I have come full circle and finished my mitzvot! My second mitzvah was shopping for Thanksgiving Dinner for my CASA family. This year, I decided to create a Thanksgiving Food Drive for other families who are in need this holiday season as my last mitzvah. My generous friends donated $60 for each family, and we were able to fill a huge shopping bag with non perishable food and a gift card for a turkey for 25 families. Nine CASA families, 4 CYS (Children and Youth Services) families, and 12 families from Chester Community Charter School will benefit from Mitzvah #50 – Yeah!!

One of the best parts of this mitzvah was the shopping.  I love to inspire others.  Eight of us met in Giant to go shopping.  A man noticed that I was giving out lists and money and asked what we were doing.  I explained our mission and he said that he wanted to help.  so my new friend Clayton (first picture) shopped for one of the baskets.  It was nice to have the extra hand, and to include others in our community in this mitzvah.

Today we worked at the Share Warehouse.  Every year during the High Holidays, congregants donate cans of food for the various Mitzvah Pantries in Philadelphia.  This year, there was 25% more donated than last year!  Women’s Philanthropy gets a group together to help sort all of the donations and this year we sorted over 40,000 pounds of food which will supplement the pantries for about 4 months.  We make sure that nothing is expired and that everything is kosher.  Then, we categorize the food by type, count it and box it up for delivery to the pantries.

Here are a few quick facts about Jewish Federation’s role in combatting hunger:
– Over 1,000,000 meals are provided to individuals suffering from hunger each year through the Jewish Federation
– Approximately 11,300 Jewish individuals in Greater Philadelphia face hunger
– 14,500 local low income individuals received food assistance through the Jewish Federation

During my visit to Israel, we met a wonderful couple, Adi and Aviv Rozen, who live in Nativ HaAsarah, only 50 meters from the border of Gaza.  They graciously invited us to see where they live and experience their hospitality first hand.  After a tour of the moshav and its proximity to Gaza, we met the Rozen children at the security wall that protects the homes from bullets, and had a chance to participate in a mitzvah project.

Path to Peace is a joint mosaic creation, by thousands of people from all over the world, towards hope, love, and happiness among all people. In this unique project, the visitors are invited to take an active part in the creation of the peace wall, to write a personal wish on the back of a colorful mosaic piece and glue it onto the gray security wall.  Additionally, adults with special needs produce the mosaic pieces, improving their skills and receiving respectable salaries.

Adi arrived at the wall with mosaic pieces for us to glue, to create something beautiful out of something ugly, both physically and metaphorically.  It felt wonderful to be a part of something larger than us, that will bring color and joy to a part of the world that has had their share of hardship.  I was surprised to find that I felt safe and secure there, as well as warmly welcomed by our hosts.  And the wall was filled with purple butterflies – not a surprise to me!  It was a wonderful day – road karma at its best!

Leket Israel is the largest food bank in Israel, and has been a leader and an expert in food rescue nationwide since 2003. The organization sources, collects and redistributes fresh, perishable, quality food, which would otherwise be considered waste, from farms, hotels, military bases and catering halls. This is done in an effort to aid the quarter of the country’s population that lives below the poverty line. Leket works with 195 non-profits throughout the country to provide nutritious food to over 175,000 Israelis weekly. Last year alone, Leket collected and delivered over 30 million pounds of fresh, healthy food for the needy.

When I was in Israel visiting Maddie, I wanted to do a meaningful mitzvah (besides helping the economy by spending a ton of money there!!)  Leket was the perfect project during Sukkoth, the harvest festival.  I called beforehand to make sure that we weren’t picking oranges, WHICH I HATE!  They assured me that we were picking pomelos.  Perfect.  In true Israeli fashion, they decided at the last minute to pick clementines.  Are you kidding me???   So I held my breath, put on my big girl pants and picked clementines.  We brought some friends and had a great time, despite the smell.  I think this should count as a double mitzvah!

“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the Lord your G-d gives you.”  (Exodus 20:12).  For mitzvah #17, I honored my father.  Now it’s mom’s turn!!

According to the rabbis, this mitzvah honoring parents does not depend on what your parents did for you, or even whether they were good parents. Rather, we honor parents simply because they gave us the gift of life. What a bonus for me, then, that my mom gave me life AND is a great mother!!

Mom just turned 75.  I honored her by planning a special weekend for her, doing everything that she loves to do.  I rented a house in the Poconos for my parents, brother, sister and their children.  We hiked, celebrated Rosh Hashanah, played games, swam (well, only mom swam), ate yummy food and enjoyed each other’s company.  One of the highlights, though, was a video montage that I made for her, complete with a “wanted” poster, a police man, lots of photos and video messages from all of her loved ones.  She was really touched and surprised, and it felt great to honor her in that way.  Happy birthday mom!

