Jewish and Muslim Day of Community Service planned

On Dec. 25, the Islamic Foundation of Greater St. Louis and the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) and its Milford and Lee Bohm Social Justice Center are sponsoring the fourth annual St. Louis area-wide “Jewish and Muslim Day of Community Service.” 

The two religious communities are working together again to organize and participate in a large scale Christmas Day of Service project. Twenty-two agencies have been identified in the St. Louis area as sites that will host needed volunteers on Christmas. This year’s program will have some new projects, Jewish and Muslim co-site captains at most of the larger sites and a new location for the welcome bagel breakfast.

The event will kick off at 9 a.m. with a community breakfast at the Daar Ul Islam Mosque, 517 Weidman Road. After a social action blessing and celebration of the event’s purpose and meaning (guests may also tour the mosque), participants will head to the various community service sites, where Jewish and Muslim participants will volunteer together. Registration is required by Dec. 14. To RSVP or for more information (including a list of supporting organizations to date), visit http://bit.ly/jewish-muslim or contact Gail Wechsler at JCRC: 314-442-3894.

The day of service includes a toiletry donation drive with six drop-off sites: Central Reform Congregation, Shaare Emeth, Daar Ul Islam Mosque, Temple Emanuel, Temple Israel and United Hebrew. View a list of toiletry items needed at jcrcstl.org/bohm.php. Monetary donations to support this event also are welcomed to JCRC, 12 Millstone Campus Drive, Saint Louis, Mo. 63146.

Tony Mughal, Jerry Hochsztein, Sophie Malik and Karen Silverman are this year’s event chairs.