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Date: 11/13/2019
LONGMEADOW – Many programs serve aging communities, but for a subset of the Jewish aging community, a Longmeadow-based program is fulfilling a vital need.
For the past 20 years, Greater Springfield Senior Services (GSSSI) has offered a kosher Meals-on-Wheels program in collaboration with JGS Lifecare, an assisted living and rehabilitative care facility with a Jewish foundation, and the Springfield Jewish Community Center, known as “the J.” While Meals-on-Wheels is a federally funded program, it is administered at the local level by the GSSSI.
As with most Meals-on-Wheels programs, the GSSSI delivers a hot lunch to Springfield and Longmeadow seniors between three and five days each week, depending on the recipient. What makes the program different from other senior meal delivery programs is that all of the food is prepared kosher.
“Keeping kosher is a discipline, establishing limits on what we can and can’t eat. Keeping kosher is an elaborate ritual, that helps us sanctify the act of eating,” said Rabbi Devorah Jacobson, director of Spiritual Life at JGS Lifecare, which prepares the food for the delivery program.
“The original source for the laws and customs of keeping kosher is found in the Torah,” Jacobson said. “The tradition later expanded on these laws, teaching us specific ways that kosher animals need to [be] slaughtered and prepared for consumption and prohibiting the eating of milk and meat together, along with using separate meat and dairy pots, pans, utensils, plates, etc.”
At JGS Lifecare the meals are approved by Rev. David Aminia, who oversees the kitchen to make sure the food is prepared correctly.
The kitchen at JGS Lifecare also provides food for “Community Kosher Lunches” at the J. The meal is free to people age 60 and up, but the J suggests a $2 voluntary, confidential donation. Guests under 60 are welcome for a $3.75 fee.
Mary L. Jenewin-Caplin, director of the Area Agency on Aging at the GSSSI, said there are 30 Meals-on-Wheels participants and roughly 20 more individuals who take advantage of the kosher lunch program.
Jenewin-Caplin said that to qualify for the kosher Meals-on-Wheels program a person must be homebound or unable in some way to acquire ingredients or prepare their own meals. They must also “maintain, in their home, a kosher-style kitchen.”
“Food is medicine. We know that having a balanced meal is vital to fending off chronic disease,” said Jenewin-Caplin.
There is another benefit to the delivery of meals for seniors. Jenewin-Caplin explained the drivers get to know the participants and do wellness checks each time they deliver a meal. She said the driver may notice if a blouse is buttoned incorrectly or someone’s speech is off, signs that something could be wrong. Drivers are instructed to call the GSSSI office to have a case manager check on anyone they are concerned about.
The Community Kosher Lunches at the J are at noon on weekdays, excluding holidays and reservations are required. To make a reservation, call the GSSSI Nutrition Program at 781-2135 by 11:30 a.m. the day before.
To enroll in the kosher Meals-on-Wheels program, call GSSSI at 781-8800 to request an assessment.