AVODAH celebrates New Orleans site launch
Written by David Eber
AVODAH Corps Member, 2008-09
AVODAH is alive and kicking in New Orleans! Just to make it official though we had an AVODAH Launch party.
We held it on October 19th on a wonderfully sunny Sunday afternoon. Guests were in from all over the country, including a contingent from New York. Most, however, were New Orleanians. We had rabbis, neighbors, doctors, community organizers, city council members, children, senior citizens, Whites, Blacks, Jews and Gentiles. It was a true reflection of what is truly great about America. Sorry, its election day as I write this, so I am feeling Patriotic!
The posts of our Sukkah were made from the trunks of small oak trees, which Jerome brought from rural Mississippi. We all helped decorate the walls with posters about our personal journies and the work were doing here in New Orleans.
The event was held in our backyard here at the Pink House on Jefferson Ave, in our beautiful Sukkah built by our dear friend Jerome. As people came in, Tommy Fanctan’s Crescent City Serenaders Jazz quartet played on the back deck while everyone shmoozed below and noshed on lox and bagels.
We began the event with the chair of our Advisory Council and the MC of the Launch, Carole Neff. AVODAH New Orleans Program Director Joshua Lichtman spoke next, and during his speech he invited the Corps members ‘on stage’ where they proceed to stand and smile awkwardly to resounding applause! The following speech was given by Rabbi David Rosenn, AVODAH’s Executive Director. Rabbi Rosenn gave a magnificent speech about the greater meaning of Sukkot, and spoke about the significance of launching a Jewish Service Corps program on a holiday with so many social justice themes.
The next speaker was our very own Jenna Pollock, who works at the Tulane Community Health Center at Covenant House. She was the only AVODAH Corps member to speak, so the pressure was on, and she delivered. She spoke about the centrality of community to everything that we do: our home’s intentional community, new work communities, new social communities, and even New Orleans as one large intentional community following Katrina. Jenna also spoke about how these communities are coming together and intersecting to make New Orleans a brighter place in the near future. Jenna’s speech was so good in fact, that it inspired an out of town musician to donate two hundred dollars - everything in his wallet - on the spot!!
Charles Allen, III and Pamela Dashiell, both of the Lower 9th Ward Center for Sustainable Engagement and Development
Another speech was given by Charles Allen III and Pamela Dashiell of the Lower 9th Ward Center for Sustainable Engagement and Development. Charles is a powerful speaker, and he has a true presence when speaking. He talked about the unfortunate remarks of Rudy Guliani and Sarah Palin as they mocked the work of community organizers at the Republican National Convention. Charles noted that it was community organizers who people rely upon when government fails them, and as a New Orleanian, and a resident of the 9th Ward he knew how government did and continues to fail. Pam spoke about how the city, and particularly the Lower 9, had benefited from the work of volunteers and how they were so excited that AVODAH (particularly one of us!) had come to help for a year.
The final two speeches were given by Michael Wasserman who is the president of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans, and a representative of city council woman Jackie Clarkson, who presented a certificate in honor of AVODAH and of the launch.
After the event and all of the kibbitzing was over and everyone had trickled home we had an opportunity to sit and speak more with Advisory Council members Carole Neff and Barbara Gervis Lubran. It was a great opportunity to make their acquaintance and hopefully we will have a chance to spend time again with them soon.
It is now November 4th, Election Day, and the sukkah is still standing in the backyard. The schach is still on the roof, the tapestry’s are still hanging, and the pumpkins are still decoratively placed on the table. The only thing that is missing is the community. We have all gone back to work in our separate communities. Hopefully AVODAH’s intentional community will remind everyone of how connected we are and how, even though we work at different jobs and are from different communities, we can come together for New Orleans and for each other.
Back: Ora Nitkin-Kaner, Meredith Grabek, Jenna Pollock, Rebecca Waxman, Yaeli Bronstein Front: Rachel Lee, David Eber, Ariana Kolins, Eliza Baron
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David Nitkin said:
Well done, Avodah-niks. We take pride as parents in seeing what Ora and the rest of you are doing in the area of tikkun olam. To all, Kol hakavod.