Handmaker Blog

As a Jewish organization, Handmaker’s mission has always included serving older adults, guided by the values of tikkun olam (repairing the world), tzedakah (just and charitable deads) and chesed (loving kindess). In that spirit, Handmaker recently began a partnership with Chabad of Tucson and Mobile Meals of Southern Arizona to provide affordable Kosher Meals to those in need in our Community.

Handmaker Jewish Services for the Aging has a long history in Tucson, caring for the elderly in our community since its founding in 1963. So, when the community heard that the Handmaker board was considering selling Handmaker, the rumors began to spread. Most often heard were that Handmaker was changing its name, and that Handmaker would no longer be a Kosher facility. Thankfully, these were just rumors.

“I am not doing this just for me, but for the benefit of the whole world”, one of our Handmaker residents commented just before he received his second dose of the Moderna vaccine last Thursday, February 4th. He was one of over 96% of our residents and 87% of our staff members who have received at least one dose of the vaccine, administered at one of the vaccine clinics held at Handmaker by Walgreens. Each resident and staff member was also doing their part to protect themselves, protect those around them and to benefit the world.

My name is Debi Lewis and I am a fifth year Rabbinical Student at the Academy of Jewish Religion in Los Angeles California and I had the privilege of spending this past High Holiday season at Handmaker in Tucson Arizona. I wanted to share a little bit of this experience with you; the people for whom Handmaker is a meaningful and important Jewish Community.

We are in the Hebrew month of Elul, the last month of the Hebrew Year. During the month of Elul we begin to prepare for the coming Jewish High Holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Preparation for the Holidays takes many forms. Of particular importance and meaning is the spiritual preparation.

“Handmaker reminds me of when I used to go up to the Poconos with my family and stayed at a Jewish resort when I was younger! There was always something to do, something going on, and plenty of good food.” That was the response that I got from Chic last week when I asked how his stay at Handmaker was going.

“Hello Gorgeous” That’s the sign on the door that welcomes you into the Beauty Salon at Handmaker. When the door opens, and the sounds of Jazz music and the smells of hair spray waft down the hall, you know that Bethany is in, and the Handmaker Beauty Salon is open for business.

When dessert was served at our Shavuot Festival meal this year, there were a few murmurs of “where's the cheesecake?” Our amazingly creative Executive Chef at Handmaker tried to do something somewhat untraditional. She served Fig Jam Palmiers (also known as Elephant Ears), with cheesecake filling instead of cheesecake. (see photo above) After a few initial murmurs of discontent, the residents and guests tried this delicious looking dessert. The vast majority gave nods and sounds of approval. Some others… well, cheesecake is pretty hard to compete with. And, after all, it is very traditional to eat cheesecake on Shavuot. They were kind of expecting it.

How do you summarize 70 plus years into a few pages of a book? It is not necessarily an easy feat, but it can make for an interesting experience. This is what eleven High School students accomplished after meeting with their Handmaker resident partner for the last six months, as part of the Tracing Roots Inter-generational program, a partnership between Tucson Hebrew High and Handmaker, and sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona.

In late January we had a group of 5th grade students from Congregation Or Chadash visit Handmaker to learn about Handmaker and our residents as part of their religious school program. I had come by their religious school class the month before to tell them about Handmaker and what to expect on their upcoming visit. When they arrived at Handmaker, we took a tour of the building. They saw the rehab areas, skilled nursing, the Great Room and more. They were curious and asked many questions.

As told to me by Gertrude Shankman, Handmaker resident for nearly 12 years, currently aged 104. I have taken some editorial liberties, though… Every Saturday morning we have Shabbat morning services at Handmaker for all who wish to attend. One of our service leaders, Dan Asia, has been mentoring an 11-year-old boy named Jonah, who has been coming to Shabbat morning services at Handmaker since he was a toddler

Developing and maintaining friendships is critical throughout our lives. Many of us remember our first best friends, someone who we played with on the playground in grade school, sat next to at lunch, explored the deserts or woods with, and maybe got into a little trouble with... Something special also happens when residents move into a senior living community. This is another point in time, a change in life, when there is a great opportunity to develop new friendships.

The winter holiday season is always an interesting time for the Jewish people in the Diaspora. Christmas seems to be everywhere, and since we do not celebrate it, we sometimes feel a little left out. The solution seems to be, here in America, to make Hanukkah a big deal. And we certainly try to make it a big deal for residents at Handmaker, and include everyone in the celebrations.

“Dancing, at my age?” That was the reaction of one 92-year-old Handmaker resident when I told her about a dance class that we were planning at Handmaker. She was not the only skeptical one. But twelve 80-96-year-old residents showed up last month to the dance class, and by the looks on their faces, they all had a blast! It was a chair dance class, but many could not help but get up and move, with the help of Dance Instructor Billbob.

We are just about to complete the Jewish month of Tishrei, a month that begins with Rosh Hashanah; the Jewish New Year; followed by Yom Kippur; the day of atonement; and then Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah in rapid succession. We celebrate, reflect, and then celebrate some more. It is a joyous time, but a busy time. Needless to say, things can get a little hectic this time of year in the Jewish Community.

You might think that the time of life between Primary School and College or Graduate School is the peak time for learning. It’s a time when your brain is like a sponge, you have an abundance of energy, and generally fewer responsibilities than you will as an adult. Well, I believe that there is second peak period in your life for learning. For those who are fortunate enough to be in relatively good physical and mental health in their later years, that period of their lives can also be filled with learning. Knowing this, we provide an abundance of opportunities for learning at Handmaker.

Anyone over the age of 50 years has likely read a self-help book in the interest of self-improvement. Brian Litwak, one of our Handmaker residents, spent years studying these, but found that they were of little help to him. One year, while on vacation, he stumbled upon the author Joseph Campbell. He heard Campbell being interviewed by Bill Moyers on PBS Television, and was struck by what Campbell was saying.

Every Friday evening at Handmaker, we bring in the light of Shabbat, the Jewish Sabbath. We have a short service at 4:30pm in our Great Room, followed by a beautiful Shabbat meal at a long community table with challah bread from Nadine’s bakery, sweet Manischewitz wine, and Matzah Ball soup.

One of the most valuable resources that a person can give of is their time. We are so fortunate to have more than 40 volunteers who give their time every week at Handmaker, each helping to fulfill Handmaker’s mission of of Tikkun Olam (repairing the world), Tzedakah (just and charitable deeds) and Chesed (loving kindness).

Every year at the Passover Seder we tell the story of Passover. This is one of the highlights of most Seder meals. One of the reasons that we tell the story at the Seder is for our children who attend the Seder meals. This tradition of telling the Passover story at the Seders ensures that this story will be passed along from generation to generation.