By Cindy Cutler
Chief Development Officer
Last week, I volunteered for our Sunday Lunch Program, which has been providing meals to people facing housing and food insecurity for more than 40 years. I had never attended before, and I was excited to participate in this beautiful Emanu-El initiative.
That particular Sunday was bitterly cold, and while waiting for the crosstown bus, I noticed a woman I recognized as an Emanu-El congregant. We exchanged smiles and began a lovely conversation. She shared that she is a Holocaust survivor who arrived in the United States at just seven years old. Now 90, she still finds ways to stay connected to the community. We became so engrossed in our conversation that I forgot about the cold—and the bus! Realizing we were running late, I offered to share a taxi to the temple.
Assuming she was also volunteering for the Sunday Lunch Program, I was surprised when she told me she was heading to a Men’s Club breakfast and a tour of the Herzl exhibit at the Bernard Museum. As we pulled up to the temple, we saw a stream of young families leaving after Tot Shabbat.
It was a striking juxtaposition—here I was with my new 90-year-old friend, walking into Emanu-El alongside young families participating in yet another temple program that same morning.
Downstairs in Wise Hall, I joined other volunteers in the kitchen. I was with a group of about 20 temple members preparing sandwiches and soup for local shelters. To my surprise, a group of 25 Young Members were also there, volunteering for the lunch program. The buzz of activity was incredible, with so many different demographics engaged in temple life.
After a fulfilling morning of mitzvah work, I left the building to see a line of New Yorkers facing food insecurity waiting for the lunches we had prepared. It was deeply moving to witness the immediate impact of our efforts. I felt full—not just from the mitzvah of feeding the hungry, but from the overwhelming sense that Temple Emanu-El is truly a thriving home, supporting us spiritually, educationally, and culturally.
And yet, the day didn’t end there. That evening, our Center for Interfaith Dialogue partnered with Holy Trinity Church to host a performance of Bach Vespers. It was a beautiful concert, made even more meaningful by the church’s pastor, who spoke about the important relationship between Judaism and the Lutheran church.
It was a fitting end to a day filled with new friendships, mitzvahs, and meaningful partnerships. At Temple Emanu-El, we are blessed with such a broad spectrum of opportunities to engage, grow, and connect.
