Our annual Mitzvah Day in March is a fulfilling day of learning and hands-on activities to repair our world. Feel the energy and connection of our entire Temple community—religious school students, teens, and adults—as we make a difference in the lives of others and protect our planet. Together, we build a world of loving-kindness—one mitzvah at a time.
In the summer, the Social Action Team partners with our Women’s Connection for a Mini Mitzvah Day. With nearly a dozen projects and more than 60 volunteers of all ages, it’s not so mini any more!
The Social Action Team has ongoing partnerships with many nonprofits which enable our Temple family to make a significant impact.
New York Blood Center
RTFH hosts an annual blood drive in partnership with the NY Blood Center. We welcome each donor and appreciate their life-saving gift.
Feeding the Hungry – Corona Seventh Day Adventist Church
Our religious school students and teens learn about the Jewish responsibility to feed those in need and the struggles of the food insecure. From our youngest students, with the help of adult volunteers, to our teens, our Temple family makes sandwiches and packs hundreds of nutritious meals which are delivered to Corona Seventh Day Adventist’s soup kitchen.
Bringing Comfort to Patients at NY Presbyterian and Elmhurst Hospitals
Our Temple family offers gifts of physical and emotional comfort to hospitalized patients. We do crafts as well as sew and stuff bears for infants and hearts for cardiac patients. Our knitters and crocheters also make booties, mittens, and hats for hospitalized infants and children.
Supporting Financially Insecure College Students – LaGuardia CARES
Our religious school students and “Better Together” participants—6th graders and Seniors—assemble care packages and fill backpacks to support financially insecure LaGuardia Community College students.
Helping Girls Worldwide – Days for Girls
We partner annually with Days for Girls to provide sustainable sanitary supplies to girls around the world who would otherwise have to miss a week of school and/or work. With the current influx of immigrants to New York City, the organization and our Temple family pivoted to provide sanitary hygiene bags to newly arrived girls and women.
Welcoming Immigrants and Refugees at PS112Q – Variety Boys and Girls Club
Our 5th graders learn from our partners at the Variety Boys and Girls Club at PS112Q about the struggles faced by immigrant schoolchildren. Turning their learning into action, our students design “Welcome” cards and pack ready-made snacks and toiletries for the children and their families. Teens and adults also have the chance to assemble hygiene kits and make cards welcoming the new arrivals to the city.
Supporting our Troops – Eagles Up! Nativity
Volunteers handwrite many cards of gratitude for our military service personnel supported by Eagles Up! Nativity.
Standing Up to Hate – Center for Anti-Violence Education
Our 7th graders learn how to unleash their superpowers to be upstanders, not bystanders, in the face of hate. Facilitators from the Center for Anti-Violence Education teach our students specific actions they can take when they witness an act of intolerance and how to support those being discriminated against or bullied.
Visiting the Elderly at Forest View and Atria
Our junior choir and a Temple member’s violin students bring music and smiles to the elderly at Forest View and Atria. What’s more, they come bearing gift bags assembled by our religious school students.
Saving the Planet
Protecting the Earth – Kids Fight Climate Change
Our 4th grade students learn about the Jewish value of caring for our planet and put it into action with the help of the youth-led organization, Kids Fight Climate Change. Our students learn ways to fight climate change and become activists, making posters to inspire others to protect our environment.
Keeping Athletic Footwear Out of Landfills
Following the success of our GotSneakers fundraiser, we’re collecting sneakers, hiking shoes, and cleats at specific times throughout the year! Athletic footwear of ALL SIZES in any condition—old, gently worn, or new—can be dropped off in our upper lobby at designated collection times. Declutter your closets, help the earth… and RTFH!
Any questions, please see these FAQs or contact Scott Sheidlower at .
Helping Children and the Earth – Second Chance Toys
We partner annually with Second Chance Toys to collect gently used children’s toys, electronics, and children’s books to keep them out of landfills and give them to children in need. You can also recycle gently used and broken toys year-round.
Second Chance Toys collects gently used toys during Earth Week and the winter holidays. See here for local drop-off locations.
You can recycle broken, damaged, or incomplete toys (plastic, plush, and electronic) year-round through a partnership of Second Chance Toys and TerraCycle. Request a shipping label, pack up your donations, and ship via UPS directly to the recycling facility.