“I was very interested in starting programs for clothing drop-off bins, because there was no Jewish organization taking care of the clothing needs or the food needs of the community. I got into the idea of food and clothing from a personal perspective. My parents were holocaust survivors, but I was born here. I still remember when I would sit at the table and my parents would give me a piece of bread with butter and little sprinkles of chocolate over it. That was our meal. I never knew that I lacked food. The clothing that we had was limited — we wore hand-me-downs. One day, I went to Camp B’nai Brith and they gave me some clothing: a t-shirt, pair of pants, etc. I got to the camp and I took a look at all the kids besides me. They all had humongous amounts of clothing. It was then that I realized I was different from everybody else. Now I know how important it is for someone to never have that feeling… it’s the worst feeling, because you thought you were at par with everybody; you never realized how poor you were. I never knew I was poor because I had the love of my family. That’s basically how I’ve given back to the community, because they really gave a lot to me when I was younger.”

Category: People