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| Noah is proud that he gave away two gently used backpacks from summer camp to kids who need them. |
I've been a bit preoccupied during the last two weeks. You know--superstorm, power outages, internet outages, the gas shortage, no school ... And on top of that I was trying to keep the public informed as the Westfield editor of The Alternative Press.
Now that things are starting to feel a little less apocalyptic, our family is thinking about how lucky we are in all this. Friends of ours are out of their house because a huge tree fell through the top floor. Entire communities have been washed away.
We decided it's time to break open the tzedakah boxes. Noah has one we've been putting coins into since he was born, and we have two more that we add to every Shabbat. On top of that, there's a big coin bank on top of Eric's dresser full of loose change that we've decided should be a tzedakah box, as well. All told, we probably have about $150 in coins that we're going to take to the bank with the kids to be sent somewhere worthwhile.
The question is: Where should we send it?
Red Cross? Jewish Federation for your area who probably have a special fund for Sandy?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.rebuildrecover.org/about-us/
ReplyDeleteOne place to consider is the Union for Reform Judaism. They have a disaster relief fund -- and, none of the monies in the fund are used for administrative purposes. www.urj.org. Funds are also set up for the West End Reform Temple in Neponsit, NY which suffered significant damage and for scholarships for youth impacted by the hurricane.
ReplyDeleteMy colleague and classmate, Rabbi Michelle Pearlman, is the rabbi at Monmouth Reform Temple. She shared with me that her community is deeply affected by the storm. They are collecting Gift Cards which will benefit members of their synagogue community as well as members of the greater Sea Bright community who were affected by the storm. They are collecting cards from Target, Kmart, Home Depot and Lowes. They are working with the mayor of Sea Bright, Dina Long, to make sure the cards are delivered to those who need it most. Cards can be sent to Monmouth Reform Temple, 332 Hance Avenue in Tinton Falls, NJ 007724. We understand that many will prefer ordering on line and sending electronically. Our email address is: seabrightgiftcards@gmail.com . Individuals are also invited to make donations by check directly to our congregation and we will purchase the cards for the residents. Please make checks out to Monmouth Reform Temple and indicate that the funds are for the Sea Bright Gift Card Drive.
For those interested in volunteering, consider Nechama (www.nechama.org) -- the Jewish Response to Disaster -- is a good place to begin.