Every Child Deserves a Chance

A personal message from Rabbi Chaim Kaminker, founder and director of Keren Yeshua, about my commitment to helping our community’s most vulnerable children and families.

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Last week, we asked you to imagine the pain felt by a family whose child is pushed out of the Yeshiva system due to financial struggles, academic challenges, or behavioral difficulties.

This week, we invite you to envision the difference that Keren Yeshua makes. Imagine being embraced instead of rejected, valued instead of overlooked, and seen and accepted.

Every day, I hear some version of the following sentiment: “Just knowing someone cares—before anything is even solved—means the world to us.”

These families are in crisis, facing hardships such as illness, divorce, devastating loss, and more. Just last week, we spoke to a father whose wife has been battling stage 4 cancer for three years. He struggles to balance work with caring for his wife and children, who risk being suspended from their Yeshiva. This family needs hope. They need help.

At Keren Yeshua, we provide both by first listening, understanding, and embracing them with care. Then, the real work begins: advocating, mediating, and finding solutions to keep these children safe and enrolled in Yeshiva.

This work is not easy, as each family is different, and their challenges are unique, but it is deeply personal. Our son Shua, of blessed memory, loved school, enjoyed the company of his classmates and friends, and had every opportunity to thrive while receiving an excellent Jewish education. Every child deserves the same, and I strive to make that possible in Shua’s memory.

This week, in honor of what would have been Shua’s Bar Mitzvah on the 3rd of Nisan, we launched the JOIN OUR EMBRACE crowdfunding campaign. Success in this campaign will allow us to double the number of families we serve next year.

Join our joyful embrace by donating today at charidy.com/JoinOurEmbrace.