Every year, the special Jerusalem Vaad LeInyonei
Tzedokoh (Committee for Tzedokoh), under the guidance and
leadership of the city's gedolei harabbonim,
distributes appeal envelopes for matonos le'evyonim
for Purim. These envelopes are placed in mailboxes throughout
all chareidi neighborhoods and bear the stamp of the
Vaad.
As Purim approaches, the Vaad calls upon the public to
make certain that the envelopes in which they send their
contributions bear this stamp. As is known, gedolei
haTorah from all circles and groups of the chareidi
community participate in this committee.
The manner of distributing the envelopes was determined by
the rabbonim upon consultation with the tzedokoh
trustees of the various neighborhoods, in order to save
expenses and to enable larger amounts to be channeled toward
the needy. All applications for help are carefully examined
by the rabbinical committee. Although there are many such
appeals, only a small amount is accepted. Requests for help
which were included in last year's appeal were not approved
this year.
The rabbonim on the presidium of the committee decided that
the appeal be reserved only for special cases, such as for
people who must undergo transplants, or invalids whose debts
exceed $100,000, especially when the cases involve
outstanding talmidei chachomim whom the rabbonim of
the committee recognize as such. It was also decided that the
monies will be delivered directly to the needy themselves or
to their families.
This year there were more than one hundred requests, the
majority urgent as well as heart-rending. Priorities were set
according to the criteria of the rabbinical committee.
As a result, it was decided to appeal for only 35 cases,
which include people who must undergo transplants, needy
individuals whose health has reached life endangering
situations, converts lacking any means of support, widows,
orphans, adopted children, and great talmidei
chachomim whose debts are so heavy that they are unable
to provide their families with minimal sustenance and have
reached the point that their situation impedes their
avodas hakodesh.
Although the committee's supervision applies only to the
envelopes distributed in the mail in the package containing
the symbol of the Vaad Harabbonim LeInyonei Tzedokoh,
the rabbinical committee doesn't rule out the need to help
other people.
The Committee notes that those who contribute to these
important appeals not only fulfill the mitzvah of matonos
le'evyonim but are partners to the mitzvo of hatzolas
nefoshos. The committee relates that the public has
already begun to contribute generously. Committee assistants
estimate that if everyone who receives such an pack of
envelopes would contribute only 5 shekel per case, each needy
person on the list would receive 250,000 shekels.
