Some say it takes a village to raise a child, but it takes an extraordinary organization like Avigdor’s Helping Hand to pick up the pieces of a family’s shattered lives and hold their hands from sorrow through joy.
Much has been accomplished by Avigdor’s Helping Hand since the inception of this exemplary organization. Graced by the approbation of distinguished rabbanim and rebbes, AHH is a first responder when tragedy strikes, r’l. Peruse the letters of appreciation and view the video trailer on the AHH website; each tells the story of a family rescued from the depths of despair. Attesting to the selfless efforts of the dedicated volunteers at the forefront of AHH, the following heartfelt narratives are truly breathtaking:
To Avigdor’s Helping Hand,
I don’t know how with mere words to express my hakaras hatov…on so many levels. (The volunteers of) your amazing organization are the unsung heroes of Klal Yisrael. For the tremendous work, effort, time, and the funding you graciously provide, I personally, and Klal Yisrael as a whole, owe you a tremendous thanks. Mi keamcha Yisrael!
You personify the concept of doing chesed, of giving of one’s self, of caring for other human beings. It is my hope and prayer that you continue with this avodas hakodesh and may you and Klal Yisrael continue to see the fruits of your labor.
On a personal note…since my wife passed away more than two-and-a-half years ago, the shidduch process for my kids took a big hit. Your initiative and help with my daughter’s chasunah is an incalculable yeshuah as we go through this difficult process alone.
Thank you!
ZH
My newly wedded wife and I wanted to extend our gratitude to Avigdor’s Helping Hand. My wife has entered my life by the grace of Hashem, allowing Avigdor’s Helping Hand to be the channel in doing so.
Without the help of the organization, our wedding might not have occurred, and for that we have a tremendous amount of hakaras hatov. The kindness extended went beyond all bounds of expectation and really was a true chesed. We hope that with Hashem’s will, the organization will continue to act in its heroic manner in which we hope to one day be a part of and partake in the mitzvah.
With heartfelt appreciation, …
Last night I walked Dina down the aisle to her new beginning. If only it could have been her mother at her side…but sadly, she is emotionally unwell.
If only it could have been her father, a’h, but he passed away when Dina was merely six years old. But you see, I was not alone when I led her seven times around her dear chassan. It was you, the members of Avigdor’s Helping Hand, who symbolically held her other arm and helped her walk into her chuppah with a clearer mind and relieved spirit.
It is precisely you, the volunteers at every level of organization, whether administrative, fundraising, or executive management, who make orphans like Dina feel not alone, feel like they matter to people out there!
You see, at the age of 32, Dina felt her prayers were finally answered. Unfortunately, she was no stranger to challenges and trials and was searching for a husband all the while financially grappling to support herself.
When Dina got engaged, I pondered how we were going to make her wedding happen. And that is how organizations like Avigdor’s Helping Hand stepped in.
Throughout my whole experience being in contact with AHH, I truly felt the inner passion of the organization to assist these orphans in need. During the application process, Dina wasn’t treated like a number on a roster, another applicant with trailing paperwork. There was genuine care and concern. And when I shared Dina’s story with the members of this organization, I received genuine care instead of ambivalence and indifference (due to the magnitude of applicants). Even as I got caught up in assisting Dina with her wedding preps and got delayed following up, it was AHH who reached out to me to follow up and inquire as to the status of the application.
It mattered to the people of this organization that these particular chassanim and kallahs don’t wait anxiously at home for the assistance; that it arrives in a timely manner so they embark on their new journey with menuchas hanefesh!
May Hashem bentch you with continued mazel, berachah, hatzlachah, health, and parnassah, and may you all always be in the position to be the givers and not the recipients. Tizku l’mitzvos!
With deep gratitude,
G.T.* – A Close Friend of the Kallah
These poignant letters of appreciation are representative of the notes penned from the heart—beautiful expressions of hakaras hatov AHH receives from the many families they have helped. Since its founding seventeen years ago, Avigdor’s Helping Hand has, baruch Hashem, never had to turn a family away due to lack of funds. This is because the AHH’s gala annual fundraiser ensures the organization’s continued ability to provide financial relief for grieving families in their darkest hours.
Graciously hosted by Bilhah and David Moradi, who have opened their beautiful home and welcomed AHH into their hearts for the past 16 years, the event is in recognition of the sponsors who have supported AHH since its inception. True chesed heroes, they are committed to ensuring that no family member who has lost a spouse or parent is ever alone.
What makes this event truly unique, however, is that it is a celebration of chesed in its purest form, a loving legacy to the memory of Avigdor Glaser, z’l, the extraordinary ben Torah in whose zechus Avigdor’s Helping Hand was created.
To know Avigdor was to love him. A devoted family man, he was adored by his wife and their three children and beloved by his parents and siblings. He was a highly accomplished person who lived his life according to the tenets of the Torah and touched the lives of all who knew him. After studying in Yeshiva Merkaz HaTorah in Eretz Yisrael, Avigdor pursued his undergraduate studies at Queens College and then attended Fordham Law School, where he graduated at the top of his class. Personable and unpretentious, this gifted young man was a successful attorney at a prestigious law firm.
