SPECIAL MEIR PANIM APRIL 2019 / NISSAN 5779

PASSOVER EDITION WWW.MEIRPANIM.ORG

T H E O F F I C I A L PA S S O V E R H U N G E R AWA R E N E SS P U B L I C AT I O N

A HOLOCAUST
SURVIVOR’S DIGNITY RACHEL WEISS, AGE 87, TIBERIAS
“At Meir Panim, I feel like I am going to a real
restaurant and not a soup kitchen”

Like many elderly Israelis, Rachel
is alone.
Isolated inside her tiny apartment
on the outskirts of Tiberias, she is
without immediate family members.
In 1945, Rachel was rescued by
American troops; she was hiding
in the straw bales of a countryside
barn in rural Germany. At 13 years
old and suffering from severe mal-
nutrition, she was the only surviving
member of her family of nine.
Rachel is now 87, and a longtime
resident of Israel. After working
as a seamstress for many years,
her retirement pension is meager
and she depends on Meir Panim’s
Restaurant-Style Soup Kitchen in
Tiberias for a daily meal.
After a lifetime of struggles, the
facility’s “Restaurant-Style” concept
leaves her with her dignity intact.
“I went through so much as a child
and, thank God, I managed to live,”
Rachel said. “The last thing I want
to do now that I am old is wait in a
line for food. At Meir Panim, I feel
like I am going to a real restaurant
and not a soup kitchen.”
Each day, Rachel takes a bus to the
soup kitchen and joins a group of
elderly women she has become
friendly with over the years. They
save a place for her at their favorite
table, and chat about current
events. Like Rachel, many of them
cherish this time each day as their
only opportunity to socialize.
As the restaurant bustles with
patrons, staff and volunteers
from around the world work hard
chopping vegetables, serving
trays of fresh food and making
conversation. Each staff member
and volunteer strives to treat each
client with respect and to show
them that they are cared for.
“They do not treat me like someone
who is not important because I
cannot afford to buy food for my-
self,” Rachel explained. “It is such a
relief, because I used to be forced
to make hard decisions. One day
before I found Meir Panim, I was at
the pharmacy in my neighborhood
and I was so embarrassed because I
had to ask them to cut my prescrip-
tion in half so that I could afford to
take my medicine and also to eat
dinner that night. Now I no longer
have this worry.”

NEWS BRIEF April 2019

GROUNDBREAKING NEW FACILITY EXPANDING OUR BOARD JERUSALEM RESTAURANT-STYLE

Meir Panim’s newest project will be opening
soon! The Mortimer B. Zuckerman, Abigail
Zuckerman & Renee Zuckerman Israel Nutrition
Center will be operating in the city of Kiryat Gat
in partnership with the premier Israeli catering
company, Shevet Achim. The facility will provide
high-quality meals daily to disadvantaged Israelis.
OF DIRECTORS
American Friends of Meir Panim is proud
to welcome our newest Board Members!
SOUP KITCHEN FULLY RENOVATED
Our busiest Restaurant-Style Soup Kitchen
recently underwent necessary renovations,
making it a more comfortable and welcom-
ing environment for our patrons!

