Reyut: The Mitzvah Meals Project

This article first appeared in our Aug/Sept '26 edition of The Bulletin

The Reyut Committee is excited to announce an expansion of our Mitzvah Meals program! We believe that a hot meal is a powerful way to show care, and we want to ensure no one in our community goes unsupported.

A quick Mitzvah Meals Q&A to learn more:

• Who are these meals for? Everyone! We are expanding our outreach to include busy parents who might not have time to cook a meal, those dealing with illness, families facing financial hardship, or anyone who could use the gift of a meal during a stressful time.
• How can you help? We are looking for volunteers to join our “on-call” list to provide meals.
• Do I have to cook? Not at all! While home-cooked meals are lovely, ordering takeout or catering is a perfectly wonderful way to support a neighbor.

If you’d like to be added to our volunteer list or if you (or someone you know) could benefit from a meal, please reach out to Caren Kotlow at Reyut@CBEAlbany.org or (518) 505-2052.

Stock Our Freezer, Support Our Community

If you enjoy cooking and would like to help support members of our community during times of need, we invite you to prepare a meal for our Mitzvah Meal program. Congregation Beth Emeth will safely store your prepared meal in our freezer, ready to be provided when a Mitzvah Meal request is received. Having meals available in advance allows us to respond quickly and offer comfort and care to individuals and families when they need it most. Your kindness and generosity can make a meaningful difference.

If you would like to cook a meal and have it stored in our freezer, email: Reyut@CBEAlbany.org.

More about Reyut

Reyut, is a Hebrew noun that means friendship, companionship, or affection. CBE’s Reyut Committee is all about spreading warmth and support throughout our Beth Emeth family.

Last fall we delivered beautiful goodie bags filled with sweet treats for the New Year to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. This past spring we delivered mishloach manot to the community for Purim.

An area of support we are growing this fall is our Shabbat Buddies program. Shabbat Buddies will make Friday phone calls to those who may be housebound or would enjoy some extra contact. We are looking for volunteers who can pick up the phone and make a difference from the comfort of their own home! Reyut needs your help to grow the CBE Shabbat Buddies program. Please keep an eye out for an upcoming Zoom meeting in August.

Reyut is always looking for new volunteers. If anyone wants to give their volunteer time to Reyut projects, please reach out at Reyut@CBEAlbany.org.