by Gloria Safran
This past Spring, many families attended a Seder (feast) to celebrate Passover. The Seder opens with the head of the household inviting all those who are hungry to enter and be part of the Seder.
 Gloria Safran |
We help by sending a supermarket gift card to extend food stamps. We help by sending a winter coat when the old one is threadbare. We help by providing a small amount of joy through a pretty shirt or a handsome sweater. We help by caring enough to enclose a note asking about their families and concerns.
Who are the “we” I am writing about? “We” are the Sponsors who have given so selflessly. Sponsors give thought to what goes in the box. They remember to do it on a regular basis. Even though M’Yad L’Yad-Helping Hands asks that boxes be sent at least four times a year, many send additional boxes on birthdays and other special occasions. M’Yad L’Yad-Helping Hands pays for the shipping costs. Sponsorship is not complicated or difficult and the rewards are large. For this, M’Yad L’Yad-Helping Hands and I thank you, our Sponsors, profusely. You are the family who cares for our recipients. We are so proud of you.
I am also proud of how M’Yad L’Yad-Helping Hands has grown as an agency. Our annual Spring Benefit Concert & Dessert Reception was a huge success. More people attended than ever before. We met our financial goal. For that, I thank our chairladies, their committee and the community as a whole. So many businesses made the Chinese Auction popular and successful by donating fabulous gifts. The music was magical and the food delicious.
The number of recipients M’yad L’Yad-Helping Hands is serving has grown by fifteen per cent. This is limited by how many Sponsors we have. If we had more Sponsors, we would be able to help more families. I can only urge you to call our office and tell us you would like to be a Sponsor. Once you try it, you will wonder why you didn’t do it earlier.
M’Yad L’Yad-Helping Hands has a very special group of donors. They support us when we have our Benefit Concert. They support us in their everyday lives by sending donations in honor of life cycle events, specific accomplishments and memorials of loved ones. Even when going to a friend’s home for dinner, instead of bringing a bottle of wine or a box of cookies, they make a donation to M’Yad L’Yad-Helping Hands. Our donors are always thinking of unique ways to support us. As a result, this year we have been blessed with a record amount of general donations. Thank you donors and keep thinking of us.
Above all, I must thank the Board of Directors and Staff who are so diligent in executing their duties with commitment, energy and good humor. No president of an agency could ask for a more supportive board.
Next year will bring more challenges. I am confident that M’Yad L’yad-Helping Hands will be able to meet them while continuing to grow and offer help to those in need in our community.
With many thanks for a wonderful year.
