“Quite a few families from the Temple are doing Mitzvah Day projects today,” Keith Lehman said.

He and John Hayes were rolling out dough in the kitchen of On The Rise (OTR) at 341 Broadway in Cambridge on May 23. At a nearby table John Maurer unwrapped pepperoni and joined the pizza assembly line. The three men and their four school-age kids—all from Temple Isaiah in Lexington—were preparing food for the 25-30 women who would come to OTR for free meals the next day. Robin Fishkind, another parent from the Temple volunteer group, was out working in the garden.

On The Rise, Inc. is a non-profit day program that assists women in Cambridge-Somerville and Greater Boston who are homeless or in crisis. Meals offered here are prepared by volunteers or donated by local individuals and businesses.

Photo, top: Spencer with finished pizzas. Volunteers in background are (l to r) Serena, John Maurer, and Yitzhak. At right is Marisa Serrano, OTR's Community Relations Manager.
Below, slides: (1)John Hayes rolls pizza dough   (2) Pizza chefs Serena, Yitzhak, John Maurer, Jessica   (3) Robin Fishkind works on the garden   (4) John Maurer and Keith Lehman do some heavy lifting   (5) Keith Lehman--more heavy lifting

Serena and Jessica layered tomato sauce and cheese onto the pizza. Yitzhak, a cooking show aficionado, chopped vegetables with professional finesse. Spencer was an experienced dough handler; he took over a rolling pin while John Hayes unpacked supplies for meatloaf.

“How much pepperoni do we put on?” Serena asked.

“That’s a judgment call,” John Maurer replied.

Serena laid on cheese with a generous hand. “I love mozzarella,” she said.

A half-hour later Jessica and Spencer were wrapping the first of the finished pizzas for the freezer. By noon there would be a dozen.

With the cooking nearly done, some of the volunteers went upstairs to move some heavy panels down to the basement. Two students went off to organize a closet; others finished up in the kitchen. A collapsed pizza was cut up and baked as calzone for hungry workers.

Meanwhile, Keith Lehman’s wife Robin Fishkind had finished a yard clean-up and was transplanting marigolds and ivy. Lehman came out to help her move the massive clay planters to the front garden.

“Let’s get these marigolds into the sun,” Fishkind said.

The connecting link between On The Rise and the Temple Isaiah volunteer group is Anne Meyer, a member of the OTR Board of Directors since 2007. She is an attorney and a partner in the real estate department at Goulston & Storrs in Boston. She has had a long involvement in philanthropic activities through her work and through Temple Isaiah and the Jewish Women’s Archive.

Meyer says, “I like to connect people and organizations with similar interests and missions. Since Temple Isaiah and OTR both have such strong commitments to social justice, it seemed like a natural fit that members of the Temple should volunteer at OTR on Mitzvah Day.”   She explains that "Mitzvah is a Hebrew word often translated as a 'good deed,' but its more precise meaning is 'commandment' – something one is obligated to do. On Mitzvah Day, we have a special opportunity to fulfill our obligation to improve the world.”

Mitzvah Day at On The Rise had opened with a film and introduction by Marisa Serrano, Community Relations Manager and organizer of the morning’s activities. About half the women who seek help at OTR sleep at local shelters, she told the volunteers. Those lucky enough to get into housing often end up taking in homeless friends who are “couch surfing.”

OTR offers basic day-to-day assistance during the week—a meal, a phone, a shower. It also provides help with complex issues such as domestic violence, mental and physical health challenges, trauma, legal problems, joblessness, and addiction. As they sit in the kitchen eating Temple Isaiah's pizza, the women who come in for emergency aid will get acquainted with each other and with OTR staff, social workers, and resources. Backed by this ongoing community, many will travel the long road to recovery and independence.

“Nobody is beyond help—that’s our operating principle,” Serrano said. “We take them as they are and go from there.”