AVODAH New Orleans to honor Silvermans as Partners in Justice

When AVODAH: The Jewish Service Corps set up a branch in New Orleans, the New Orleans Women’s Shelter was the first agency that AVODAH partnered with.

On June 1, AVODAH will honor Jackie and Dan Silverman for their efforts on behalf of homeless women and children in New Orleans. The annual Partners in Justice Jazz Brunch will be held at Gates of Prayer in Metairie at 11 a.m.

Shortly after Hurricane Katrina, the Silvermans began volunteering at a makeshift women’s shelter, and it was there they began their work of building the New Orleans Women’s Shelter, with help from the Jewish community.

Today, the shelter is a model organization and one of only a few programs for homeless women that provides comprehensive case management for women and their dependent children, with no limit on length of stay and no cost per night.

“We’re delighted to honor Jackie and Dan’s this year,” said Dani Levine, AVODAH’s New Orleans Director. “Not only are we honoring Jackie and Dan’s efforts, but we get to highlight our longstanding partnership towards fighting poverty in New Orleans and our shared commitment to social change.”

In 2008, New Orleans became the fourth host city for AVODAH. An organization that has been recognized by the Slingshot guide as a Jewish innovator, AVODAH also has operations in New York, Chicago and Washington. Each year, a new set of young Jewish adults move into the communal AVODAH house and commit to a year of working for a non-profit that promotes social justice and fights poverty.

Each participant is matched with a social service agency, where they become a full-time worker at no cost to the agency.

Tickets for the brunch are $50, $30 for ages 30 and under. Tickets that include being listed in the program book start at $90, with giving levels increasing from there. A matching grant from the Clayton-Royer Family Foundation will match all new and increased gifts, up to a total of $15,000.

Tickets are available online here.