By Rochelle Maruch Miller

Neither snow nor rain nor sleet can deter Hatzalah of the Rockaways and Nassau County from its lifesaving mission. The rescue organization has responded to thousands of calls and is, b’ezras Hashem, directly responsible for saving a great many lives.

Founded nearly 35 years ago by a handful of volunteers who took it upon themselves to rescue lives in the Rockaways and Lawrence, the organization has evolved into an all-volunteer force that is licensed and equipped to respond 24/7 to any and all medical emergencies between Belle Harbor, Atlantic Beach, Long Beach, East Rockaway, North Woodmere, and West Hempstead. Saving hundreds of lives every year with the highest caliber of professionalism, compassion, dignity, and adherence to halachah, Hatzalah of the Rockaways and Nassau County is among the fastest early response units anywhere. “Everyone knows that Hatzalah is the first place to call in an emergency,” a Hatzalah coordinator said. “You can count on Hatzalah 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, to respond instantly should you need us. We don’t just respond with medical expertise. We respond with total empathy and sensitivity to your needs and priorities as a Jew.”

“What makes us unique is our method of response,” explained Rabbi Elozer Kanner, who has been an integral part of Hatzalah for 30 years. “Every one of our members has a trunkful of lifesaving equipment, including oxygen, trauma, and automatic external defibrillators.”

Unlike public EMT services, Hatzalah members are deeply distributed throughout the community, rather than concentrated in a single dispatch location. This means that response time is usually two minutes at a time when every second can make all of the difference.

A household word since its founding, Hatzalah today is comprised of over 120 medical technicians, paramedics, and physicians who respond typically within two minutes to thousands of calls annually. They are backed by a fleet of ten New York State certified ambulances capable of reaching all local and regional hospitals in record time.

Who are these dedicated volunteers? They are your next door neighbors. They are the men you see in shul, the fathers in the local PTA. Each Hatzalah hero is a member of our community. He is the proud father who attends avos u’banim with his sons, who imbues each one of his precious children with the self-confidence to ride a bike and to reach for the stars! He is the guy pushing a shopping cart at the local kosher supermarket. Hatzalah volunteers are dedicated residents of the Rockaways and Nassau County. “Our Hatzalah volunteers are doctors, paramedics, medical technicians, lawyers, accountants, educators … caring members of our community representing every profession and sharing a common goal. They seek neither compensation nor recognition or honor for their heroic efforts. Our members have only one desire–to save lives.” Saving a life is the only reward they ask for.

Many are the challenges they face, each lifesaving mission impacting their lives, including experiencing the terror and tragedy of 9/11. Also memorable was their response to an emergency call where a car had crashed into a storefront several years ago. “It was Chanukah and the storefront had been rented to an organization and transformed into a Chanukah children’s wonderland for the week,” Rabbi Kanner recalls. “We knew that there were children at the emergency site, and every second was agonizing. Every life was precious; every little boy and girl was someone’s beloved child and grandchild. These were our children. BaruchHashem, we were relieved that there were no fatal injuries, but the initial seconds were terrifying.”

Every life saved is a Hatzalah success story, but many volunteers consider saving a child’s life to be the most rewarding aspect of their mission. “Saving a child who is choking by performing the Heimlich maneuver is relatively simple. It’s such a wonderful feeling to save a child’s life so that he or she can live 80 or 90 years,” a volunteer explained. “There’s really no greater feeling.”

Hatzalah of the Rockaways and Nassau County will respond to your call and come to your home within two minutes even if you do not contribute. However, they cannot operate without the continuing support of the families they serve. Though Hatzalah’s payroll is zero, their annual operating budget is over $900,000–which includes the maintenance of its ambulance fleet and purchase of drugs and communications equipment.

Currently the organization has a garage in Far Rockaway, with ambulances stationed in Belle Harbor, West Hempstead, and Woodmere. “We have a second garage under construction at 724 West Broadway, corner of Forest Avenue in Woodmere,” Rabbi Kanner said. “We recently took delivery of three brand new ambulances and we would like to thank the Oliner, Sternberg, and Scharf families, each of whom generously and graciously donated an ambulance to Hatzalah of the Rockaways and Nassau County.”

Hatzalah is funded by private donations and relies on our community’s support. Chances are Hatzalah has saved your life or the life of a loved one. Please show your support for this exemplary organization by attending their annual Barbecue Dinner this Sunday, May 3 at the Sands in Atlantic Beach at 6:30 pm, as Hatzalah salutes the families of its volunteers.

“We invite the community to join us in acknowledging our partners–the families–without whose support we could not function,” said Hatzalah’s coordinators. “There are families who don’t see their father from Shabbos to Shabbos. That is because he leaves the house early to go to shul and then to work. All throughout the week, the Hatzalah volunteer’s family looks forward to Shabbos, when their father is finally home, and they can spend precious time together. But as much as they anticipate his being home for Shabbos, when he is called to respond to a Hatzalah call, being the closest member, they eagerly do everything they can to help him and facilitate his early response within two minutes of the call. These are the heroes of Hatzalah–the families who enthusiastically encourage and support their husbands and fathers on their lifesaving mission. Please join us as we salute and acknowledge our families who make it possible for Hatzalah to save lives.”

Rochelle Maruch Miller is a contributing editor of the Five Towns Jewish Times. She is a creative media consultant, journalist, lecturer, and educator. The author welcomes your comments at Rochellemiller04@aol.com.

 

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