Kudos: Four special people who make Passover freedom come alive

Donna Lutz

In 1994, we ran a story about Donna Lutz — how she took an Army-chartered four-seat airplane to Ft. Lyons, Colorado. As the nursing home outreach coordinator for JFS, Lutz visited the sole Jewish patient at the VA medical center nursing home in Ft. Lyons, 400 miles from Denver. Just before Rosh Hashanah, Lutz and Martha Quackenbush spent the day together, talking and snacking on the bagels, lox, cream cheese, challah and honey cake brought by Lutz.

Normally, Lutz’ commute is not that far and she drives her own car, but the goodwill and camaraderie that she brings to Jewish nursing home residents in non-Jewish nursing homes along the Front Range is just as meaningful as it was to Martha Quackenbush in Ft. Lyons.

For isolated elderly Jews, Donna Lutz is Denver’s link to the Jewish world. She stays in touch with many by telephone and holiday cards — besides visiting them in person. She shows up with her guitar and Jewish culinary goodies, sings songs and shares a little “taste” of the holiday. She also coordinates her large cadre of staff members and parachaplains to make sure that all the Jewish shut-ins in long-term, assisted living, mental health and correctional institutions are connected to the Jewish holidays.

Not everyone performs a mitzvah by doing her job. On that scale, however, Donna Lutz is the champion.

Simon Kaufman

Back in early 2000s, one little boy was a perennial winner in the IJN annual Chanukah coloring contest (judged without knowledge of the entrants’ identities). He was noticed, not only because of his winning artwork, but because of the mop of blond curls that framed his cute face.

Today those curls are cropped, the face has whiskers, but Simon Kaufman is still a winner. This 10th grader — the youngest ever Kudos honoree — is not a winner just for his academic, Judaic and athletic accomplishments, but for his tremendous sense of community. Volunteerism is a big part of this busy teenager’s life, whether he’s guest speaking on the difficulties faced by youth in Darfur, raising money for Jewish life through the Allied Jewish Federation, helping plan the prestigious 2010 Maccabi Games in Denver this summer, or collecting sports equipment for children in the Dominican Republic.

We are not the only ones to notice Simon Kaufman’s passion for giving back to his community. He was recently honored by 9News as a 9Kids Who Care winner. Like they say on 9News — stay tuned. We’re sure you’re going to be hearing a lot more about Simon Kaufman.

Good kids don’t just happen. In Simon’s case, there are more like him at home. Parents David and Nancy Kaufman have set their own sterling example of community involvement. What better evidence than the likes of Simon Kaufman?

Sheryl Feiler

Some people move to a new area and put their community involvement on hold until things feel more familiar — if ever. But Sheryl Feiler, who relocated to Denver in 1997 when husband Ken became CEO of Rose Medical Center, jumped into immediate action with determined grace.

One of the first addresses she sought out in Denver was the Allied Jewish Federation, where she now co-chairs the Jewish Resource Center allocations committee. But she didn’t stop there. Hardly.

This mother of two was president of the Herzl-RMHA PTA and served as the Jewish day school’s chair for eight challenging years. Feiler never lost sight of the real prize — giving daughter Melyssa and son Jake a Jewish education that prepared them for the wider world but also instilled a strong pride in their heritage. She focused where it mattered most — her kids.

We could go on about Feiler’s other involvements in our community — CAJE, Hadassah, HEA, JFS — and it still wouldn’t cover the bases. To Feiler, honored with the AJF’s Becky Topelson Women’s Leadership Award, it’s not about compiling an impressive volunteer portfolio. It’s about love of family and community — always with a twinkle in her eye.

Sheryl Feiler wants to make the world a better place, evident in her volunteerism and daily acts of kindness. Her sweet personality speaks volumes — and we look forward to reading every page.

Andy Kark

Even the list is long. Before we even get to the spirit of Andy Kark, we observe that he helps sustain the East Side eruv, has facilitated a new Torah scroll for the DAT minyan, served as chair of the Israel, National and Overseas Committee of the Federation, and promotes The Jewish Experience; in short, is just about everywhere a Jewish need is found.

And that spirit: One does not rise to the chairmanship of the body that links Denver to Israel in one year or even in five. Year after year, mission after mission, meeting after meeting, Andy Kark’s enthusiasm for Israel never wanes. At a time in American Jewish history when people claim that it is the older generation that cared about Israel, but the younger generation not so much, Andy Kark disproves that.

Oh, and that Torah scroll at the DAT minyan? Not only is it holy and helpful — but Andy Kark chants from it himself. As in every sphere of his leadership, he does the heavy lifting, not just the direction and the management.

Andy Kark is one of the leaders who envisioned the Lowry neighborhood for what it could become. If The Jewish Experience could help, he got behind the Jewish Experience. If the eruv could help, he got behind that. Not that he calculated all this in advance, for his communal passion and religious devotion is integral to his personality. Precisely on that score, the outcome of his vision carries an inclusive and spiritual touch.