Blog

RESOURCES:

Help getting groceries or medicines:

Patricia Harris at Jewish Family Services, 314-513-1678

Many local grocers, hardware stores, and pharmacies offer curb-side pick-up and home delivery programs. Check local stores' websites for more info on their programs.

Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry (HKJFP):

314-993-1000, www.jfcs-stl.org

Drive-thru, Monday - Friday, 9:00 am - 2:00 pm, no appointment necessary

HKJFP provides up to ten days of food per person/per family/per month.

Financial assistance and interest-free loans:

Patricia Harris at Jewish Family Services, 314-513-1678

Help for seniors:

Lori Zimmerman at ElderLink, 314-812-9300

Questions for medical professionals about COVID-19:

Missouri Health Department Hotline, 877-435-8411

Center for Disease Control COVID-19 website:

Info on how to protect yourself and what to do if you fall ill, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus

St. Louis County COVID-19 updates:

Local info, resources, orders, statistics, and ongoing updates, www.stlcorona.com

Spiritual support:

Rabbi Amy & Rabbi Michael,

afeder@ti-stl.org malper@ti-stl.org

Gift Card Assistance to Purchase Staple Items

Temple Israel has gift cards available for TI members in need to purchase immediate and necessary staple items during this difficult time. These gift cards are no cost to whomever may need them, and are paid for through generous gifts from our Scrip Program subscribers, the Rabbis’ Discretionary Fund, and Jewish Federation of St. Louis’s Chesed Fund. Gift card recipients will remain anonymous.

If you are in need of gift card support, please reach out to Rabbi Amy at afeder@ti-stl.org.

Free Kosher Food Boxes Available Weekly

Farms to Families St. Louis and KidsFirst are offering free food boxes each week. Boxes can be picked up at Torah Prep School (8659 Olive Blvd, University City) on Friday mornings between 10:00 am - 11:00 am. Food availability varies by week, but generally there are produce boxes, dairy boxes, Kosher milk, and Kosher kids' meal boxes. Contact farm2famstl@gmail.com to get more information or to get the link to the weekly sign-up form.

WAYS TO HELP:

Card Writing Volunteers Needed:

The Membership Engagement Committee seeks volunteers to write cards and call fellow congregants! This flexible volunteer opportunity allows you to set your own schedule and help out without having to leave home! Contact Amy Lampert, Membership Committee Chair, at alampert@aol.com or Lisa Hirshberg, Membership Manager, at lhirshberg@ti-stl.org for more information or to sign up to help.

Volunteers and donations needed at Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry:

For more information about volunteering, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator, Jeremy Goldberg, at 314-513-1679 or jgoldberg@jfsstl.org.

Donations can be dropped off between the hours of 9:00 am and 2:00 pm, Monday through Friday, at 10601 Baur Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63132. They are especially in need of:

• shelf-stable, protein-rich foods
• canned tuna
• canned chicken
• chili
• soup
• incontinence products
• toilet paper
• personal-sized hand sanitizer
• laundry detergent

COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Program: An Opportunity to Help

Mercy and Mercy Research, which is led by Mercy Vice President and TI Member JoAnne Levy, are participating in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's programs allowing use of plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients to treat hospitalized COVID-19 patients with or at risk of severe/life-threatening illness.

Although there have been promising results to date, convalescent plasma has not yet been clinically proven to be effective in treating COVID-19. Clinical trials studying convalescent plasma and other possible COVID treatments are underway at research centers across the country, including through Mercy Research.

Plasma donors must have had a positive COVID-19 molecular test result, be 28 days symptom-free, or be at least 14 days symptom-free and have a negative molecular test for COVID-19. Plasma from one donor can be used to treat up to three COVID patients.

Mercy Research is actively contacting patients who tested positive for COVID at Mercy facilities and who may be qualified plasma donors. If non-Mercy patients are interested in donating convalescent plasma, they may contact Mercy Research at mercyresearchinfo@mercy.net. 

Mercy’s Blood Donor Center, located on Mercy’s Ballas/Conway Road hospital campus, is accepting plasma donations. The American Red Cross and Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center are also area blood collection centers collecting convalescent plasma.

Click here for additional information on Mercy's convalescent plasma program.

Save a Life: Give Blood

The American Red Cross is in great need of blood. Make an appointment to donate safely: www.redcross.org