Social Action

Lo Ta'amod al Dam Rei'echa, Do Not Stand Idle

Social Action is an integral part of the Beth El community. We frequently hold Social Action events and encourage the entire membership to get involved in helping our surrounding community in need.

Gemilut hassadim, acts of loving kindness, and tikkun olam, repairing the world, are both fundamental to Judaism and its mandates for social action. The Torah tells us to feed the hungry, relieve suffering, promote justice, and respond to the needs of our fellow human beings in as many ways as we can.

Our Social Action Committee’s current main focus is Hunger/Nutrition and Child Poverty. We support various organizations and programs concerned with relief efforts in these fields.  Click here to make sure you are up-to-date on all current and forthcoming events and issues by joining the Social Action Google Group.  After joining, you can configure the settings to your particular preferences.  Many projects are supported through the generous donations given to our Mitzvah Fund. Beth El is also a member of Durham Congregations in Action (DCIA), the Interfaith Council of Chapel Hill (IFC), and the HIAS Welcome Campaign.

Purpose

1. Beth El’s Social Action Committee organizes and sponsors a variety of social action projects such as food and blood drives, days of service and fundraisers.
2. Our goal is to cultivate a culture of social action and community engagement at Beth El through the planning and promotion of opportunities for volunteering, donating and becoming educated about issues impacting the community-at-large.
3. The Committee also serves as a central information point for individual and group volunteer opportunities, and a resource of collected information on social action engagement.
4. Social Action partners and collaborates with Jewish and interfaith organizations.

Beth El’s Social Action Committee has identified addressing food insecurity as one of its top priorities. There are many opportunities that enable volunteers to provide assistance on their schedules whether it’s once a month or once every few months. Our participation is so meaningful to both the recipients of food assistance and to the broader community as we partner with others to respond to this need. 

Meals on Wheels Durham and Meals on Wheels Orange County, NC, have daily volunteer opportunities to pack and load food or to make deliveries to older adults who do not have access to, or the ability to prepare, healthy meals.

To volunteer in Durham, visit https://www.mowdurham.org/volunteer or in Orange County, visit https://www.mowocnc.org/current-volunteer-opportunities

PORCH runs neighborhood food drives once a month. Residents place food donations on their front porches. A volunteer collects the donations and transports them to a central location where they are sorted, packed and delivered to families, pantries and schools. For volunteer information, visit https://porchcommunities.org/durham/get-involved for Durham County or https://chapelhill.porchcommunities.org for Chapel Hill/Carrboro.

If you have any questions or are looking for ways to get involved, please contact our Social Action Committee Chair Pilar Rocha-Goldberg.