COMMUNITY NEWS
The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia mobilizes
financial and volunteer resources to address the
communities’ most critical priorities locally, in Israel and
around the world.

ost people use DoorDash to order
including the infl ux of Ukrainian refugees,
forgotten lunches, last-minute din-
who are now settling in the Northeast and
ners or late-night cookies.

require food assistance.

Th is year, the food delivery company
“With the growing need of these refugees,
is teaming up with the Jewish Federation
our social workers will be able to have a fur-
of Greater Philadelphia’s Mitzvah Food
ther reach in these impoverished communities
Program to serve up something diff erent:
while DoorDash provides the means to deliver
Th anksgiving meals for those in need.

these much-needed food supplies,” Drukier
As part of an ongoing partnership, the two
said. organizations are ensuring that everyone is
Th e current increase in need comes off the
able to have a table fi lled with nutritious food
heels of last year, when 1,060,742 pounds of
for the holidays and all year long.

nutritious, kosher food was distributed to
“With nearly a third of our city’s popula-
6,530 clients.

tion experiencing food insecurity in 2021, it
Unlike many food relief agencies, the
is our mission to expand our reach to help
Mitzvah Food Program’s clients are able to
alleviate the issues facing this most basic
choose from fresh and frozen groceries as well
human need,” explained Whitney Drukier,
as non-perishable goods. Th is choice-based
Mitzvah Food Program operations manager.

structure uses a point system that incentivizes
“Partnerships like the DoorDash deliveries
clients to select more nutritious items when
help our clients by getting to these communi-
placing their orders.

ties as quickly as we can.”
Aside from providing food, the Mitzvah
Fueling this relationship, DoorDash pro-
Food Program hopes to make a greater impact
vided the Mitzvah Food Program with an
by off ering increased social services to its
initial one-year, in-kind donation of $100,000
clientele. In a holistic approach to hunger,
in services. Th e initiative offi cially began
the staff helps clients apply for Supplemental
on April 25 and has already made 1,126
Nutrition Assistance Program, also known
deliveries, totaling more than 22,520 pounds
as SNAP, benefi ts, and sign up for other food
A volunteer from Mitzvah Food Program’s Thanksgiving meal
of food.

insecurity programs, like JRA and KleinLife’s
distribution in 2021. The Jewish Federation’s Mitzvah Food
Program began a partnership with DoorDash earlier in 2022
Th e ability to deliver groceries addresses
Meals on Wheels. Since many of the clients
to help make deliveries, including holiday packages, to food-
two key barriers for people experiencing
are Russian immigrants, the program employs
insecure individuals and families.

food insecurity: transportation and privacy.

two Russian-speaking social workers at the
DoorDash deliveries are discreetly made
Northeast pantry to off er additional support.

within a 10-mile radius of two of the Mitzvah Food Program’s four pantries:
Twenty-six years aft er its inception, the Mitzvah Food Program has upheld its
the Main Line location at the JFCS – Barbara and Harvey Brodsky Enrichment commitment to helping all who are hungry, regardless of race, religion or fi nan-
Center and the Northeast location at the KleinLife building.

cial background. Now, with the help of DoorDash, the longstanding program will
“We are honored to partner with the Mitzvah Food Program to broaden food be able to expand its goal of relieving food insecurity and creating the opportu-
access,” said Kelly Jones, DoorDash Drive director of government and nonprofi t. nity for clients to focus on other aspects of their lives.

“Local delivery has helped support food pantries’ provision of food and other
“Relieving the worries of our food supply means we can focus on regaining our
essentials while emphasizing convenience and dignity to meet the need in a long- physical strengths,” said Jean and Jason Lovell, clients of the Main Line pantry
term, sustainable way.”
who receive Mitzvah Food Program deliveries twice a month from DoorDash.

Th is partnership proved to be especially needed during the summer, a time of “We now have the freedom to join the senior center and participate in the activ-
year when volunteering is traditionally at its lowest. In lieu of volunteer drivers, ities off ered there. We’re extremely grateful to the Mitzvah Food Program for its
DoorDash was able to step in and deliver an average of 175 parcels per month continuous contributions and compassion.”
from May to August.

While volunteer engagement is expected to rise during the winter holidays,
*** DoorDash’s aid will remain an essential resource for the Mitzvah Food Program
For more information about the Mitzvah Food Program, visit jewishphilly.

through the colder months ahead. Th is is due to the program’s increase in clients, org/mfp, email mitzvahfoodprogram@jewishphilly.org or call 215-832-0509.

