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July 16, 1999/3 Av 5759, Vol. 51, No.41
Unaffiliated elderly often unserved
CHRIS GARIFO
Staff Writer
While the needs of the Valley's affiliated Jewish elderly are generally being met, the unaffiliated are increasingly falling through the cracks, Jewish leaders admit.
Agencies such as Jewish Family and Children's Service and Kivel Campus of Care and the Valley's synagogues do provide a variety of services to the elderly, but they can only do so when they know who needs those services and which services are needed.
"In many cases, we don't know who they are or where they are," said Rabbi Kenneth I. Segel of Temple Beth Israel in Scottsdale. "The fact is, they're there; I know they exist, but we don't know who and where."
Segel said the issue of service to the elderly is "a very critical area, a very sensitive area. And unfortunately much, much more needs to be done."
Taking care of the elderly is one of the cornerstones of Jewish faith, said Rabbi David Rebibo of Beth Joseph Congregation in Phoenix.
"It's one of the cardinal commandments," Rebibo said. "It's one of the obligations of the overall concept of continuity."
A small congregation such as Beth Joseph, with only about 140 families, often has less difficulty than the larger congregations meeting the needs of its elderly, Rebibo said. Also, he suggested, being an Orthodox congregation, the members generally come to services more often than they might in a Reform or Conservative congregation.
"Because of (the congregation's) size and orientation ... members are closer to each other and more conscious of each other, and needs are recognized immediately and addressed instantly," Rebibo said. "Let's say we had a congregation of 700, 800 or a thousand members. Now, when you have those members, it's very difficult to achieve intimacy or closeness so that members know what's going on with each other."
Also, because of the congregation's small size, there's little need of formal programs to assist the elderly. If the members know that an elderly Jewish person, whether affiliated or not, needs help, the members will provide that help, be it in the form of providing transportation to Shabbat services or in seeing that the person has food, shelter or social contact with others, he said.
"We certainly have a number of elderly in our congregation," Rebibo said. "(Are their needs) being addressed? Sure, because it is a commandment, by all the individual members. The elderly are recognized ... on an individual basis by being totally integrated as part and parcel of the system."
Despite a number of local programs that include services for the elderly, Segel admitted, "I wish I could tell you we're doing a terrific job with this at this point, (but) we're not."
Segel said that because of Temple Beth Israel's large size, the congregation doesn't always hear about the needs of a specific elderly person, whether that person is affiliated or not. But the problem goes beyond mere size.
"The second issue is, once you know (an elderly person needs help), getting volunteers to do these kinds of things is not easy," Segel said. " We're not living in an age of volunteerism."
One way Beth Israel hopes to eventually better serve the needs of the Valley's Jewish elderly is by building an activity center solely for Jewish elderly on the congregation's Scottsdale campus. The plans are to build the facility without using the congregation's general funds or public funds, only donations specifically earmarked for this center. About one-third of the approximately $3.5 million in construction costs has been raised, Segel said.
Segel said it's important that elderly people become affiliated to have their needs met, since they are part of a population that is growing fast within a society obsessed with youth.
"Who (is speaking up) for the senior citizens?" Segel asked, also wondering aloud, "How are we going to make the synagogue relevant to them?"
Segel's message to the unaffiliated elderly is: "The synagogues are concerned about your spiritual needs, about your needs as Jewish people, and we would ask you to come home. And we would meet you halfway, meaning with respect, maintaining your dignity. But you have to express some interest. ... We can't find you if you're hidden, and we can't serve you if you're hidden."
The elderly, though, can be fiercely independent, said Irma Kotler, a spokeswoman for the Kivel Campus of Care in Phoenix, and many resist seeking help, even to the point at which their health might be endangered.
Oftentimes, the cost of synagogue membership is an issue, Kotler said.
"Many are living on such a limited income that they can't afford to pay; they watch every dollar that they have," she said.
While unwilling to say the needs of the Valley's Jewish elderly are being adequately met, Ellie Schwartzberg, director of Geriatric Services for Jewish Family and Children's Service, said, "If people call us, then we help to get them the appropriate resources."
She said that it can be difficult finding transportation or in-home help for many of the elderly, and the synagogues are already doing all they can to help the affiliated elderly members of their congregations.
She admitted, however, that she has no way of really know-ing just how many poor Jewish elderly might be going unserved.
"We help the people who call us," she said. " I don't know how many people are out there who aren't calling us."
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