This week an urgent fundraising campaign was launched by a young mother of four in Israel. Her husband reportedly started a yeshiva, which accrued a massive amount of debt over time. He was given a choice: Pay the debt, or go to jail. Shortly before Pesach, the rosh yeshiva was sent to jail. The family has now attracted international attention, as the mother’s desperate plea and photos of the now fatherless children circulate.
Rav Azriel Auerbach has released a statement [below] in public support of the man’s character, as well as the urgency of the family’s need.
The mother’s moving statement was as follows:
“Hello, my name is Liba, and I am living a mother’s worst nightmare.
My husband is currently sitting in jail because of debts that are simply not his fault. It breaks my heart to see a kind, innocent Jewish man sitting behind bars when he has done nothing wrong.
I am home alone with four small children. We spent Pesach without their father.
They cry and ask me, ‘when is daddy coming home?’ My answer is simply, ‘whenever Hashem helps us to pay the debt, kinderlach.’
I have no option in this world other than to beg for the help of strangers. I need my husband, and my children need their father. Can you find it in your heart to help us?
If you can we would be so, so grateful. This is a very painful experience, and we are desperate.
Thank you
Liba”
Having just finished the holiday, it is difficult for most to imagine spending Pesach in the cramped conditions of an Israeli jail cell. Those close to Liba and her children hope they will receive the help they need to live a normal life once again.
CLICK HERE TO DONATE
CLICK HERE TO SEE THE FULL CAMPAIGN
HASCAMA FROM RAV AZRIEL AUERBACH:
