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Oct. 20, 2006
Food for hungry Jews
Project Isaiah is helping those living in poverty.
RON FRIEDMAN
The Jewish Food Bank helps hundreds of Vancouver-area Jews have
a shana tovah – at the least, one of its main food drives gets
their year off to a good start.
Over the High Holidays, the Jewish Family Service Agency, together
with Jewish Women International, runs Project Isaiah, an intensive
food drive that aims to assist those members of the Jewish community
who are in need.
While it might be surprising to some, poverty is a real issue for
Jews in Greater Vancouver. According to the Jewish Federation of
Greater Vancouver, one in six Jews in the Lower Mainland lives below
the poverty line. This means that roughly 16 per cent of the community
struggles to provide sufficient food for themselves and their families.
However, there are organizations like JFSA in place to help people
meet their basic needs.
JFSA was set up in 1936 to address the problem of poverty within
the community. Seventy years later, the services provided are still
necessary. Project Isaiah itself was initiated 10 years ago. For
it, JFSA contacts all the synagogues, schools and Jewish community
centres and provides them with empty bags, which are to be filled
with food products and returned. The project starts at Rosh Hashanah
and runs through Yom Kippur and throughout the holidays. So far
this year, more than 1,200 bags have been returned, according to
JFSA project director Lisa Rubin.
One congregation that responded enthusiastically is Temple Sholom.
JFSA reports that 600 bags were donated by members of this synagogue
alone.
"We do what we need to do, it's a very simple thing,"
said Temple Sholom Rabbi Philip Bregman. "As Jews, we have
a responsibility to one another. There are Jews living within kilometres
of where we are today who simply do not have enough to eat. The
very least we can do as we sit here is to give."
The poor in the community come from a wide range of circumstances.
"We see a lot of single parent families, newcomers, people
that are going to be going into our seniors department and people
with mental illnesses," said Rubin. "We're also seeing
a lot more working poor, so yes, they are working but what they
get paid might be enough to cover rent but isn't enough to cover
food." She also said that cuts in social programs in the broader
community have made more people rely on the agency's services.
Rubin said currently there are approximately 320 people who regularly
use the Jewish Food Bank. The food bank is part of JFSA's Basic
Needs Assistance Program, which receives around $200,000 in funding
each year from the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver –
but food drives such as Project Isaiah are still necessary in order
to augment it. The food bank operates out of the Peretz Centre for
Secular Jewish Culture, on a biweekly basis. It provides non-perishable
items, as well as fresh fruits and vegetables.
JFSA accepts donations of all kinds but is most in need of food
with high nutritional value, as many of its clients are diabetic,
pre-diabetic or have other dietary concerns. It is also important
to make sure that the food products are suited to the limited resources
of the poor.
"It doesn't make sense to provide items which the people cannot
use because they don't have access to a functioning kitchen. Flour
is great, but you can't really make anything with flour on a hotplate,"
said Rubin.
While the food bank is not strictly kosher, it does not provide
food that contains pork or shellfish. These items, if donated, can
be traded with other food banks in exchange for other products.
The project is named after the prophet Isaiah who, in the context
of the Yom Kippur fast, spoke about the importance of "Sharing
your bread with the hungry." (Isaiah 38:7)
To make donations to the Jewish Food Bank and for more information
on Project Isaiah, go to www.jfsa.ca.
Ron Friedman is a Vancouver freelance writer.
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