Ya'el Chaikind, Social Justice Director

As community activists, Temple Beth Shalom members take part in Tikkun Olam —the healing of the world. Activists start young —as early as pre-school— and continue their involvement in social justice projects during their teens and throughout adulthood.

Our members, young and old, work to make a difference in many ways:

• Social Justice Council
• Interfaith Shelter
• Food and clothing drives
• Legislative advocacy
• Adopting homeless families in transition
• Creating a safe haven for troubled families
• Mitzvah Corps

CURRENT PROJECTS OF THE TBS SOCIAL JUSTICE COUNCIL

SENIORS REACHING OUT
TBS’s new program, Seniors Reaching Out (SRO) is designed to help the Jewish poor and elderly in our community as well as enhance collaboration among Jewish agencies, congregations and organizations through referrals and volunteer support. The program will provide nutritious lunches and snacks to 20-30 Jewish Seniors one day each week for 40 weeks from 11:30am to 3pm, beginning December 14. There will also be opportunities for after-lunch socialization and education. SRO hopes to offer an alternative to the Jewish aging and elderly, many of whom do not have family living close by, and are unable for one reason or another to access social activities that could enhance their lives. All Jewish senior citizens, affiliated or not, are invited to participate. NEEDED:
• Volunteers to prepare lunch at home or at TBS for 20 people in conjunction with seniors
• Volunteers to provide entertainment or an educational program
• Professionals who can act as resources (health, legal, work, etc.)
If interested, please contact Sue Breslauer, 474-0922:

SAFE HAVEN
Safe Haven is a project of Children First. At Temple Beth Shalom, on Fridays and Sundays, trained volunteers provide a free, safe, neutral place for children of divorce to move (or be transferred) from one parent to the other. This important service assures that children will be able to feel secure with both parents and avoid being part of any parental conflict. We always seek volunteers. To help, call: Lynn or Mike Kelly 471-9252.

ENVISION SANTA FE
Envision Santa Fe is a coalition of faith-based communities and social services agencies working to provide homeless families with the support they need to become stable and sustainable. Each member of our selected families receives a mentor. Volunteer mentors work with our families for two years to help them transition into permanent housing, access community resources, and acquire skills to ensure sustainability. We also need volunteers to assist with tasks such as tutoring, budgeting advice and nutritional consultation. Members of Temple Beth Shalom envisioned the project which is now a part of the Interfaith Leadership Alliance of Santa Fe. For information, go to www.envisionsantafe.org

SANTA FE RESOURCE & OPPORTUNITY CENTER
The Santa Fe Resource and Opportunity Center (SF ROC) brings together, for the first time in Santa Fe, shelter and services for homeless and at risk individuals and families in order to help them rejoin society. Housed in the former Pete’s Pets, home to the Interfaith Community Shelter Group the past two winters, SFROC will offer seasonal shelter for the homeless, housing and employment assistance, drug and other addiction counseling, healthcare, and a variety of other services, including help with enrollment in the Santa Fe Public Schools. The City of Santa Fe has provided the building and funded much of the necessary renovation, but SFROC needs help to complete the project.

Members of TBS volunteer at the Shelter during Christmas and Easter weeks. TBS teams cook wholesome food at home and serve it to the homeless at the shelter. We will be serving dinners and working at the Shelter each night (5:30-8:30 pm) Sunday December 25 through December 31. Let Melinda Silver (melindasilver@gmail.com) know if you are interested and which night you’d like to serve. You’ll have a good time, perform a mitzvah and make 50-60 homeless people happy with a warm, wholesome, home-cooked meal.

THANKSGIVING BASKETS
This year, TBS distributed 60 Thanksgiving baskets to the families of children enrolled in the Adelante! program for homeless children attending Santa Fe Public Schools and Youth Shelters. Each “basket” included the makings of a tasty and attractive Thanksgiving meal. A $20 gift card from Smith’s or Albertson’s was also included to cover the purchase of a turkey. Missed it this year? Help out next year! Just call the TBS office (505-982-1376) for information.

INTERFAITH, INTERGENERATIONAL WOMEN’S SEDER
For the past four years, Social Justice Council members have helped to organize the Santa Fe Interfaith, Intergenerational Women’s Seder, housed at TBS. Participants read from a specially written & illustrated Haggadah (“Miriam’s Song”) which explores the role of women in the Jewish escape from slavery in Egypt to freedom in an unknown land. In retelling this compelling story, discussion inevitably leads to the idea that achieving freedom is a never-ending struggle for women of all faiths, everywhere, in this community and around the world. But the evening is not all serious, as the reading of the Haggadah leads to the celebration of freedom through song and dance. Each year, this Interfaith Women’s Seder selects one or more Santa Fe nonprofit organizations to support. Altogether, the Women’s Seder has contributed over $10,000 to needy organizations, with an emphasis on those organizations that will make a difference in the lives of women in Santa Fe.

Planning has already begun for the 2012 seder, and the planning committee can use further help with publicity, reservations, and fundraising. Or you may have something to contribute that would add a new slant to this year’s Seder. Call or write Melinda Silver at 505-577-6325, or melindasilver@gmail.com to discuss.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES IN THE SANTA FE PUBLIC SCHOOLS
For many years TBS has linked congregants with Santa Fe Public Schools to provide tutors, readers and other volunteers. If you are interested, please contact Helen S. Pacheco, SFPS Volunteer Coordinator (HPACHECO@sfps.info) about volunteer opportunities, or, if you are an excellent writer, contact Lorraine Goldman, 473-2821 (lorraineanddon@msn.com) concerning opportunities to tutor writing skills at Capital High School's Medical Sciences Academy.