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Ontario
Apples and Core Values
Some of our “core” values include
picking apples to benefit many of the seniors who regularly
participate in JFS programming.
On
Monday, September 7th 2009, a group gathered to pick apples at the scenic Orleans Fruit Farm. Twenty minutes from
downtown Ottawa, this orchard gave us a chance to donate
our time and labor in the service of others.
Participants
agreed that picking apples for ourselves and pickingapples
for individuals who attend programs through the Thelma
Steinman Seniors Support Service Unit was a good
(and fun!) way to give back to our community.
The
approximately 300 extra apples that were picked directly benefitted
the following programs:
September 24th 2009 Rosh Hashana party
for Russian-speaking seniors – apples were only part
of the festive meal that brought recently arrived and
more veteran Russian-speaking seniors together for the
holidays.
Drop-In Centre participants in the
month of September were delighted with the apples as
they watched movies, enjoyed speakers, discussed books,
and studied English. Apples were packaged with honey
and a card and distributed to 54 senior households in
Ottawa.
Shoreline
Cleanup - Kettle Island
 
On
Sunday, September 27th, 2009 about 25 people from various groups participated in the cleanup of Kettle Island.
Items
found on shore:Broken glass, plastic bottles, a water-soaked,
polyfoam mattress and even a (lucky!) quarter.
Meredith Brown, Ottawa Riverkeeper, was on hand to thank
participants. “Our collaborative efforts will work to mitigate
the effects of pollution on this ecologically significant
island”, she said.
In
September 2008, Kettle Island was identified as the preferred
site for a new interprovincial bridge. A tunnel - exempt
from being an option- would be roughly 4 times the cost
of a bridge.
River advocacy work won't necessarily reverse the 2008
decision of the National Capital Commission recommending
the Kettle Island bridge, but it may let city councillors
know that we as a community are concerned about the potential
environmental impact of the proposed bridge on the ecological
diversity of Kettle Island.
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Faith communities
team up for Habitat
By Erica Bregman, Jewish Family Services
‘Faith communities working together’ was the theme for
Habitat for Humanity’s most recent build in the National
Capital Region. And the theme was certainly a reality
in July when Jewish Family Services/In Our Hands and the
Young Adult Division (YAD) of the Jewish Federation of
Ottawa teamed up with volunteers from the Blessed Sacrament
Church in the Glebe to dig, shovel and transport materials
for two nearly completed Habitat for Humanity homes in
Orleans.
No prior
experience was required to participate in the build.
Arriving early enough to miss morning traffic, volunteers
greeted each other, learned about Habitat for Humanity’s
activities across North America
and beyond and were
briefed on the day’s work by the site manager.
Participants worked collaboratively, and sometimes
creatively, to accomplish their appointed tasks.
Those
with more experience helped those with less.
Working together to build stronger communities was
an incredible experience, said Lindsay Rothenberg,
co-ordinator of YAD. |
Participants from Jewish
Family Services -
In Our Hands,
the Young Adult
Division of
the Jewish Federation of Ottawa
and
Blessed Sacrament Church take a break
during a
Habitat for Humanity build in July.
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“As the families left in the morning,
we knew that, when they returned home, their homes would
have a few more finishing touches and it was our group
that played a role in that transformation,” said Rothenberg.
It’s the idea of doing something that brings immediate
and perceptible benefits to others that brought Betina
Kuzmarov, a law instructor at Carleton University, to
her first Habitat build.
“I was so excited to finally give my time to something
I could build with my hands,” she said. “I was grateful to have participated in the build, and look forward to
more opportunities to do something concrete for others.”
Habitat for Humanity homes are available to select low-income
working families who may not otherwise qualify for a traditional
mortgage. Monthly payments are interest- free and total
less than 30 per cent of the client’s income. Habitat
for Humanity has built 32 homes in the National Capital
Region since 1993.
For more information about B'Yadenu,
please contact Erica Bregman, Jewish Connections Worker, at 613.252.0271 ext. 426, ebregman@jfsottawa.com
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