Pittsburgh native cooks up a difference for IDF troops
“It’s amazing how much of an impact one person can make on so many people,” he said.
When Israel’s war with Hamas began in October, Yehudis Hoffman and her husband, Nathan , knew that they wanted to do something to help.
Nathan Hoffman is the chief executive officer at the Galilee Culinary Institute by the Jewish National Fund, “a culinary institution that combines culinary and restaurant expertise, tourism and entrepreneurship,” according to the organization’s website.
The couple decided to work within their wheelhouse to provide two Shabbat meals for Israel Defense Forces reservists who were existing on a steady diet of tuna.
The Hoffmans’ mission, which began modestly, blossomed to preparing more than 1,000 kosher-certified meals weekly for IDF members in the Galilee region, Kyrat Shmona, the Chermon and bases around Tzfat.
Much of the effort falls on the shoulders of Yehudis Hoffman, who, in addition to raising three children with another due soon, coordinates volunteers and community members from the family’s home.
When the Hoffmans began their work, the effort was expected to continue for approximately five months. As the war enters its 11th month, the pair continue to supply meals, to the price tag of $7,000 to $8,000 a week.
The meal train created by the Hoffmans extends all the way to Pittsburgh, where Yehudis Hoffman grew up. She is the daughter of Rabbi Yosef Silverman and the sister of Rabbi Shlomo Silverman, director of Chabad of Carnegie Mellon University.
Her grandmother, Marlene Silverman, said that wanting to assist during a time of need isn’t new for her granddaughter.
“From the time she was a little girl, she was always helping and doing for others,” Silverman said. “It’s just her nature.”
The family, Silverman noted, are ardent Zionists. Yehudis Hoffman and one of her brothers made Aliyah.
“I was a president of the Pittsburgh chapter of Hadassah,” Silverman said. “I was on the Partnership2Gether for years. We love Israel so much. I’ve been there over 30 times.”
That love of both Israel and service to the Jewish community was passed onto Yehudis Hoffman, who was a program director of Friendship Circle in Agoura Hills, California, before moving to New York, where she met her husband.
Silverman said that in typical fashion, her granddaughter saw a need and responded.
“The first week of the war they made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and took them to an army base with her kids who helped deliver them,” Silverman said. “The second week, I think they made schnitzel.”
The family matriarch said when Yehudis Hoffman saw what the soldiers were eating, she decided the choices were unacceptable and almost single-handedly started the meal program.
The cooking continues to be done in the Hoffmans’ kitchen, utilizing their non-commercial oven, and they now work with a team of volunteers.
“She couldn’t possibly do it all by herself,” Silverman said. “There are helpers and there are volunteers to deliver the food.”
To that end, the Hoffmans are also looking for help covering the costs of the meals. JNF has created a page where people can support their work.
“They didn’t anticipate this going on as long as it has,” Silverman said. “The money Is running out.”
The Hoffmans hope to raise $200,000. So far, they are at about 40% of their goal, having raised a little more than $83,000.
Rabbi Shlomo Silverman said that his sister is doing “an incredible job.”
“It’s amazing how much of an impact one person can make on so many people,” he said.
That pride is felt by the entire family. Yehudis Hoffman’s uncle, David Silverman, said he’s proud of his niece and her husband for taking on the project.
“These meals undoubtedly give our beloved Israeli troops a homey feeling, which they so deserve,” he said.
Seeing Yehudis Hoffman’s work has been heartwarming for Marlene Silverman.
“It makes me so proud of her and the person she turned out to be,” she said. “She’s an amazing granddaughter. She’s great, and she’s going to keep doing this until the war is over.”
For more information and donations can be found on JNF’s website. PJC
David Rullo can be reached at drullo@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
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