Area News Headlines
These news headlines brought to you by these fine sponsors:
Good Shines Amongst Chaos and Lockdowns in West Bloomfield Thursday
Tate Survance
Fri, 13 Mar 2026 16:51:18 EDT
 |
click on the picture to enlarge
|
In the aftermath of an attack at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield Township, staff members at a nearby cafe quickly stepped in to help those affected.
As police cars, fire trucks, and ambulances rushed to the synagogue following the incident, workers at Soul Cafe, located just a few blocks away, began preparing food for families and first responders in the area.
Inside the cafe, employees shifted into action as the situation unfolded. With the lunch rush ending and the pizza oven still hot, staff began baking pizzas including: cheese, mushroom, and margherita, while also gathering drinks and pastries to distribute to those impacted by the incident.
Workers removed items from the cafe's pastry display and replaced them with bottled drinks before loading food and supplies onto a cart.
"We had staff. We had time. We had to do something, and we knew there was a need," said Zeb Versele, the cafe's 26-year-old chef.
The food was later delivered to the nearby Shenandoah Country Club, where families were being reunited with children who had been relocated from Temple Israel's early childhood learning center.
Soul Cafe operates as part of the Friendship Circle, a West Bloomfield nonprofit that provides support and services for individuals with disabilities and their families. The organization assists roughly 3,000 people, and some of the cafe's employees themselves have special needs.
In addition to the pizzas, staff also baked chocolate chip cookies and prepared drinks for those gathered nearby.
"We did what we could fast," Versele said. "There wasn't much discussion about what to do. It just happened."
Later in the afternoon, Rabbi Benny Greenwald, director of the Daniel B. Sobel Friendship House, another program within Friendship Circle that supports individuals in recovery from substance use, returned the now-empty supply cart to the cafe after helping distribute the food.
Greenwald said that in the wake of such a frightening event, small acts of compassion can make a difference.
"The investigators will do their work, and the justice system will do its part," he said. "For the rest of us, it's about adding goodness and kindness wherever we can."
Greenwald said he hoped the simple gesture of providing food helped bring comfort to families and first responders dealing with the shock of the incident.
"Unfortunately, the Jewish community is familiar with persecution," he said. "But we are resilient, and we believe that kindness and love ultimately prevail. A little light can push back the darkness."
