Slightly stooped and out of breath, an elderly woman puts her heavy plastic bags down on the sidewalk in the Machane Yehuda Market. Sivan Shimoni, 25, a student from Jerusalem who studies communications, rushes over to help her.
“I’m a volunteer with 'The Woman with Shopping Baskets,'” she says softly while pointing to her bright yellow shirt. “Can I help you carry your [bags] to the bus or light rail?”