Adrianne Roth Cantor Aaron Cohen

Syosset, NY Plainview, NY

Page 1 • THE OFFICIAL PASSOVER HUNGER AWARENESS PUBLICATION • APRIL 2019 Special Meir Panim Passover Edition
AT-RISK JEWISH
YOUTH FIND SAFE
HAVEN IN MEIR
PANIM YOUTH CLUB
The Meir Panim After-School
Youth Club in Sderot’s Nir Am
neighborhood is noisy.
Teens are talking about their day
at school, bouncing ping pong
balls back and forth, watching
a movie, and bemoaning their
evening homework. Staff
members are busy preparing a
healthy meal.
And outside, a bomb siren is
blaring.
This is Sderot.
The neighborhood of Nir Am
is located within this southern
Israeli city which borders Gaza.
Inside, its residents constantly
live in fear of rocket attacks from
terrorist groups. Studies show
that an alarming 40% of Sderot’s
youth suffer from PTSD.
After Sderot’s Mayor Alon Davidi
reached out to Meir Panim
about a need for a “safe haven”
environment for local at-risk
youth, Meir Panim responded by
renovating three bomb shelters
into neighborhood youth
centers.
Through academic assistance
and emotional support, the
centers enable teens to maintain
a sense of normalcy amid the
chaos around them.
The Nir Am youth club, the
second of the three to open,
welcomes over 50 children after
school hours. Among them is
17-year-old Irit Levy.
Irit’s parents, like many of her
peers, are immigrants who
struggle to make ends meet.
For much of her childhood, she
would return to an empty house
after school while her parents
worked long hours. Often,
she would also find an empty
refrigerator.
Since she began attending the
youth center, Irit’s grades have
improved and she has exhibited
less anxiety. “I am now excited
for my future,” she said. “I see
that it is possible to overcome
difficulties if you have support
from people around you.”
Meir Panim is dedicated to
providing Israel’s neediest
children with the tools to break
IRIT LEVY, AGE 17, SDEROT
out of the cycle of poverty. “I am now excited for my future”

FOOD FOR THE BODY NOURISHMENT FOR THE SOUL

RESTAURANT-STYLE SOUP KITCHENS MEALS-ON-WHEELS MEALS FOR CHILDREN

A network of restaurant-style soup kitchens Packaged meals delivered to the homebound, Hot, nourishing lunches distributed to thousands of
serving thousands of nutritious meals annually. disabled, and elderly including Holocaust survivors. poverty-stricken children across Israel.

Page 2 • THE OFFICIAL PASSOVER HUNGER AWARENESS PUBLICATION • APRIL 2019 Special Meir Panim Passover Edition
 WHO BENEFITS
FROM MEIR PANIM’S
LIFESAVING WORK?
CHILDREN Young children
are often the most unfortunate
victims of Israel’s economic
crisis. These youngsters
leave for school with empty
stomachs and go to bed hungry.
ADULTS Both working
and unemployed adults have
seen their situation plummet,
largely due to massive cuts in
government spending, leaving
them and their entire families
helpless.
SENIORS From elderly
Holocaust survivors with no
family to bedridden seniors
without support, these people
are essentially left to fend for
themselves and are struggling
to survive.
BENNY LANGER, AGE 4, JERUSALEM
“I’m happy to have something
to eat.”
Meir Panim combats Israeli poverty every day of the year with an array
of social service programs geared toward both adults and children.
FOOD SHOPPING CARDS
Special pre-paid debit cards issued to buy basic
food staples at participating grocery stores.
Page 3 • THE OFFICIAL PASSOVER HUNGER AWARENESS PUBLICATION • APRIL 2019 Special Meir Panim Passover Edition
PREPARING FOR
PASSOVER FOR ISRAEL’S
“WORKING POOR”
Families across Israel are
looking forward to Passover.
Children will be home
from school, and families
will spend time together
enjoying traditional food.
But for 45-year-old Doron
Holani of Tzfat, the holidays
bring only stress.
Doron is one of a growing
segment of Israelis who make
up the “working poor.” He
and his wife are employed
full-time in low-paying
factory jobs with little hope
for advancement, and they
struggle to put food on the
table for their four young
children.
“Life has become difficult,”
Doron said. “We work very
hard each day, we get home
too late - but still sometimes
HOLIDAY FOOD BASKETS
Holiday packages filled with matzoh, chickens,
produce, eggs, and more delivered to needy families.
we cannot afford enough
groceries. Many times, my
wife and I have gone to bed
hungry so that our children
had enough to eat.”
Like with many of its
Restaurant-Style Soup
Kitchen locations, the Meir
Panim restaurant in Tzfat
is preparing to alleviate
this worry for families like
Doron’s. Branch Manager
Benny Elgad is organizing a
large Seder open to all those
in need.
To further enable
disadvantaged Israelis to
enjoy the holiday, Meir Panim
will also be distributing pre-
paid food shopping cards as
well as food baskets filled DORON HOLANI, AGE 45, TZFAT
with traditional Passover
"My wife and I have gone
foods to over 2,500 families. to bed hungry”
AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAMS
Youth Clubs providing meals, emotional care, and
academic support to disadvantaged children.
LISTEN UP CHARLES E. SCHUMER
UNITED STATES SENATOR
REAL TESTIMONIALS
FROM REAL PEOPLE
MICHAEL OREN
KNESSET MEMBER
“Since its inception, the Meir Panim Relief Centers “Meir Panim represents the best of
in Israel has dedicated itself to helping many families what this country is and represents the
and their children. Meir Panim has taken the initiative essence of the Jewish State, of Zionism,
to assist less fortunate families through professional, and everything we stand for.”
immediate, and basic resources.”

