FOR A GOOD CAUSE -- Judy Egendorf

-- Story by Claudia Figueroa; photo by Taya Kashuba

For Judy Egendorf, Temple Bat Yahm is like a second home.

The Jewish temple in Newport Beach is where she spends several hours a

week volunteering her time. Egendorf, 57, serves on the temple’s

membership committee and volunteers for Bat Yahm’s women’s group,

Sisterhood.

She helps temple staff keep track of the membership and distribute

mailings. She also greets members and visitors before services and helps

organize the Chanukah Bazaar.

“I’ve done almost everything a volunteer can do for [the temple],”

Egendorf said. “People often say I don’t know how to say no, but I enjoy

doing it.”

Egendorf, who has been a full-time volunteer for 20 years, admitted that

she hasn’t thought about getting credit for her work. During a recent

luncheon, she said it finally hit her.

“I saw my name on the program and my title said co-chair next to it, and

thought ‘what did I do?’ I don’t look at my role in the organization as

work, so it took me awhile to remember,” she said.

Even without recognition, Egendorf said her work is rewarding. For the

last two years, she has been a key player in Sisterhood’s tutoring

program at Pomona Elementary School in Costa Mesa, which teaches

first-graders how to read, write and pronounce words.

In addition to helping teachers spend more one-on-one time with children,

Egendorf sees it as a break from stress.

“It’s just a really nice feeling to hear kids thank me after I read to

them,” she said.

Egendorf said the payoff of volunteer work is priceless.

“Over the years, I’ve made a lot of good friends. That’s why I enjoy

doing it. To me, temples are like my home.”