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 ”  56 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE his desire to make known the story told in the Gemara (Bava Batra 10b) that tells of Rabbi Hananiah Ben Tradyon and his charity fund, and asserts that Kupat Ha’ir ful fills this misvah in the current generation. CAREFUL SELECTION – DIGNIFIED EXECUTION Another unique feature of the organization is the requirement of all those requesting funds to submit a formal application. This means that there is no such thing as “connections” or favoritism on the basis of a personal relationship to somebody involved in the organization. Instead, everyone is viewed equally, while evaluated individually. Moreover, all applications are handled with strict anonymity, in an effort to guarantee the privacy and dignity of each and every applicant. Very often, needy families feel ashamed, embarrassed, or unwilling to compromise their dignity by coming forward to request financial support or help of some sort. Kupat Ha’ir recognizes this obstacle and therefore guarantees absolute anonymity, thereby encouraging all fami- lies in need to come forward without hesitation. On the last Mosa’ei Shabbat of every month, six Rabbis selected by Rav Kanievsky shelit”a – Rav Stern Shelit”a , Rav Silman Shelit”a , Rav Alkrif shelit”a , Rav Gross shelit”a , Rav Klein shelit”a , and Rav Shafran shelit”a – meet to review each application. The situation of each family is re-assessed every few months to determine their levels of need as well as changes to their circumstances. Kupat Ha’ir operates all year long, not merely on holidays, so that one can perform this misvah as often as possible, at any time. During the month of Shevat this year (5768/2008), Kupat Ha’ir distributed 6,330,000 shekels to needy families. Last year (5767/2006-7), 70,980,000 shekels, or approximately $18.2 million, was distributed by the organization, making it currently second only to Israel’s National Insurance Institute in the amount of financial support provided to those in need. THE SEPHARDIC CONNECTION While Kupat Ha’ir serves as a major source of support for all observant Jews in Israel, it is particularly noteworthy that nearly 60 percent to 70 percent of all the families it assists are of Sephardic descent. It thus behooves us, the American Sephardic community, to lend a generous, supportive hand to the work of Kupat Ha’ir. The Sephardic community has long been known for the close bonds that connect all its members, and the unconditional support given to one another. These are the foundations upon which our community is built and that have allowed it to grow and flourish for so many centuries. For this reason, American representatives of Kupat Ha’ir found it necessary to bring the organization’s work to the attention of the Sephardic communities of Brooklyn, Deal, Lakewood and Florida. Many of our Rabbis have showed tremendous sup- port and have helped extensively in alerting our community members to the need to support our Sephardic brothers and sisters in Israel. While many community members have indeed responded generously to the Rabbis’ appeal, we have yet to reach the point of 100 percent involvement. According to the Gedolim, it is difficult to overstate the value and merit of contributing to this cause. Rav Kanievsky shelit”a commented, “Certainly, contributing sedaka to a wor- thy cause such as Kupat Ha’ir is a proper form of hishtadlut [human effort], which brings many yeshuot [salvations] to both individuals and the general public. We see many such examples in Tanach and Hazal. Of course, the intention is not that who- ever gives charity will certainly be helped; sometimes there are other factors that hold back a yeshuah . The intention of the Tanach and Hazal is that the merit of giving charity to the poor is very powerful indeed and that this is a suitable and proper form of hishtadlut .” If you are still unsure whether Kupat Ha’ir is worthy of receiving your donation, please ask your own Rabbi about the organization. The Rabbis of the Sephardic community are very familiar with the activities of Kupat Ha’ir and thus qualified to advise regarding the organization’s worthiness. CONTACT KUPAT HA’IR 866-221-9352 OR AT INFO@KUPATHAIRUSA.ORG Hacham Yaakov Hilel shlita lvation. nd the yeshua came...” the man said, laughing ud as he wiped the tears of joy from his eyes. came in the blink of an eye! A short while later, a eat suggestion came up, and my son found what was looking for. He married a short while later. hat can I tell you?” he said, fixing his eyes on ne. His eyes were filled with gratitude, the way ly the eyes of one who has known suffering – d then salvation – can be. “Contribute. ntribute. You have only to gain!” A Note from Hacham Yackov Hillel shelit"a: When t e G dolei Yisrael ar involved in the distribution of Kupat Hai'r and the doing of chessed in the most wonderful way with huge sums of money, as w know huge numbers of bnei Torah and needy families who receive assistance – everyone can be sure that the ney goes x ctly as needed and everyone fulfills the mitzvah in the most beautiful way. Rav Aharon Leib Steinman shlita