September 01, 2008

Out of Sadness … A New Year

Awaiting me this bright, sunny morning on the first day of both the English and Hebrew calendar, was an email from my dear friend Phyllis Heimowitz in Israel. Phyllis, along with her daughter Tamar,(and now joined by Rena Cohen who has helped expand their work in unimaginable ways) are the founders of The Amuta (Non-Profit) for the Emotional Support of Girlfriends and Fiancees of Fallen Soldiers of the IDF. It was the Heimowitz’s personal tragedy that led them to establish this innovative and critically important group which provides emotional (as well as occasional financial support) to women (and occasional men) who have lost their loved one in an IDF-related incident. The emotional support comes in the form of weekly group therapy, individual therapy as well as shared social engagements where the unique bonds that join each of these bereaved people are strengthened. Prior to the establishment of the group, the Israeli government did not identify anyone other than a family member as a legitimate survivor and critical services such as counseling or even recognition, were not available. Today, the Amuta provides the support services and receives some funding from the government to help them with their work. Perhaps, more important though, has been the radical change in attitude that has come about because of the group’s efforts. The girlfriend or fiancee is recognized by Israeli society as a legitimate mourner and survivor. Their loss is no longer dismissed as insignificant or unimportant. Their pain is real and with the support groups offered by the Amuta they can eventually deal with their pain and hopefully find love and happiness once again.

Along with some personal exchanges, Phyllis shared the following which says so much about the importance of their work:

On Friday, we had a magnificent get together of the bereaved girlfriends. It was such a special time. Naomi, there in the quaint restaurant, we celebrated that THREE of the bereaved girlfriends are getting married this month!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What a joy. What an accomplishment. What a miracle. I am positive that we all….had a part in this. We stood by them. We picked them up when they were totally and completely broken and helped to put them back together, piece by piece. We enabled them to mourn as they should. We encouraged them all along the way and most of all we loved them and will love them forever.

One of the girlfriends who is getting married this month is Suzie, an American girl who met her boyfriend Tziki in Thailand, when he was on vacation there and she was working for the Peace Corps in a small village in Thailand. Their love was deep and crushed when Tziki went to serve in the reserves in Israel. During his service near Hebron, a Palestinian driver tried to run him over. Tziki’s soldiers shot the driver in an attempt to save Tziki, but one of our bullets hit Tziki and he was killed.

Suzie told me that "even in his death, he provided me with my future." Those were the words she used. She came to Israel, underwent an Orthodox Jewish conversion and is marrying a wonderful young man from England whom she met in the ulpan. Our Suzie… We will fly to that wedding…

Today is the first of Elul-the month in which we celebrate a new year and the promise and hope that it brings. What better message to get in an email on this particular day?

August 19, 2008

People on the Front Lines

One of the most unique and meaningful aspects of the tzedakah work the Good People Fund is involved in is having the ability to step in when a family or individual encounters a crisis situation. We believe that if we can lend a hand before things spiral out of control, a more desperate outcome may be diverted. Having individuals "on the frontlines" – people we know and trust, and who know and understand what we want and believe, are critical to this very personal type of tzedakah. When they see a difficult situation that can be resolved expeditiously they know that they can be in touch and, if we have the resources, we will ask them to act on our behalf and arrange for the needs to be met. This can be an overdue utility bill, past due rent, a food emergency or medical bill…the list is endless.

This was the case one day last week when we heard from one of our "agents" who described a very sad situation involving a single parent with two children. While making ends meet was always difficult, she now owed her landlord for past months’ rent (he was threatening to take her to court), and also had substantial bank debt. Working with our contact and the social worker assigned to the family, we were able to pay the past due rent immediately. Within only a few days the landlord received his check and was no longer threatening suit. The donor who made that possible also wished to help with the overdrawn bank account and recurring interest, and it was decided that the woman would receive this help after she agreed to take a simple no-cost mini-course in money management and also actively sought some further part-time work. Our contact and the social worker agreed that while the help was needed, it should come with some responsibility on the part of the recipient.

The ability to act, and act quickly in these types of situations is just what makes our work so meaningful. Though time-consuming, there is a definite "high" associated with keeping a family or an individual intact at difficult times.

August 18, 2008

Remembering a Loved One In a Special Way

One of our good friends just called–he is someone who thrives on creative mitzvahs and tikkun olam and trying to make a difference in whatever way possible. He and his brother are about to mark the yahrzeit (anniversary date) of their Dad’s death and wanted to do it in a way that would help others quickly and directly, as well as recall how important the issue of hunger was to their late Dad. The yahrzeit is right around Rosh Hashonah and how special it would be if they could donate funds so that a family in Israel that might not celebrate the new year in quite as festive a way as they would like, could fill their table with good wholesome food and some special treats, as well. Could we find such a family that would benefit from their tzedakah?

Could we? You bet!

With one call, we identified not one but three families that are having a difficult time and who would benefit from this simple but important act of chesed. The Good People Fund will match the original donation and add further funds so that three families (which include several children) will truly taste the sweetness of honey that symbolizes a sweet New Year.

August 15, 2008

Hunger in America

Pick up any newspaper or magazine today, listen to the radio…in fact, ask your local public assistance office or food bank and you will know that with the worsening economy comes hunger and food insecurity–a situation affecting many, many people including those who have never asked for help before. Rising food costs and the general serious downturn in the economy are taking their toll and contacts we have in the non-profit world are confirming the seriousness of the situation on an almost daily basis.