This September, I participated in Alex’s Million Mile – Run.Walk.Ride to raise money and awareness in the fight against childhood cancer.  I joined a friend’s team, and pledged to run/walk/ride 100 miles and raise a dollar per mile.  I had my strategy all planned out, but the entire last week of September it poured.  I wasn’t able to do the bike rides that I had planned (on my new bike!) for the last 19 miles. I still raised $100, though.

But that wasn’t the best part.  The best part was that I brought Jordan along with me on this journey and after some reluctance, he joined with gusto!!  Not only did he exercise more than I did, but he raised almost 9x the amount of money that I raised!!  I think my mitzvot are contagious!

In December, my family and I volunteered at Our Closet, sorting clothing that people had donated (Mitzvah #5).  Every week, Our Closet takes those sorted piles of clothing and sets up a pop-up clothing store that simulates a true shopping experience with tables, hanging racks, mirrors and a check out counter. The store is volunteer-run. There is no eligibility and customers are entitled to select up to 5 items free of charge. The store currently operates in partnership with community-based organizations throughout Philadelphia.

This pop-up shop was located at Casa Caribe, 173 W. Allegheny Ave, Philadelphia.  They had about 100 clients come through to shop, including mothers with babies and young children, mentally ill patients with their caseworkers, men of all ages and women who were picking up a few items to wear to work.  Besides setting up and breaking down the store, our job was to help the clients find their sizes, put together outfits that make them feel special and ooh and aah when they find the perfect piece.  I especially enjoyed helping this adorable 4 year old find a perfect Halloween costume, and a 2 year old choose a cute pair of boots!

What’s more fun than receiving a care package?  This Rosh Hashanah, I made sure that my loved ones knew that I was thinking of them and sending them sweet treats.  When I visited Ben, I brought a homemade round challah with apples and honey.  Then, I sent a package to Ethan with the same treats, plus granola bars for the days that he misses breakfast . . . and lunch.  Most days, I think.  I also sent a package to the family that hosted Maddie for 3 weekends in Israel – honey cakes and muffins.  Here’s to a sweet New Year!!

This is an exciting/crazy/frightening election year, so of course one of my mitzvot had to be related to the Democratic cause.  Thanks to my cousin Sharon, I was connected with  Durham Democratic Women,  an activist organization that focuses on issues that are critical to the well-being of Durham women and their families, within
our county, our state, and our nation.  Their website explains,  “25,000 Democratic women voters in Durham vote inconsistently, or not at all. Since 2008, Durham Women Vote has reached out to infrequent and new women voters through personal, handwritten letters and encouraged them to vote Democratic as the Democrats consistently support issues that are important to women. Studies show that the single biggest reason that women do not vote is that they think that their vote doesn’t matter. Other studies show that women listen to women. With a strong turnout of women voters, Durham can make the difference in the outcome of the election for all Statewide candidates.  Voters who received our letters in the past, turned out at significantly higher percentages than those who did not receive a letter.”

Out came the pen!  It’s actually hard to handwrite letters when you are just used to using a computer, where you can edit as you go along.  I really could have used some white out!  I utilized three different models from the website, combining and deleting to compose a meaningful letter.  I hope it makes a difference!  Otherwise, I may move to Canada .  .  .

For this mitzvah, I worked for an organization that I discovered online called Knots of Love.  Knots of Love donates snuggly, soft blankets to Neonatal Intensive Care Units across the country. These hand-made gifts serve as a sign that each baby is loved and in the thoughts of caring people across the country.  According to their website, these blankets add, ” . . . color and warmth to an often stark Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Parents sleep with the blankets before placing them on these precious new lives. By providing comfort to parents with babies in life-altering situations, often for months at a time, our blankets help make the experience a little less ‘clinical’ and provide a gift to cherish in the future. These treasures become a keepsake after the child is well and are sometimes put on display in shadow boxes or placed in a memory box.”

I haven’t knit in a long time, but I enjoy it so I decided to give it a try.  I followed the directions on the website exactly.  The blanket was supposed to be 18″ x 24″.  I have no idea what I did wrong, but my blanket was only 12 inches across.  I was so bummed because I put so much time and love into that blanket!  I called up the organization and spoke to a woman who could not have been nicer.  She told me that my blanket came out small for a reason — there is a real need for tiny blankets that can be given to babies who do not survive the NICU.  Parents like to have the babies buried in a blanket.  She asked if I was willing to donate one of these “Eternity” blankets.  I was touched.  Of course!  Even mistakes can have a purpose.  And now I’m at work on a much larger blanket, since it was a really enjoyable and meaningful mitzvah.