April 22, 2024

 Dear Friends,

On the precipice of Passover, we haven’t far to look for commonalities between the Feast of Freedom and our response in the form of Hamilton Out of the Cold. Our obligation to remember that we were once vulnerable slaves in Egypt makes it incumbent on us now and forever to fight for those who struggle.

Knowing another person’s or community’s struggles may be the only way to bring about real social change. Human rights attorney, Bryan Stevenson, writes about the need to get proximate to those who are suffering. “We cannot change global injustice today if we isolate ourselves in places that are safe and removed and disconnected. To change the world, we're going to have to find ways to get close to the people who are living on the margins of society.” We can't solve problems or build bridges from a distance. Only when we are in relationship can we hear things we wouldn't otherwise hear, be exposed to ideas and context we wouldn't otherwise consider. As Stevenson says, “There is power when we get proximate. Only then can we have mercy and compassion.”

The Out of the Cold program enables us to do just that. Did you know that chatting with guests who are sorting through clothes from the trunk of your car can be bonding?  Me: Why do you need to replace socks? He: Because the rainstorm flooded the tent, completely drenching sleepmats, blankets, … everything.

Me: Can you stay with anyone? He: Used to stay with my sister but now, she stays with me.

Me: I’m sorry we ran out of meals; can we give you cans of tuna and chili? He: Yes, anything is good.  My meal was going to be ketchup.

Me: Where is your accent from?  She: I’m from Palestine. Me: It’s terrible what is happening in the Middle East. You must be worried for people you know there. She: Yes, it is terrible.  I have little food; they have less.  Me:  The Out of the Cold group hosting today’s meal is the Jewish Community and I am Jewish.  My prayers always end with the wish for peace.  She and Me: hug.

Some statistics: Ever grateful, 1,245 guests picked up 2,636 meals over 11 weeks. (Last year, 1,257 guests. I don’t know that much about Auston Matthews target of 70 goals in one season, but at 69, I know enough that he can’t be branded a loser, nor are WE!)   The huge difference lies in the cost.  Our food costs alone increased by $2,327.  Each Wednesday meal cost on average $790. Each curbside dinner cost $3.30, 71 cents more than last year.  Just imagine how much more it would be without the generous ‘donations in kind,’ from Lococos and Fortinos and the ‘to-the-ends-of-the-earth’ shopping trips to source discounted or free food!!

More importantly, we must look beyond the statistics because, at HOOTC, we are focused on PEOPLE, the ‘us’, the ‘them’, the ‘collective.’   Rabbi Shai Held writes, “As Jews, we have moral obligations which are incumbent upon us because of the simple fact that we are human beings. In its recurrent appeals to memory, the Torah seeks to amplify and intensify those obligations, to remind us, even when it is difficult to hear, that the fate of the stranger is our responsibility. This mandate may seem overwhelming at times, and its concrete implications may sometimes be difficult to discern. But loving the stranger is fundamental and lies at the heart of Torah…we have no choice but to wrestle with these words and to seek to grow in empathy and compassion.”

There is no better place to grow in empathy and compassion than in the OOTC kitchen and halls with volunteers who bring energy, humour, wisdom, creativity and flavour from their own life experiences. Ask any coordinator (aka task master hiding whip) how thousands of bags of sustenance get to people in need, and all will look to YOU.  Commitment to caring is everything. Although, HOOTC is finished for the season, your purpose doesn’t end. As Rabbi Sharon Brous writes in The Amen Effect, “The answers are found in the service. Practice asking yourself at the start of each day, how can I be of service today? What can I do today to help another person? Just the questions will awaken you to the many daily opportunities we all have to do something small, even seemingly insignificant, for another person. When we habituate to seizing those small moments, we may discover that without even meaning to, we've landed on our purpose.”

May you and your families experience the upcoming seasons in good health and may we all be together again soon. Chag Pesach Sameach.

Cindy