Today’s call came from Ranya Kelly, the dedicated and indefatigable founder of the Redistribution Center in Colorado (http://www.redistributioncenter.org/). Ranya’s work is almost legend. Over 20 years ago while searching through a dumpster for a carton to mail some gifts, Ranya discovered over 500 pairs of brand new shoes discarded by a nearby store. It was that discovery that led to the formation of the Redistribution Center, Ranya’s organization which has rescued, since its founding, over 700,000 pairs of new shoes and millions of dollars worth of brand new, perfectly usable clothing, bedding, building supplies and more from local and national retail outlets. What was destined for a landfill is now filling the needs of impoverished people not only in the Denver area but also other parts of the United States. Ranya has sent two 53′ trailers to the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, ravaged by Hurricane Katrina three years ago and her efforts have also benefited our nation’s soldiers who have returned from fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In addition to the incredible importance of recycling all of these hard goods, Ranya began a small food pantry at her facility (located on part of her property) and has been able to fill it with donated food items from both manufacturers and local food stores. There has never been a shortage of needy recipients for the food, but in the past several phone calls Ranya shared that the numbers are increasing and she feared that at some point she would have to turn people away. The need for food was outpacing the available supply. We are certain that this scene is being played out in cities and towns across the country…Denver and its suburbs are not the exception.

Today’s call was just what I had feared–the shelves of her food pantry and walk-in cooler were bare. For the past few days Ranya has been turning away elderly people living on meager incomes, just "ordinary" people and veterans of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan who have sometimes returned home to no job, a family that has deserted them, and many, many physical and emotional scars.(and veterans’ organizations do not always step in–people do fall through the cracks.)

How could we help? If she had the funds would she be able to purchase the food from local sources at greatly reduced prices? The answer was a resounding, yes!

Postscript: We sent Ranya a check on the day she called us and on Tuesday, August 19, 2008, she called to report that she was on the way to purchase as much as she possibly could to fill the shelves and feed hungry people. It was that quick and that simple.

August 14, 2008

The War in Georgia

We have been following the daily updates on the crisis in Georgia and know from both U.S. and Israeli media that this is a major humanitarian crisis and definitely something reminiscent of the 1960’s. As we have done in the past when we do not have any personal contacts on the ground, we are relying on the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) to allocate our funds to those needs which they identify on an hourly basis. We know that "the Joint" uses its resources effectively and efficiently and are comfortable sending what we can to them when we have no direct representation present. Our donation has been mailed today.

We share the following excerpt from the JDC web site. It is almost as if we are on the scene ourselves.

JDC SOS Van Delivers Humanitarian Aid Packages

The JDC van’s next stop was the almost ruined house of the Frankel family: mother Irina burst into tears when she saw the bus arriving at her door. Having no transportation, Irina and her husband could not leave their house; their 15-year-old developmentally disabled son was in shock and unable to go on foot.

While the father was putting their belongings in the van, a neighbor named Natela was helping her friend Irina prepare to leave. In the conversation with JDC staff, Natela revealed that she and her husband were Jewish. When it was suggested they evacuate, she thanked them but refused: "My husband is a doctor in the local hospital. We just can’t leave when so many people need medical assistance and so few doctors are available. We have decided to stay. . . ." The JDC team left the family with packages of humanitarian aid, enough so that her husband could distribute the packages in the hospital to the neediest patients. "We are facing here every minute dozens of people who desperately need food-today even bread is great deficit! These packages are sure to save the lives of many!" said Natela.

Today’s report is one more example of JDC’s ongoing commitment to ensure safety and security of Jews wherever and whenever they are in need.

http://www.jdc.org/news_press_2008_georgia.html

August 12, 2008

Loose Change

Today’s mail brought a very nice tzedakah check which included a note describing the origin of the donation. We think it bears repeating here so that upcoming Bar and Bat Mitzvah kids who are looking for a meaningful way to celebrate their simcha might duplicate or create their own version of the idea.

Erin Sharfman celebrated her Bat Mitzvah this past Hanukkah and decided that gelt is one of the many things that we think of when recalling this holiday. Who doesn’t remember the gold-covered coins that were eagerly awaited along with a gift or two? (Sometimes just getting the wrapper off of the small coins took all the patience we had as young children.) So–why not collect gelt from her guests?…the loose change kind of gelt that always adds up to something very significant.

When Erin’s guests received her invitation six weeks before the actual simcha, they were asked to collect all of their loose change over the next several weeks and bring it to her party which was held on the Sunday of Hanukkah. Well, collect their loose change they did! On the day of her party Erin was overwhelmed with tons of loose change (and some bills too!) After counting and wrapping it all, (and adding some of her own funds to the total) Erin was able to send us a check which she asked to be split between the good work being done by A Package From Home (http://www.apackagefromhome.org/) and the very famous Clara Hammer who provides Shabbat food for poor families in Israel. Erin learned about Clara while attending Camp Ramah, and her family had heard about Barbara Silverman’s efforts when they received an email that described the packages that Barbara sends to soldiers (many of them chayalim bodedim or lone soldiers who have no family in Israel) serving in the IDF. Along with the donation to A Package From Home, Erin also included several letters to soldiers which were written by her guests at the party. Erin recalled that the letters of support were one of the soldiers’ favorite items to receive in the packages.

Yasher koach to Erin and her family! What a great mitzvah project. There will be many smiling faces in Israel because of your creative ideas.