Just as G-d visited Abraham when he was sick, it is a huge mitzvah for mere mortals to visit the sick.  One of our friends had back surgery during the Christmas break.  We waited until he was feeling ready to accept visitors, and we went to visit him at his home.  By the time we saw him, he was well on his way to recovery – walking, off of most heavy narcotics, and starting to go to work for some parts of days.  We brought a bottle of wine and sat with him, eating dessert and trying to lift his spirits.  I think it worked!

Though we are having an unseasonably warm winter, on the day that the family went to the Ardmore Food Pantry, the weather was starting to turn.  There was finally a chill in the air that let you  know it was the Christmas season!  At the pantry, we met an 8 year old boy, his father and his grandmother who were recipients.  The boy had no coat.  I asked him and his grandmother said that he doesn’t have winter coat.  I knew that we were going back to help out at Our Closet, and I had noticed that they had coats, so I took their information and said that I’d try to help them.  The woman at Our Closet said that they don’t normally just give out coats, but since it is starting to get cold and the next pop up wasn’t for a few weeks, she would make an exception.  I picked up 3 coats – for my new friend, and his 2 brothers.  I dropped them off today, to a very thrilled – and now warm – little boy.

In Judaism, it is a mitzvah to go to a Shiva house (house of mourning) and comfort the mourners.  Just being there, sharing in their sorrow, is the mitzvah.  Today, Jordan and I went to a friend’s home who just lost his father.  He is not one of our closest friends, but someone we really like and we wanted to pay our respects.  It was nice to be there as part of their minyon and to know that the mourners appreciated our presence.  We felt really good about the visit  and noted how important it is to just show up.

Tonight, the whole family went to the Ardmore Food Pantry in St. Mary’s Episcopal Church to help the recipients fill their bags with healthy food.  There was a checklist that they filled out, and then they gave us a large grocery bag which we then filled with food.  We filled the bags, interacted with the recipients, and restocked the shelves.  There was one family there – grandma, dad, 8 year old boy – who was asking about winter coats.  The boy and his brothers did not have any warm outerwear.  I told them about Our Closet and wrote all of the information for them, but the next pop up store is not for a few weeks and the boy is cold now.  I told them I’d see if I could pick something up on Wednesday, when we went back to Our Closet.  I took their phone number and will call if I can help them out.  I hope so!

Serving food

The family with Richard (black shirt) and volunteers from Casa de la Familia

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.

Today, the family worked together to sort clothing at Our Closet.  We worked for 5 hours, hauling the donations to our work area, sorting them into bins according to gender, season and age, and then packing them up.  Everyone worked diligently and cooperated – one person determined the category, the other placed it in the bin.  Though the pile of donations did not look like it got any smaller, we know that our family participated in a  small way to ensure that needy families would have clothing for free.

Since babysitting is a joy for me, and not a chore, it’s hard to say that I did a  mitzvah when I babysat, but I guess it really is.  G’s grandmother passed away and her parents asked if I could watch her when they went to the funeral.  Of course I could!  It was really a pleasure.  We ate lots of strawberries and played with Mookie.  Getting dressed was a whole activity!  Then I took her to dance class, where I took lots of photos and videos, just like a proud aunt.  She stopped 4 or 5 times to show me her toe that had a boo boo, and tapped and ballet-ed her way through the rest of class.  We came back here for lunch and then I drove her to meet her parents.  Again, a mitzvah that brought me as much joy as it brought her!

Raising money for the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, to help Jews in need in our area as well as Israel and abroad is another rewarding volunteer position that I value.  Not only am I raising money for people who really need our help – for food, education, and other basics – but I am also involved with a terrific group of like-minded women who all work hard towards the same mission.

Today, as it’s almost the end of the year, we got together at someone’s house and made phone calls for 2 hours to encourage people to “close their gifts.”  There were about 15 women in every nook and cranny, busy making our calls and engaging with our donors.  Many of my calls went unanswered, a few made their pledges (and one doubled her gift!) and one heartbreaking call found the donor deceased, yet I had a lovely conversation with her husband.  Today we raised $30,000!  Go Women’s Philanthropy!

One of the most rewarding things that I do is volunteer for an organization called CASA, Court Appointed Special Advocates.  I advocate for 4 children in one home, who live with their mother (and currently her boyfriend).  My job is to make sure that the kids have what they need – food, clothing, shelter, educationally, emotionally, physically, etc.  I visit them once or twice a month and we play games, read books, paint nails and just talk.  I am in constant touch with their teachers and guidance counselors, the mom, her parole office and the CYS worker in charge of their case.

Last week, I brought them a frozen turkey for Thanksgiving.  Yesterday, I received a frantic call from mom saying that they ran out of food stamps since it’s the end of the month, and they don’t have anything else for Thanksgiving dinner besides the “frickin’ turkey.”  I asked what else she’d like and she gave me a list – sweet potatoes with marshmallows, stuffing and cranberry sauce.  So I went to the market and purchased the rest of their meal.  I left it with the customer service cashier at Giant and they picked it up there.  Happy Thanksgiving!

Every month or so, I enjoy making a batch of Challot to freeze and share.  Today, I made special rolls for Thanksgiving, as well as 5 Challot.  Mookie’s groomer, Jenifer, was here today, and I decided to share one with her.  She was really touched by the gift.  She said, “I feel like hugging you, so I will!”  It’s a great feeling to make someone so happy that they feel  like hugging you.  Below is the picture she sent to me after baking it.  First mitzvah done, and it feels great!