Editor's Note: We interviewed Mikaela Bernhardt, a Bay Area college graduate who, in addition to her position as a landscape designer, has been making Challah for hospital workers attending to CoronaVirus patients. 

Could you give us a background for your 'personal style' Challah Loaves project?

Mikaela: "Challah has an extremely long and evolving history. Jewish people all around the world  have been eating this bread since the 15th century (and probably before then). It is Jewish braided bread eaten on the Sabbath and has many religious and spiritual meanings. It is a time to reflect on the week, relax as a community while enjoying a meal together, and slow down to appreciate the world and our lives. Challah is covered with a special cloth and a prayer is said about how we are thankful to have made it through another week and how special it is to have foods to eat."

"Challah is usually made with three strands braided together into a long loaf.  But they may have anywhere from 2 to 6 strands braided  to symbolize love appearing to look like intertwined arms. On High Holidays, the bread is made into a circular shape which holds several meanings: continuity and interconnected upward progress. I  felt these meanings were appropriate for this challenging time ... and let's be honest, this round style is a lot faster to make compared to the longer braided style." 

Have you made personal contact with any of the recipients and received a reaction to your gift?

Mikaela: I  have only heard from two contacts I  have with these hospitals. They are so grateful and think that it's a great contribution. It was noted how appreciated my note about using tongs and how each of them are individually wrapped, making people more comfortable about taking and eating. 

Mikaela's note, above, attached to the bread reads: "Thank you for coming to work today; You are a true hero. Once this came out of the oven, it was handled only with tongs as it went into the bag.") Photo with permission of Mikaela Bernhardt ...

Are you delivering the challah to the hospital yourself? 

Mikaela: No, I have a friend whose parents work at a few different hospitals throughout the Bay Area and  a neighbor who works at another Bay Area hospital. I  have coordinated with them to deliver the loaves to their doorstep for  staff rooms of ICU and ER units. As I  continue this work, others are starting to reach about connecting me to other health care workers to donate to. 

When did you start baking ... and do you have any others helping you with this effort?

Mikaela: I  have always loved baking since a very young age. I started baking challah in college wanting to make friends while doing something of good for the world and learned about the organization Challah for Hunger. I  was active with Challah for Hunger's UC Davis chapter from the first day of college to the last day of my college career. Challah for Hunger's mission is to fight hunger globally and locally. There are chapters all across the world who bake bread every week. Each chapter sells the bread and donates half of their proceeds to a globally based organization called Mazon, a Jewish response to hunger and a local organization of their choice. The Davis chapter continues to donate to the Yolo County Food bank. Loaves are sold for $5 each.

I learned so many and and valuable lessons during my time with Challah For Hunger Davis. When I  was involved we would bake and sell 50-100 loaves a week; multiply that by four years of my participation. Each week it was a deed accomplished with my community and it added up to thousands of dollars of donations to important causes. 

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