Tragically, Avigdor passed away on September 29, 2005, when he was only 30 years old, leaving his family devastated. His petirah left a tremendous void in the community. Overcome with grief, his family sought to create a charity that would perpetuate Avigdor’s life and be a treasured legacy for this precious ben Torah. The most fitting tribute to honor the memory of their beloved husband, father, son, and brother would be a chesed organization that comforted families experiencing chaos and unbearable pain in the aftermath of the death of a spouse. Thus was Avigdor’s Helping Hand established.
We all know of families that have suffered the devastating loss of the primary wage-earning husband or wife, leaving the surviving spouse and children bereft, broken, and in unbearable pain. They are people who have lived lives similar to our own until tragedy indiscriminately struck, wreaking havoc on their lives.
For those who are left behind, the effects of such a tragedy are horrific: children bereft of their precious parents, wives without their beloved husbands, and husbands without their cherished wives. Even before the economic impact begins to engulf them, the magnitude of their suffering is too much to bear.
Even in cases where insurance or governmental assistance is available, it may often take weeks or months for these benefits to be processed and made available to the family. That is where Avigdor’s Helping Hand comes in.
Functioning as a disaster relief fund, Avigdor’s Helping Hand is a beacon of hope amid a sea of despair, a veritable lifeline for bereaved families in their darkest hour. Visit their website and you will surely be touched, as was this writer, by the many beautiful and heartfelt letters of appreciation from individuals and families who have been helped by this outstanding chesed organization.
Every detail is handled b’derech kovod u’v’derech tzniyus—with the utmost degree of respect and modesty. Accordingly, the name of any individual or family who has been helped by AHH has been deleted from any letters or documents appearing on their website, several of which we have included in this article.
“Everything is done in accordance to da’as Torah,” explained Eli Glaser, Avigdor’s father. “Our Rabbinic Board is comprised of chashuveh rabbanim, headed by our esteemed posek, HaRav Noach Isaac Oelbaum, with whom we consult whenever a sheilah arises.”
To date, Avigdor’s Helping Hand has dispensed $9 million, made over 1,200 weddings for orphans throughout the United States, and helped 400 qualified families who have suffered the tragic loss of a spouse. Each applicant is required to submit two letters with his or her application: one from their rabbi, the second from a chesed organization. With meticulous attention to every detail, the application is reviewed; rabbis and other references are called.
“Every application involves an intense due diligence process,” Eli told the 5TJT. “We have established a committee to evaluate each applicant with the utmost degree of sensitivity and confidentiality. We step in immediately to provide a cash stipend to provide the spouse and family with financial support. Every application is reviewed with complete confidentiality, and all details are handled with dignity.” Featured on the website are letters from many Roshei Yeshivos from across the country. The money is discretionary and may be used to offset any expense, such as food, housing costs, mortgage payments, childcare, utility payments, etc.
Truly an exemplar of chesed, Avigdor’s Helping Hand has introduced Spreading The Joy—A New AHH Initiative for sharing your simcha!
Are you making a simcha? Mazel tov! What better way of celebrating than by spreading the joy to those less fortunate? Please join Avigdor’s Helping Hand in helping make chasunahs for yesomim. In addition to the great merit of this tremendous mitzvah, this is also an opportunity for the yosom or yesoma to daven for you under their chuppah. Complete confidentiality is ensured between all ba’alei simcha.
Prior to Pesach, AHH dispensed Kimcha dPischa to widows to help defray the expenses involved in preparing for yom tov. “Following our successful Kimcha dPischa distribution, we plan to dispense funds prior to Rosh Hashanah as well,” Eli shared. Currently, AHH operates on an annual budget of $1 million.
For the dedicated volunteers who give selflessly of themselves, AHH is truly a labor of love. “The devotion of our dedicated volunteers is immeasurable,” Eli says. “They are doctors, lawyers, business men and women, hedge fund managers working long hours with young families to support. Over the past year, we’ve seen an increase in the number of volunteers who have joined us. Each volunteer has a unique job to perform which is done with such dedication. They tell us how their lives have changed, of the tremendous chizuk they are getting as a result of being part of Avigdor’s Helping Hand. Each and every one of these wonderful young people is our partner. They are the reason, b’ezras Hashem, for our success. AHH is staffed by volunteers, except for our part-time bookkeeper. We are very grateful to our corporate sponsors for their generous support and are extremely thankful to them for being the key to our success.”
Their grief is agonizing. Their despair is unbearable. Please show them they are not alone. Please show your support for this extraordinary organization by making a donation on their campaign web page. Go to Neveraloneahh.com, which is the theme for this year’s event. For further information, regarding sponsorship opportunities, please call 718-568-9720. Tizku l’mitzvos! n
Rochelle Maruch Miller is a contributing editor for the Five Towns Jewish Times. She is a journalist, creative media consultant, lecturer, and educator, and writes for magazines, newspapers, websites, and private clients. She welcomes your comments at Rochellemiller04@aol.com. Read more of Rochelle Miller’s articles at 5TJT.com.