. The Shalom Kitchen 
creates new pathways to nutri-
tion for clients who do not 
benefit from a “one-size-fits-all” 
approach. Notably, older adults 
often face mobility, vision and 

OUR COMMUNITY

What’s Cooking at 
Jewish Family Service 
in Washtenaw County

JFS Specialty Food Pantry and Commercial 
Kitchen now open.

GABBY MARKOWITZ SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

PHOTOS COURTESY OF JFS

Congresswoman 
Debbie Dingell 
shares the 
impact this 
expansion will 
have on the 
community.

Mark Berg and 
Fran Lewy Berg 
cutting the ribbon 
at the Grand 
Opening event.

JFS’s new Shalom Kitchen 
will help feed more people 
and offer new programming 
to the community.