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT: DANIEL KOWEITY

For 14 years, a very special
volunteer has been working
on behalf of Meir Panim.
to personal donations and
volunteering at local events
on Meir Panim’s behalf.
He distributes and collects
donations from as many
as 50 boxes at a time from
local Kosher restaurants,
pizza shops, bakeries,
supermarkets, and even real
estate offices.
Koweity’s dedication was
reaffirmed when he visited
NEED FOR
FEED
together - religious and
non-religious - was touching.
“Being there and seeing it
inspired me because I see my
brethren that are hungry and
old and poor.”
Through his work to better
the lives of Israel’s hungry,
Koweity has come to see the
world in a different light.
“When I pick up a tzedakah

ANNUAL FOOD FACTS

Daniel Koweity of Long Island, box and see a five-dollar bill
New York first got involved Israel, his birthplace, on inside, I know that that five
with the organization after multiple occasions and spent dollars is feeding someone
receiving a letter describing time volunteering at Meir - my efforts are helping

widespread poverty in Israel
and the work Meir Panim has
been doing to combat this
issue. Inspired to help, he met
with local staff in Brooklyn
and started distributing Meir
Panim’s Restaurant-Style
Soup Kitchens in Jerusalem
and Tiberias. As a volunteer,
Koweity chopped vegetables,
served trays of nutritious food
to the Restaurants’ clients,
490,000
someone eat.”
And Koweity has a special
message to everyone reading:
HOT MEALS SERVED ANNUALLY AT
“I want to thank everybody RESTAURANT-STYLE SOUP KITCHENS
through the years that has put
money in the tzedakah boxes,

Panim tzedakah boxes at
local businesses. “My goal
was to raise $1,000 - in a
few months I had raised
$1,700,” Koweity said.
And he didn’t stop there.
and gave them meals to take
home. “It was an experience
I will never forget,” he stated.
“It’s not just a soup kitchen,
it’s a three-course meal - and
that’s what inspires me. I
110,000
and I’d like to invite them,
when they go to Israel, to see
for themselves the work Meir
HOT LUNCHES DISTRIBUTED TO
Panim is doing.”
CHILDREN ACROSS ISRAEL
On behalf of all the Israelis

Over the years, Koweity
has brought in over $4,000
annually through tzedakah
box donations, in addition
feel like I’m doing Hashem’s
work.”
Koweity also explained
that seeing different types
of Israelis enjoying meals
190,000
who depend on our services
for a daily hot meal, Meir
Panim is grateful to Daniel
Koweity for his heartfelt
MEALS-ON-WHEELS DELIVERED TO THE
dedication! HOMEBOUND, DISABLED AND ELDERLY

AMERICAN FRIENDS OF MEIR PANIM’S MISSION IS TO ALLEVIATE THE HARMFUL EFFECTS OF POVERTY ON THOUSANDS OF
FAMILIES ACROSS ISRAEL BY SUPPORTING A RANGE OF FOOD AND SOCIAL SERVICE PROGRAMS AIMED AT HELPING THE NEEDY
WITH DIGNITY AND RESPECT, INCLUDING RESTAURANT-STYLE SOUP KITCHENS, MEALS-ON-WHEELS, SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAMS,
PREPAID FOOD CARD DISTRIBUTION, HOLIDAY FOOD PACKAGES AND AFTER-SCHOOL YOUTH CLUBS.

5316 New Utrecht Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11219 TEL 877.736.6283 FAX 800.540.0274 EMAIL info@meirpanim.org WEB www.meirpanim.org

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