“Our Son With Cerebral Palsy Changed Our Shlichus”

By COLlive reporter

At the recent banquet saluting the dedication of Chabad Shluchim in the Holy Land of Israel, a moving video production was shown telling the story of a young Shliach, the son of Rabbi Arie and Mushka Prus (nee Azimov) in the southern city of Ashkelon and his impact on his family and community.

Here is the story as told by Rabbi Prus:

“My wife and I got married 10 years ago and looked for a place to go on Shlichus. We were offered to go to Neve Hadarim, a new neighborhood in Ashkelon that was just starting to be populated. Everything was new – new people, new streets etc.

“We agreed and arrived full of energy. We got to know people and helped them spiritually to settle into their new lives.

“We were a young couple with a small child, and Boruch Hashem we made friends with everyone we met. It was a great beginning, the work was very fulfilling, and we felt that we had found our place.

“A year after we moved, our son Mendy was born prematurely. He was hospitalized for a few months in the ICU, and was unfortunately diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Our lives completely changed.

“We went through a very difficult period which included constant rushing to the hospital and doctors, reciting prayers, shedding tears and of course, facing expensive bills.

“On Chanukah, when Mendy was in the ICU, a fellow Shliach in Ashkelon called me and asked about my event that was planned for later that day. It seems he didn’t really know what was going on with my child, but his call reminded me of the events that we had planned and announced weeks earlier.

“I gathered myself and got into my car. I told myself, “I have a cellphone. If something happens, the hospital will know how to find me. Better to do something useful than to just sit around.”

“I spent a few hours running public Menorah lightings. The events were full of energy. There was singing, reciting the brachos and speaking with the people. I did all this whilst at the back of my mind, my thoughts kept going back to the child who is now fighting for his life.

“The events ended, I said goodbye to the crowds and went back to saying Tehillim at the ICU through the night.

“This was now our life and we learned to live with it. We understood that whether we like it or not, we have a new Shlichus within our general Shlichus in the city. We have a special child, and our job is to give him the opportunity to grow and develop as best possible, to be his mother and father and to be there for him 100%.

“Mendy is today is 8 and a half years old and he is fully integrated into our community and is an inseparable part of our activities. Despite his being confined to a wheelchair, and not being able to talk or communicate other than by smiling, the entire community really loves him. He comes with me to Shul and sits with the other children at Mesibos Shabbos.

On Sukkos, we tie our Sukkah Mobile to his wheelchair and walk around the neighborhood with it. Mendy learns in a special rehab school, and we do a Lag Baomer Parade there which of course he is at the center of.

“When you walk around with him, people everywhere look at you differently. They really respect it – “look, here’s a child in a wheelchair joining his father on Mivtzoim.”

“Every challenge that Hashem sends our way, he first gives us the strength to handle it. I don’t know where I had the strength to manage it, but the fact is that every time we were in financial difficulty, or any other challenge, things just worked out right every time. It’s clear to me that the Rebbe’s brachos accompany us.

“The Rebbe said regarding autistic children, that it’s not that they can’t connect with anyone. It is just that they can’t communicate with people – they can, however, connect with Hashem just like anyone else, and sometimes even more so because they are not busy with others and are busy only with Hashem.

“After Krias Yam Suf, when the Yidden were on the way to receive the Torah, they stopped to collect the gold and silver of the Egyptians. They understood that when Hashem sends you a special Shlichus (opportunity), even if on the way to something as important as Mattan Torah, you have to be there 100%. This is the path to success in Avodas Hashem and Avodas Hashlichus, to be there completely for each and every Yid.”

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