On Christmas morning, the family drove into North Philly to Richard and Friends United in the Community at 2366 N. 4th St. We were in a largely hispanic neighborhood and driving there was eye opening for all of us – boarded up factories, row homes with broken windows, and many dollar stores, interspersed with the occasional beautiful mural, mosaic or sculpture. Richard is an amazing man. He feeds 4000 members of the community every month with food that he gets from government money and donations. The special meals, like this Christmas celebration, come out of his own pocket. He doesn’t have a salary – he is on disability for a bum foot (filled with screws and plates) – but he saves his disability money to buy gifts and make food for anyone in need.
We started by packing the gifts into bags according to age and gender – the kids got snacks, a hat, gloves and a small toy. We organized the bags in numerical order by family, so when the families arrived it was easy to find their bags. We also served food to whoever was hungry – ham and cabbage, 2 kinds of rice, 2 different pasta salads, 3 kinds of chicken, ham, ribs, stuffing, fruit and many types of desserts. Richard cooked everything. Everyone was welcomed, whether or not they preregistered. There were many volunteers there – and a slow stream of recipients. We stayed for four hours, chatting with both the other volunteers and the visitors. It was a festive, warm place and we all enjoyed spending our Christmas helping others.
Mitzvot Anecdotes 