“If we give love and care, our children will notice and b’ezrat Hashem, they will do the same.” – Rabbi Ya’akov Trump
By Ariel Serber
The horrors of the October 7 Hamas attack and the subsequent wars in Gaza and Lebanon have been a wakeup call to many members of our community to assist in the relief efforts in Israel. One such individual, Rabbi Ya’akov Trump of the Young Israel of Lawrence-Cedarhurst, decided to become personally involved after he headed the 5 Towns Response Team in the wake of the tragedy. Together with Rabbi Zalman Wolowik, Rabbi Trump serves as mara d’asra of the Israel Chesed Center where he has been personally involved in providing support to the chayalim and displaced people through various initiatives. Rabbi Trump sat down with Ariel Serber at the Israel Chesed Center to reflect on the various ways he has served the community.
Ariel Serber: I’m with the Rabbi Ya’akov Trump and we’re going to talk about his involvement here at the Chesed Center and with other community initiatives supporting Israel.
Rabbi Ya’akov Trump: Like everybody else, I was pulled into all of this on October 9, and I’ve been trying to figure out how to move forward and upwards throughout the course of this.
AS: Obviously, the horrors of October 7 were terrible and awful. But I also think the best of us has come out. Have you seen that? How do you feel about that?
RYT: When I joined the rabbinate, I thought that it was about teaching and giving ideas to people. That’s not really the main part of it, although that takes a little piece of it. The main idea is motivating people to get involved because people only really care about what they’re doing. Unfortunately, with October 7, with all the atrocities and terrible things that came from it, it also gave us the opportunity to find October 8th Jews. And those are the folks who often realize that they really want to do something and get involved. And it’s being able to try to motivate those people to do the right thing. The Chesed Center has really proven an incredible resource in that respect. We take regular folks, people who might not necessarily be writing the checks, but people who can roll up their sleeves, get down into the mountain, and make a big difference. Bag by bag, item by item, chesed by chesed, connection by connection. And that to me has been the greatest service to Am Yisrael.
AS: Chesed, not just for the recipients, for the volunteers.
RYT: Yes, I think just showing up matters so much.
AS: Tell us about your background and your connection to Israel.
RYT: I grew up in South Africa which, unlike America, is very much a Zionistic Jewish community in many ways. The aliyah rate is much higher per capita. It’s very much part of the water one drinks there. Having said that, it’s still diaspora. For me, it was a moving experience to go to Israel, to learn in Yeshivat Kerem B’Yavneh, and to see what religious Zionism actually means. I remember one of the moments that struck me was when it was on the night of Yom HaAtzmaut, when they were singing Shir HaMaalos to the tune of Hatikvah. It’s so real. People are living real lives, living essentially in the Tanach age. It’s been a moving experience, and that is where our future lies, and that’s where the book is being written. But I’m happy that while we’re in the diaspora, we can also contribute.
AS: Speaking of the diaspora, how can we stay connected?
RYT: There are different ways, but I would argue that the success of the Jewish communities in the diaspora depends on their level of involvement in Judaism, which requires action, such as, when people engage in chesed, giving, doing, and sharing what they have. Being a part of that process has been a tremendous chizukto all of us.
AS: How has all this impacted the people of Israel?
RYT: Actually, I was just speaking with Rav Shlomo Kimchi, who’s the head of the Yeshivot Bnei Akiva. They have 24,000 students in the Bnei Akiva system in Israel. He was describing his own children. Besides thousands of talmidim who are in the army, they have, unfortunately, 48 widows of the bogrim from the yeshiva. He was describing when his son was going to the army and was saying: “I’m wearing a helmet from Canada, a flashlight from New York, and boots from Miami. It’s not just that I feel the love, I also feel like I’m representing all those communities as well.” Deep in Gaza, in the tunnels, in Lebanon, in the freezing cold trenches, you have people who are actually fighting for Jews all around the world. Because antisemitism is found everywhere: on the campus and on the street. What happens in Eretz Yisrael affects Jews all over the world.
AS: How does the Israel Chesed Center fit into that picture?
RYT: The amazing thing about the Israel Chesed Center is that the people who volunteer are highly motivated and energized about making a difference. It’s an amazing thing because if it was centralized in one community, it would only be as good as the pool of that community. But this pool is much larger because it pulls in everybody. There are so many talented people in this community who suddenly found each other. That’s the best part about it. Suddenly, we have people who have creative abilities. I was just looking at the walls. There’s a woman in our shul who’s an artist, so she has paintings up there, selling them to the community. There’s another person just doing the runs to the airport. There’s another person who has found a source for thermal underwear. Everybody is doing their piece, and it has allowed very talented people to energize themselves through helping Israel. To me, that is an incredible achievement.
AS: What is the next call to action that you feel people in our community should do as we get further from October 7th? You have to take care of your day-to-day needs, but you also have to keep Israel on the top of your mind. How do we do that?
RYT: It’s a hard thing because we’re all exhausted. The truth is, as exhausted as we’re feeling, Israelis are feeling much more exhausted. Every time we say to ourselves that, okay, we’re done, we just have to remember that their children, their husbands, their spouses, are still in the army and they’re still doing single parenthood, and there’s a lot of collateral impact. It also comes down to relationships. As important as it is to send equipment, money, and chizuk, relationships are also important. Everybody here knows people who are in the army. Many have visited Israel and are connected to people who are there. I believe that during this next stage of the journey, we have to forge long-term relationships, which means even if it’s just a question of scheduling some time to call or text someone we know who is in the army or has a family member in the army, we have to maintain those relationships. I think that is where the long-term healing will be the most impactful. And this applies to displaced people as well. We must do whatever it takes to maintain that connection. That is an incredible way to connect and provide chizuk.
AS: I’ve read reports that when a person is grieving, sometimes the best thing people can do is just to reach out and say, “How are you?” In this case, the trauma was on a societal level.
RYT: The Chesed Center provides the opportunity of not just sending supplies, but also connecting to the people directly involved. Now it’s time to deepen those connections, which means to say that we must maintain those relationships. And it’s incredibly rewarding. One of the things to do through our shul is “Mishpacha-to-Mishpacha,” which is pairing up families here with displaced families. It’s really long-lasting and highly motivational to see when they come together. We can do that. You send boots to somebody. You receive a thank you text. The next step is to keep that personal connection. Now, when they tell you the next thing that is happening, work through the Chesed Center to figure out what they need next and then maintain the relationship. That itself is going to provide an incredible net of comfort and also support through the ongoing crisis.
AS: That’s definitely the role that we have to take here.
RYT: I commend every person who has gone above and beyond. We need to continue to stand up for the Jewish people. I have one guarantee: our children are watching. They will understand and they will do what we do. If we give love and care, our children will notice and b’ezrat Hashem, they will do the same.
For more information about the Israel Chesed Center, or to inquire about hosting an event in partnership with the ICC, please contact israelchesedcenter@gmail.com or visit 1315 Peninsula Blvd. in Hewlett, or IsraelChesedCenter.com.