8 NOVEMBER 17, 2022 | JEWISHEXPONENT.COM
Courtesy of Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia
M The Jewish Federation’s
Mitzvah Food Program Partners
With DoorDash



YOU SHOULD KNOW ...

Rabbi Ezra Cohen
Photo by Nachi Troodler
I n August, the Jewish Exponent’s weekly Synagogue Spotlight
section focused on Lower Merion Synagogue, the Orthodox shul
where congregants walk to Shabbat services.

The article focused on how the community that started in 1954
with five families never stopped growing over the decades. Today, it
has more than 450 households and is the largest Orthodox synagogue
in Pennsylvania.

The article also mentioned that the continued growth required
LMS to hire its first-ever assistant rabbi. It just did not include that
new rabbi’s name. He’s Ezra Cohen, and he’s excited to introduce
himself to the wider Jewish community in the Philadelphia area.

Cohen, 27, lives in Merion Station near the shul and works under
Rabbi Avraham J. Shmidman, LMS’ spiritual leader. The assistant
rabbi started in July after accepting the offer and moving from New
York City with his wife Tova. Cohen grew up in New Rochelle, a sub-
urb of NYC, and attended Yeshiva University in the city. This is his
first job out of rabbinical school.

“I thought it was a community I wanted to work at,” he said.

“It’s definitely great to have a new world to explore,” Cohen added
of the Philadelphia area. “I am enjoying the weather that’s warmer by
about 2 degrees every day.”
The young rabbi chose LMS because it checked out both on paper
and off, as he put it.

On paper, the synagogue wanted a rabbi who would get out there
and interact with people; and Cohen likes to do that in general,
not just in his professional life. The
shul also wanted a young leader whose
religious philosophy aligned with its
denomination; Cohen, for his part,
believes in interpreting Jewish law as
it’s been interpreted throughout his-
tory. And lastly, LMS wanted a rabbi
who could teach and help expand its
educational programming; the 27-year-
old is already working on a new ini-
tiative to bring classes into people’s
homes. While those qualities were evident
to Cohen during the interview process,
he would not have taken the job if it
didn’t feel right. So when he came for
his Shabbat visit in March, he tried
to determine if the Main Line syna-
gogue could become his home, he said.

And during services, meals and con-
versations, he felt a “warmth” from the
congregants in attendance. They were
excited about the Cohens’ visit.

“We found people we wanted to be
with and people who wanted to be with
us,” he said.

Cohen did not accept his offer with a
promise of replacing Shmidman down
the line. The head rabbi started at
LMS in 2008 and is still in his prime,
according to his new protégé. So, for
the younger rabbi, the job was a place
to start, learn and grow. And he is
doing all three so far.

Cohen said his job description is
“very long.” He is handling sermons
and teaching classes, including a fam-
ily learning course after Shabbat every
Saturday night. He is making himself
available for congregants’ life cycle
events and for their questions about
Jewish law. He’s also just trying to
meet and speak with as many people
as possible.

“There’s something exciting about
it,” the young rabbi said. “There’s a lot
of potential.”
Ezra and Tova Cohen have been
married for a little over a year and do
not yet have kids. She is still in nursing
school at Columbia University and
commuting to New York City once or
twice a week. The husband and wife
are young and figuring it out. And
outside of his job, they are not tied
or settled down. Cohen said they will
probably have a conversation about
their long-term future in 6-10 months.

But the young rabbi is already doing
what he wants to do. He grew up in an
Orthodox household and was always
committed to studying Talmud. Then
as a freshman at Brandeis University
in Massachusetts, he kept coming back
to psychology and Judaic studies as
possible majors.

“I said, ‘What is it about them?’ I
thought about it and realized they were
just a proxy for the two things I loved
most: the Torah and people,” Cohen
explained. “I want to engage and inter-
act with Torah in a serious way. I want
to engage and interact with people in a
serious way. I said, ‘I guess I want to be
a rabbi.’ And I never looked back.”
That was in 2015, and Cohen’s love
for both has only grown, he said.

“I think Torah is very deep and the
more you poke and prod, the deeper
you realize it is,” Cohen added. “And
I’m increasingly mesmerized by it.” JE
jsaffren@midatlanticmedia.com JEWISHEXPONENT.COM
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