Mitzvah Day B'nai Mitzvah Dress/Suit Swap: Epilogue

Clothes being sorted

At Lakeside Congregation's Mitzvah Day for the first time we had one station where our students and families were encouraged to bring old B'nai Mitzvah dresses and suits to swap or to donate to tzedakah.  For many weeks they took up residence in my office and finally last week I made a trip to the Chesed Fund Warehouse in Lincolnwood.  It was a wonderful place and I am glad our clothes found the place that will eventually let them find the right home.

The Chesed Fund is not just a food pantry but also has clothes for adults and children, toiletries and school supplies. I was happy to find out clients are allowed to shop privately.  They come in one designated door and are allowed to shop one family at a time.  Volunteers are not in the building when clients are shopping.  The Chesed Fund  services primarily the Jewish community in Lincolnwood but anyone from the area who qualifies is welcome at the pantry.

From their website:

Chesed Fund: The Place to Turn for Help

There are hundreds of Jewish families in Chicago who were financially stable until a crisis struck. We’re here to provide immediate assistance – and set them back on the road to independence.

Stock room

We battle hunger, prevent eviction and homelessness, and help the unemployed secure jobs. We also offer a wide array of free merchandise to needy families, provide holiday and Jewish lifecycle event assistance, and help send children to Jewish schools and camps.   

This is a great place to volunteer and if you are looking for Mitzvah hours for B'nai Mitzvah or just want to volunteer this is a wonderful place with lots of stocking to be done.  I know our students would find this work rewarding and they would feel as if they had contributed to a worthwhile cause.  They collect everything from hats, shoes, school supplies, baby buggies and bicycles.

Hats and shoes for Orthodox men

Summer is here and it's a good time to volunteer and donate your time and goods.  Most people have more time in the summer and if you want additional good ideas of where to volunteer our Lakeside Social action committee has put together a list of varied mitzvah projects for you to check out!

Let me know if check any of these projects and better yet send me a picture!

Tzedakah, Tzedakah, Tirdof, Tzedakah, Tzedakah you shall pursue Part 2

To continue the Tzedakah Recipients for Lakeside Congregation  Religious School for 2014 here we go:

2nd grade: Therapeutic Riding Center of Israel.

The Therapeutic Riding Center of Israel is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of disabled individuals through a unique therapeutic and recreational method: Animal Assisted Therapies 
(AAT). Today, over 700 people participate in our therapeutic programs. Along with therapeutic riding lessons, outdoor riding trails and a dog-assisted therapy program, the center offers in cooperation with the Israeli Sports Academy, Wingate, professional courses and training in AAT. 


5th Grade will be donating to PADS, via Lakeside congregation.  Every third week during the school year we pack and donate 50-100 lunches to send the PADS Shelter in Waukegan.

Packing for PADS

PADS’ vision is to provide a path to stable housing and self-sufficiency for everyone who experiences homelessness in Lake County. Our greatest hope is to help end homelessness and ensure happy, healthy, and safe lives for  generations to come.
We will take the 5th grade money and be able to buy some needed supplies when we pack for PADS.  We always seem to run out of bread, or chips and this will allow us to quickly run out and buy what we need on a Sunday.  

6th Grade is donating to Camp CAR, Madrich Will Rivlin will be a counselor there later this week.  

Camp CAR welcomes elementary school students from the city of Chicago. Campers who attend have the opportunity to meet teen mentors, eat three nutritious meals a day, and enjoy activities such as swimming, hiking, arts and crafts, cooking, and a variety of sports and team building activities – all for free!  If you are interested in donating to camp CAR:

Camp Car Supplies or checks can be dropped off or sent to: 
Camp CAR Donations 
Attn: Logan Zinman 
1121 Lake Cook Rd. Suite D 
Deerfield, IL 60025

I think that all of the projects  our students have chosen are well deserving of our Tzedakah we have collected all through the year.  Pleaser take a look at these projects and  I know you will be as proud of our students as I am.  

Tzedakah, Tzedakah, Tirdof, Tzedakah, Tzedakah you shall pursue Part I

Not withstanding my title which is a play on  "Tzedek Tzedek Tirdof - Justice, justice you shall pursue, that you may live, and inherit the land which the Lord your God gave you (Deuteronomy 16:18)." Sometimes at the end of a school year I do feel as if I am pursuing 1) Asking each class to decide on a specific Tzedakah 2) Getting these names and addresses to our bookkeeper  3) cutting checks and 4) publicizing the not just the miracle but what tzedakah we have supported this year.  Our teachers and students have made some wonderful choices. 

JNF Box from years past

I imagine that some of our parents and for sure our grandparents grew up with a Jewish National Fund Blue Box in their house.  It is a mitzvah, to give Tzedakah right before Shabbat, right before you light candles and sing Kiddush and do Motzi.  Now there are so many different Jewish charities and projects we can support it is hard to choose which one should get all the pennies, nickels, and dollars our students have contributed over the year.  Here is our list.  I recommend that you click on the link and find out more about all of these wonderful organizations.  

Kindergarten - 1st Grade will be donating a leaf on our Lakeside's Tree of Life.  If you want to donate a leaf for a simcha in your family feel free to contact Allison Gelman at Agelman@lakesidecongregation.org.  

3rd Grade:  The Ark
The ARK provides free social and medical services to help distressed members of our Chicagoland Jewish family return to self-reliance.  Lakeside does a food drive from Rosh Hashanah through Sukkot for the Ark.  

4th Grade:  Leket Israel National Food Bank

Leket Israel

Serving as the country's National Food Bank and largest food rescue network, Leket Israel works to alleviate the problem of nutritional insecurity amongst the growing numbers of Israel's poor. In 2013, with the help of over 50,000 volunteers, Leket Israel rescued and distributed 25 million lbs of produce and perishable goods, 1 million prepared meals, and 1.1 million (8,000/school day) volunteer prepared sandwiches to underprivileged children. Food, that would have otherwise gone to waste, was redistributed to hundreds of nonprofit partners caring for the needy. Leket Israel offers nutrition education, capacity building, and food safety projects to further assist our partners.

7th Grade:  Keshet

Keshet is the premier provider of educational, recreational, vocational and social programs for individuals with intellectual disabilities operating according to traditional Jewish values.  Our mission is to enhance independence and integration to optimize personal potential.  Many of our 7th grade students have participated in Keshet's Buddy Sports program which allows their students to participate in baseball, bowling and have a fun time.  

8th and 9th Grade, Pre-Confirmation  St. Baldrick's Foundation: Rabbi Ike Serotta's Donations page
At the end of October, Rabbis Phyllis Sommer and Rebecca Schorr had a crazy idea: what if thirty-six Reform rabbis would shave their heads to bring attention to the fact that only 4% of United States federal funding for cancer research is earmarked for all childhood cancers as well as raise $180,000 for this essential research. As of today they have raised $617,993.  

We have a few more Tzedakah recipients and I will write more in a new post!