TORONTO — Daniel Navy, 17, has combined his strong muscles with his kind heart in order to give people in need an emotional lift.
The son of Jewish Women International of Canada’s national office secretary Miriam Navy, Daniel offered his help after learning about a predicament that the organization had found itself in.
Penny Krowitz, JWI/C executive director, explained that at JWI/C, they know of a lot of people who could use furniture, and they also know a lot of people who have furniture to donate.
“The problem, however, is connecting these people. We need trucks, a warehouse and strong men. It is a huge undertaking, and it hurts me deeply when we can’t help.”
Their policy, she said, is to accept only brand-new furniture for ASTEH (Alternate Short-Term Emergency Housing), their apartment for abused women, which they co-sponsor with Jewish Family and Child. “The community has been very generous, but we have no storage or pickup ability.”
They chose to step aside from their policy, Krowitz said, when they learned that ASTEH’s television was not working. “We knew that a lot of people were upgrading their televisions, even though their old televisions were in good shape. Miriam sent out an e-mail to Toronto members, and within five minutes, she had 12 responses. We were overwhelmed.”
She said that one of the responses was from a former resident of the shelter who was prepared to give up her own TV because she knew how important television is to the residents.
“This is when Daniel offered to pick up a television and set it up in the ASTEH apartment. We then called Jewish Family and Child and asked them if they had clients who could use the 11 other televisions. We made the ‘shidduchs,’ and Miriam and Daniel offered to be the delivery people.”
Miriam Navy said that the whole process has been “a real eye-opener for Daniel. We drove downtown, and he saw people at the other end of the spectrum. A lot of people in the community live in a bubble. They don’t realize that not all Jews live in ideal circumstances.”
“We spoke to Daniel about the need for discretion and the importance of maintaining the people’s dignity, and he did his work quietly and [respectfully],” Navy said.
Krowitz said that the project “just happened. We hadn’t planned it, and it is not ongoing.
“It made our hearts feel good. The recipients were appreciative, and the social worker said it it was a mitzvah.”
