New Orleans,  November 14, 2022 - Federation board member Peter Seltzer has been a part of Jewish agencies in New Orleans for as long as he can remember. Seltzer credits those early experiences with creating a blueprint for his work serving the community, work that went into overdrive when the Covid19 pandemic came to town.

“Growing up in a Jewish household in New Orleans, there was always this word bandied about: ‘the Federation,’” Seltzer said. “I think, from an early age, I was always part of things, I was always involved, but I didn’t understand really what it was until later on. As I got older and moved back to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, and was looking to reconnect with the Jewish community, I found the Jewish Federation at that point through various programs.”

Seltzer was able to combine his early exposure to core Federation values with his pursuits as an adult, first as an emergency medical technician and later as an artist. The pandemic combined both of those worlds, and before long, Seltzer was creating not art, but Personal Protective Equipment to protect those on the front lines of the fight against Covid19. 

“When the pandemic hit, it was weirdly a confluence of all of my skills,” he said. “The equipment that I have in my art studio is equipment that I could use to manufacture PPE. I use laser cutters to cut and etch cardboard, typically, but the same machinery, which is aerospace grade, can also laser cut plexiglass to make this PPE.”

Putting all other projects aside, Seltzer was able to produce around 13,000 face shields in just a couple of weeks.

“Making face shields for healthcare workers was important to me because I was making them for myself and for my friends,” he said. “I’m a paramedic, and when the pandemic hit, I started working again. I was working for the state, directly with Covid patients, and so I knew firsthand how important it was to get equipment into our hands because it was lacking at that time.”

Seltzer said he came away from that experience with a deeper conviction to help those in need and to serve the community through the Federation. And for those interested in becoming involved, Seltzer said it isn’t enough just to attend events. Now is the time for direct action.

“Being a leader on the Federation board has been really impactful for me because I feel a lot of ownership in the work that the Federation does and its constituent agencies,” he said. “To me, living a life of social justice and one of Tikkun olam, is beyond just being a member of organizations, but it’s taking steps and actions.”

--Steven Maloney, reporting for STORYSMART