Chabad of Greater Dayton and Jewish Family Services are partnering on a six-week community-wide food collection campaign for the Artemis Center, which will culminate with a women’s challah baking event in mid-September.

Beginning Aug. 1, food collection bins will be on site at Beth Abraham Synagogue, Beth Jacob Congregation, Chabad, Temple Israel, Temple Beth Or, and the Boonshoft Center for Jewish Culture and Education for donations to the Artemis Center, Montgomery County’s domestic violence advocacy agency.

Items must be non-perishable; the most highly-requested among clients are dry pastas and sauces, pancake mix, syrup, and boxed meals.

Jewish Family Services Director Tara Feiner said the idea for the challah bake came from Devorah Mangel, Chabad’s women’s program director.

“I was familiar with the program,” Feiner said. “Other Chabads have done the Mega Challah Bake program around the country, and Devorah was really eager to bring it to Dayton.”

When Feiner and Mangel applied for a Jewish Federation Innovation Grant to fund the project, they added a women’s social action component.

“The various ingredients in challah,” Feiner said, “represent Torah, joy, family, material necessities, life, and health. Knowing that we’ll have women coming together to support these values when we do the bake, we thought — what about supporting women who may not have these things, women who don’t have the material necessities, that don’t have stability or joy in their families? Victims of domestic violence are clearly a group of women who have that need.”

Chabad and JFS will host the Mega Challah Bake on Thursday, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m. at the Boonshoft CJCE. The session is open to all women, and girls ages 10 and up.

“Everyone will arrive and have an assigned station where they will have their mixing bowl, spoons, and all of their ingredients will already be measured out in containers in front of them,” Feiner said. “Someone

will be up front, guiding everybody.”

While the dough is rising, participants will sort the donations for Artemis during a dessert reception.

After the reception, the women will braid their challahs and can learn new braiding techniques.

“I hope that women will leave with a feeling of togetherness and empowerment,” Mangel said. “Baking challah is an opportunity for women to come together to pray for peace, sustenance, and both physical and spiritual health. It will inspire and empower us to then carry those blessings into everything that we do.”

“All you need to do is take the challahs home to bake,” Feiner said. “It’s very well received in other communities. We’re hoping for about the same participation as the JCC’s Women’s Seder, about 100 people.”

The cost to participate in the Mega Challah Bake is $18 per person, with reservations due Sept. 2 at daytonmegachallahbake.com or by calling 610-1555.

­— Marshall Weiss

To read the complete August 2016 Dayton Jewish Observer, click here.