In the early morning on Sunday, June 2, volunteers gathered on the Third Space at Shaarei Tfiloh campus to plant a garden. This was a volunteer opportunity hosted by Repair the World Baltimore as part of its Farm Crew series, as well as its last event of the programmatic year.
For this year’s cohort of Baltimore-based Repair the World fellows, it was a bittersweet occasion as the community service organization prepares to transition away from its fellowship model.
Baltimore has been one of Repair the World’s target cities for its fellowship program ever since it first began in 2009. Eli Greenstein Jacober, Repair the World’s senior director of growth strategy, explained that Baltimore was chosen because of its strong Jewish community and its often-complicated past in handling some of Repair the World’s focus areas, such as racial equity, support for unhoused people and reforming community infrastructure.
“Baltimore has a strong Jewish presence, and it has a strong body of volunteers available to respond to service opportunities,” he explained. “And as a Baltimore resident, Baltimore is not ashamed to confront its complicated history. There’s a lot that’s in need of repair, so it’s important for Repair the World and other institutions to be able to invest in our community.”
While anyone can volunteer at Repair the World events, the fellowship was designed specifically to train future Jewish community leaders in a salaried position over the course of two years. Alongside Baltimore, other places that had their own fellowship programs have included Atlanta, Detroit, Los Angeles, Boston, Miami, Brooklyn and Pittsburgh.
Jacober added that part of why Repair the World is transitioning away from its fellowship program is to make the barrier of entry lower for prospective volunteers, so that anyone can help out with Repair the World initiatives regardless of if they have any personal involvement in the organization.
“We’re looking to expand the reach of Repair the World, which means that we are investing in field activation — shifting our models to be better able to train Jewish institutions,” Jacober said. “The fellowship model trains individuals, but we are currently working on a part-time opportunity that would allow us to reach as many as 10 times as many people.”
Repair the World Baltimore’s last event of the year — which took place at Third Space at Shaarei Tfiloh, a nondenominational community center located on the grounds of the historic Orthodox synagogue — is actually notable due to the overlap between its staff and Repair the World. Its executive director, Rabbi Jessy Dressin, has been the senior director of Jewish education at Repair the World for nearly five years, and its events and administrative coordinator, Lou Fusco, was a fellow in 2022.
Eric Jackson, who led a group discussion about Jewish views on reparations at the beginning of the Farm Crew gardening event, is both a community engagement and relationship steward at Third Space and part of one of Repair the World’s partner organizations, the Black Yield Institute.
“The closer people are to the land, the closer we are to each other,” Jackson said during the event’s learning portion. “I don’t think you can really repair the world without being connected to the land.”
Over the course of a few hours, volunteers laid down weed barrier fabric, organized materials for the garden and built planting boxes. Jackson noted that they are planning for it to be an herb garden, so they can harvest some of its plants to hold social tea-brewing ceremonies.
Along with the Third Space staff and a few community volunteers, the final Repair the World Baltimore fellows, Hannah Zinker and Adam Weingast, also worked to build the garden. Weingast said he applied to the fellowship because he was looking for opportunities to further his nonprofit work after an internship at the Jewish Relief Agency in Philadelphia.
His work as a Repair the World fellow has included volunteering at Baltimore-based food banks, tutoring students and leading monthly volunteer programs.
“Being connected with such great work and people who are willing to do that work has been very rewarding. It’s good to form these connections,” he said.
Weingast added that he’s looking forward to the new volunteer opportunities being offered by Repair the World after their fellowship program ends.
“If you care about your Jewish connection to social justice, that’s important, but I think social justice in Baltimore is important in general and that’s what drew me in in the first place,” he said. “Even with Repair the World changing, I think it’s important to look up organizations that will give you the opportunity to do good in your community. If you want to get involved in the city, just go out and find a place to volunteer.”
