B’ham Bake Sale for Berry Family

The Birmingham Jewish community is responding to a tragedy in Houston’s Jewish community with a bake sale to benefit the surviving children of a couple that was killed in a car wreck on July 2.

Donna Askenazi and Jamie Stern are organizing the bake sale, which will take place at the Levite Jewish Community Center on Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to noon. Askenazi said Robin and Joshua Berry were “dear friends” who “lived life to the fullest and had everything going for them.”

They were returning from a family trip to Colorado when a car veered into their lane and hit them head-on in Fort Stockton. Their three children were injured in the wreck — Peter, 9; Aaron, 8; and Willa, 6. The older boys suffered spinal cord injuries and are currently paralyzed from the waist down. They were recently accepted to the Shriners Hospital in Chicago, which specializes in pediatric spinal cord rehabilitation.

Willa has a broken arm and ankle, and is now staying with relatives in Houston. Because she was alert when troopers first arrived, she was able to provide critical contact information on the scene.

There is now a Facebook page for the trust, where donations can be made. The Jewish Herald-Voice reported that a neighborhood bake sale where the Berrys lived raised $10,000 on July 13, a trunk show raised another $5,000, and on July 28 four congregations are holding a “Bowl for the Berrys” event.

Anyone wishing to contribute goods to the Sunday bake sale can bring them by the LJCC starting at 7:30 a.m., or drop them off at the Askenazi or Stern homes on Saturday. More information is available here.