The youth group of Temple Beth Miriam in Elberon will partner with the group from Shaari Emeth on a March 7 Midnight Run project. Dee Ross, second from left, back row, is the Beth Miriam youth group adviser.
Photo courtesy Dee Ross
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January 6, 2009
Concern for those less fortunate has inspired the youth groups from two Reform congregations to participate in a “Midnight Run” for New York City’s homeless.
On March 7, youth group members from Temple Shaari Emeth in Manalapan and Temple Beth Miriam in Elberon will pack a school bus full of food, clothing, blankets, and hygiene products for those who live on the streets of lower Manhattan.
The groups will depart from Shaari Emeth at 10 p.m. and will arrive in New York when the group Midnight Run delivers supplies to more than 100 people. The youth will spend several hours distributing the items, according to Brandon Jacobs, senior youth adviser at Shaari Emeth.
Midnight Run, based in Dobbs Ferry, NY, was founded in 1984. With the help of volunteers from churches and synagogues in the New York-New Jersey region, the organization conducts more than 900 relief missions each year.
The March 7 excursion will be Shaari Emeth’s fourth collaboration with Midnight Run, while the group from Beth Miriam is participating for the first time. Twelve members of each youth group will be involved in the distribution effort.
“I’ve heard about Midnight Run at our regional NFTY [National Federation of Temple Youth] meetings, and it was an event I’d always wanted to do,” said Dee Ross of Lincroft, youth adviser at Beth Miriam. “We have a strong youth group, and the board leaders really wanted to do it. Although it takes many months of planning, we decided to go for it.”
When they learned about Shaari Emeth’s involvement, the groups joined forces, she said. Both groups have begun collecting supplies for the March run; Shaari Emeth is concentrating on the acquisition of food donations, and Beth Miriam is collecting clothing and blankets.
“Getting these kids involved in social action and concern for others is the easiest thing in the world,” said Jacobs, a Manalapan resident. “By the time they become teenagers, they’re already very familiar with the concept. They understand how lucky they are and that it’s their responsibility to help people who live in difficult circumstances.”
Growing bonds
Each trip has been a learning experience for the youth group members, Jacobs said. While handing out food and clothing, the young people are encouraged to talk with the recipients, who often share their personal stories with the volunteers.
“That has been an eye-opening experience,” he said. “The kids have learned that many homeless people were once gainfully employed and had homes, families. But due to unemployment, illness, the death of a spouse or family members, and other circumstances that can become overwhelming, their lives took a drastic turn.”
During the drive back home, Jacobs encourages the young volunteers to discuss the experience.
“That’s when I learn the personal value of the interaction between the kids and the homeless people,” he said. “One of our kids said that a homeless man he talked with was one of the nicest people he’d ever met. And on our first trip, it was one of the coldest nights of the year. After all our supplies have been passed out, some kids removed their own hats and gloves and gave them away.”
And the bond between the youth group members and the homeless continues to grow, Jacobs added.
“Midnight Run teaches the kids to view the homeless as real people, and homeless men and women learn that there are adults and teens out there who care about them,” he said. “These kids have made a commitment that goes beyond their own lives.”
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