Handmaker residents are grateful for the chesed (loving kindness) that they receive from the Tucson community. And lately, they have received a lot!
For the last year, the Congregation Bet Shalom Chesed Group of volunteers, led by David Wien, have been joining Handmaker residents monthly for a “virtual tea party”. The group of participating residents are served tea and muffins as their iPads are set up in their rooms for a Zoom meeting with this group of warm and kind members of the community. David makes sure that everyone is welcomed, introducing residents who may be new to the group each month. He engages the group in discussions through thought-provoking questions on various topics, making sure to include everyone. He has shown fun videos during a few of the meetings, and all of the participants have enjoyed the virtual connections that they have made. As COVID restrictions and worries ease, the group is planning to connect in-person at Handmaker in the coming months, a gathering which they hope will include some piano playing by David.
Handmaker received more chesed during the community-wide MLK Day of Chesed event on January 16. A group of volunteers, including David, came by to organize Handmaker’s two Assisted Living Libraries. Handmaker has a large collection of books, many of which have been donated. Since residents make good use of these libraries, they do need some periodic upkeep. It was wonderful to have a group come in to reshelve and reorganize books to make them even more accessible and more inviting to residents. As part of this day of Chesed, Handmaker was also able to receive some new plants. They have been planted in flower beds in the Kendis Intergenerational Garden Courtyard.
Rabbi Shemtov from Chabad Tucson spread his chesed at SandRuby Community programs earlier this month at a Jewish Story Hour for Adults, talking about the holiday of Tu B’Shevat. This was the first of many such monthly programs, and anyone from the community is welcome to join Rabbi Shemtov at SandRuby at 5101 E Farness Drive on the first Monday afternoon of each month at 1:30 for stories, conversation, and snacks. The next program will be March 6 in celebration of the Festival of Purim. RSVP to Jennifer Edwards at 520-547-6038.
SandRuby is a member of the Handmaker family of services. It is supported by the SandRuby Community Fund, and funded by Arizona Charitable Tax Credits. For more information, or to make a charitable donation, go to www.sandrubycp.org.
