A Feb. 16, 1984, article in Washington Jewish Week follows a 59-year-old homeless woman, “Hannah,” through the streets of the District, among others, emphasizing a local need for social services for the Jewish indigent.
The article references six senior nutrition programs in Greater Washington plus the Hebrew Home and other social service agencies, such as JSSA’s Meals on Wheels kosher food delivery program for older adults. That same Meals on Wheels program is still going strong 42 years later. In fact, it recently expanded support for Montgomery County adults to include those ages 50 to 59.
The Bender JCC of Greater Washington currently runs a twice-weekly senior nutrition program from September to June, during which attendees practice chair exercises, sit for lectures or performances and eat a nutritious kosher lunch.
The 1984 article also includes Adas Israel Congregation’s hot lunch program from Mondays through Fridays, which is still a fixture in the community through the Adas-Behrend Senior Fellowship.
One source in the article, an anonymous rabbi, contends that local rabbis and the Jewish community aren’t doing enough to support the Jewish unhoused and/or hungry population in D.C. What’s happened since then? The community has banded together to further help the homeless, continuing old programming and creating new resources.
In 1987, the Adas Israel community founded Anne’s Place, formerly known as Anne Frank House. The nonprofit provides long-term supportive housing to people who would be homeless without this support.
D.C. Jewish housing activists founded Yachad Inc, a Jewish housing organization in the District, in 1990, in response to a “critical lack of affordable and decent housing in the metro area,” according to Yachad’s website.
Members of Temple Sinai in D.C. founded Sinai House in 1992 to provide safe, affordable housing, social services and financial support. According to its website, Sinai House has helped more than 50 families, including 100 children, get back on their feet.
The Hebrew Sheltering Home provides temporary kosher, Orthodox shelter for up to one week. Applicants are asked to undergo an intake process at the Silver Spring Jewish Center.
And local institutions are talking about the issue and working toward solutions.
Jews United for Justice’s Housing Justice Working Group works alongside local coalitions and campaigns for investment in affordable housing, stronger tenant protections and an end to homelessness. The group meets monthly.
D.C.-area synagogues regularly hold toiletry or clothing drives and partner with neighboring homeless shelters and agencies.
Although homelessness in D.C. increased by 14% from 2023 to 2024, and housing costs continue to soar, the Jewish community continues to show up for one another.
