I was with several colleagues recently at a site visit recently at Daughters of Israel. DOI, if you haven't been,* is our community's skilled nursing care facility. But it's a lot more than just a long-term or rehab care center. It's a very Jewish place. There's a lovely synagogue, a kosher kitchen. Their values are clear and prominent.

I went to sit with Susan Grosser, the talented and engaging Executive Director. As we were sitting in the conference room, hearing a passionate and impressive briefing on DOI and its horizons ... our 'red alert' sirens went off. Several of us sitting in the room had downloaded the 'red alert' app, which gives you  a real-time alert when rockets, missiles or mortars are fired into Israel.

So there we were, talking about the vulnerable and elderly in "our" community, close to home. Ten Shoah (Holocaust) survivors, hundreds of clients who need our help.

And at the same time, in our other home - Israel, those who are vulnerable are also in need of help.

This is the essence of who we are in our federation and our Jewish community. We care about those in our community who are elderly, who are vulnerable.

Doesn't matter whether you're here in GMW, in Israel, or anywhere else in the Jewish world. We care.

* You should go. They do great work. And the site visits are truly inspiring. They remind you what a community is and what it stands for.

 

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