They develop and build strategies that allow them to be successful in the workplace, including social skills and work-related anxiety, as well as planning and organizational skills. Trainees are hired as paid employees and receive on-the-job coaching and vocational skills. The Dakota Bread trainee program provides individuals with special needs a chance to work in an active bakery environment. All the baked goods are kosher and the commitment to excellence remained the same when Friendship Circle took over. In fact, the challah was voted Best Bread by The Detroit News and Best Challah by The Jewish News. The growth of Friendship Circle continued when the Bauer Activity Wing was added to give clients an area to enjoy social and recreational activities, and in 2010 a gymnasium was built from funds by Phil and Estelle Elkus.Īnother big step was taken by the Friendship Circle in 2020 when the organization purchased Dakota Bakery, a longtime popular shop in West Bloomfield. “We want to help reveal their potential and the beautiful soul within every person to let them know God created you and you have a purpose,” Bassie said. With this inspiration, the lives of the families served are enhanced while the volunteers reap the rewards of selfless giving. Everyone is invited to participate in the programs – there are no requirements in regard to religious affiliations.įriendship Circle is founded on the idea that within each person is a soul and that soul is equal and worthy of boundless love. He died in 1994, shortly before Friendship Circle was launched. The Shemtovs were inspired to start the Friendship Circle by the teachings of Rebbe Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who encouraged followers all over the world to promote social outreach, helping people in need. The nonprofit organization is run by the Chabad Hasidic movement, affiliated with Lubavitch of Michigan. It provides assistance to 3,000 people with disabilities annually. During nearly three decades, the Shemtovs expanded the Friendship Circle umbrella to include a vast array of more than 40 programs for special needs children, then teens and now adults. Meanwhile, Friendship Circle also continues its first mission of helping individuals and families struggling with isolation, addiction and other family-related crises. They have a place where they are accepted and loved.” “Thank God, Friendship Circle gives a real sense of security for parents. “So many of our families said we started when our kids were six or eight and now they’re 28,” Bassie said. Soul Center grew to become a mecca of opportunity for adults. Their work is sold in the Friendship Circle’s adjoining gallery, and they receive 50 percent of the profits, the remaining 50 percent goes back to running the program, explained Sara Hariga, Friendship Circle director of marketing. The arts were added to Soul Center and it remains a haven, behind the café, where adults with special needs use wood, paints, fabrics, fine arts and other mixed media to create pieces from wall hangings to custom designed clothing. It gave them a sense of inclusion among their peers and in the general community. It also filled the need to reach out to clients who aged out of Life Town. The goal was that they could earn an income once they mastered their craft.
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