Before it merged into the Jewish Connection Network, Jewish Volunteer Connection used to hold a day of doing mitzvot every Dec. 25, aptly called Mitzvah Day. The group would package goods for less-fortunate members of the community in preparation for the cold winter ahead. It was a great success and a fun day for the community, but they thought it had greater potential.
So, about four years ago, when the groups merged and the staff at the Network looked at the annual tradition, they decided it was time to go big, Senior Associate of Jewish and Volunteer Experiences Jodi Teitelman said.
“We knew that the reason The Associated created us was to engage people that are kind of outside the core Jewish zip codes or those who might have different identities or life stages and really figure out how we can connect people more to Judaism,” she said. “We decided we wanted to have more opportunities to engage with people on an authentic and personal level, so instead of having 400 to 500 people in a gym on Christmas Day … we have a smaller experience and there’s a better opportunity for us to get to know the people in the room.”
Make no mistake, the smaller environment doesn’t mean less service — what is now known as Mitzvah Month will see 2,500 winter care packages filled with hand-knitted hats and scarves, socks, gloves, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, deodorant, toothpaste, a toothbrush, tissues, water and a granola bar assembled over the course of the month.
However, the large group dynamic has been dropped for six more intimate sessions across the Baltimore area, allowing people to gather with those close to them and actually get to know the folks who are around them.
Since that change a few winters ago, the results have spoken for themselves, said Assistant Director for Jewish Experiences Alli Berger.
“It has worked,” she said. “We are able to create a little bit of a more intimate setting where we can really intentionally connect people to each other and to the project and to the partners that are there to represent their clients that receive the care packages.”
This has manifested in participants choosing to volunteer with the partner organizations more often, as well as forming friendships with other Mitzvah Month volunteers.
“We’ve worked hard to make sure people understand that service is a Jewish value, and the harder we’ve worked at that, the more we’ve seen that click in people’s minds. And that means a lot to us as well,” Berger said.
Teitelman said that the emphasis on connection to Jewish values through the synagogues or organizations that host them is a point of emphasis this year.
“Something that we are doing this year a little bit different than last year is to really emphasize that Jewish connection. [W]hichever site we’re at, we’re actually asking a member of their team — whether it’s a clergy member or a professional staff member — to provide a snippet of Jewish learning,” she said. “And that way, let’s say you don’t belong to a synagogue and you’re looking to join one … that’s a connection to that organization, to that person that you might not have had before, and that’s really special.”
The Network’s six packing parties this winter have taken place or will take place at Chizuk Amuno Congregation, Third Space at Shaarei Tfiloh, Bolton Street Synagogue, Pearlstone, Kol HaLev and the JCC in Owings Mills. Each packing party sees between 350 to 500 care packages created.
Creating so many packages is not easy.
“You can imagine what our storage room looks like,” Teitelman joked.
There are around a half dozen dentist offices that donate toothbrushes and toothpaste, the socks are donated by Bombas and a Network committee member donates the bag themselves. Obtaining thousands of knit items takes an army, Teitelman said.
“[Our knitters] are people of all ages. I would say the bulk of our knitters are retirees, and they gather once a month at the JCC to knit for us in addition to knitting on their own time.
But we also have a new young adult knitting group that we started in September,” she said.
The Network is also in the process of starting a knitting group for parents. All in all, there are about 130 people who contribute hand-knit items each year.
The most recent two packing parties were supposed to take place on Dec. 14, but wintery weather delayed them until later in the week. Everyone who participates, as well as the organizations that sponsor the parties and donate items, has a similar goal in mind. Berger said it is uplifting for all involved.
“They have this common interest of giving back to the community,” she said.
