Federation adds service to Super Sunday

The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles is asking community members to give time and elbow grease in addition to what’s in their pockets.

On Super Sunday, Feb. 13, the day traditionally set aside for a volunteer-staffed phone-a-thon to kick off Federation’s annual campaign, Federation is organizing a day of volunteering, offering options to help beautify Los Angeles, feed the hungry or train for longer-term community service projects.

Federation expects about 500 volunteers for the day, some of them participating in service projects, some making solicitation phone calls and some doing both.

“The idea is you spend two hours working in the community, and then two hours on the telephone, and you can say to the people you’re calling, ‘I just spent two hours giving out food at SOVA or cleaning up this school,’ ” Federation President Jay Sanderson said. “It will give the calls more meaning and make Super Sunday more community driven.”

Last year, Super Sunday raised $4.5 million.

The new component comes as part of the Federation’s centennial year celebrations. Super Sunday will be followed by four other service days throughout the year.

Online registration closes Friday, Feb. 11, and slots for some projects are already filled.

Volunteers on Super Sunday will prepare food for people with HIV/AIDS through Project Chicken Soup, help makeover the Hillel at Cal State University, Northridge, beautify a public elementary school, assemble school supplies for needy families served by Tomchei Shabbos and sort food donations at Jewish Family Service’s SOVA food pantry.

Space is still available at a family art project, where parents and kids will help create a quilt to be sent to a disadvantaged school in Jerusalem and at a tour of the Mount Zion Cemetery in East Los Angeles, where many founders of the L.A. Jewish community are buried. A community service fair at the Bernard Milken Jewish Community Campus in West Hills will highlight year-round service opportunities, and training will be offered to become a KOREH L.A. literacy tutor for disadvantaged kids.

To sign up, visit