Piedmont Jewish Teens Volunteer on Sunday

Last summer, on Camp Tawonga’s Teen Service Learning trip, 17-year-old Dan Meade worked for a day in Berkeley’s Urban Adamah educational garden. Today (Sunday), he was back with a crew of teenage volunteers, all participating in J-Serve, the international day of Jewish youth community service.

Meade, a Piedmont High School student at Piedmont High, led the work at Urban Adamah. He was joined by another Piedmont student, Marissa Glick.

Meanwhile, Anna Shacker, a Piedmont seventh grader, served at the Sunrise of Oakland Hills senior residence, working in the garden with the residents,

“It’s a big part of my connection to Judaism,” Meade said in a press release, “because Judaism talks a lot about the importance of helping the needy, and food justice is one of America’s biggest needs today.” Last summer, Meade helped develop a unique system of above-ground planters in the garden, and he said that he’s excited to lead similar work today.

Meade, who is a longtime Tawonga camper, is also the treasurer for the Central Region West of BBYO, a Jewish teen youth group.

 Aaron Mandel, the assistant director of teen programs at Camp Tawonga, said that his organization is proud to bring teens to volunteer at Urban Adamah for J-Serve.

"Tawonga partnered with Urban Adamah on our Food & Farm Teen Service Learning trip last summer," Mandel said. "We share in Urban Adamah’s work of educating today’s teens about the intersections of Judaism, the environment and social justice."

Over 10,000 Jewish teens around the world volunteered in their communities as part of the eighth annual J-Serve.

J‑Serve 2012 is a collaboration of the BBYO Panim Institute and Repair the World, and is underwritten by the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation.