MONTREAL -- The volunteer-based organization MADA is asking community members to donate to 'Shabbat to Share,' a program that ensures isolated individuals get some human contact and a kosher meal.
Tanya Toledano is one such volunteer, who visits often elderly isolated people weekly to hand out meals.
"This communication between people, this human contact, it brings light into people's lives and it brings them some joy and happiness even if it's just brief," said Toledano. "It brings them something and breaks up the monotony."
Samuel Gewurz has been delivering MADA food boxes for four years and knows social isolation is a big problem for seniors.
"There's nothing worse than being abandoned when you come to your senior age, no matter what you've done in your lifetime," he said.
MADA prepares and delivers 650 food boxes every week, but is only able to serve about a third of those in need. Thus, the organization started a 'refer a friend' campaign to encourage donors to contact others in order to raise more funds.
"We need to love and care for each other," said Rabbi Chaim Shlomo Cohen. "Otherwise it's not a community, it's a lot of isolated people. So how do you become a community? When you express your love. And how do you express? By giving, by caring, by sharing, volunteering. You donate, you deliver, you have contact, you feel equal to the other person."
