GHA Mitzvah Project Benefits Israeli Hospital
SPECIAL FOR THE AJT //
Excitement rippled through the halls of GHA as 11-year-old Orli Rose returned to the school that she had left two years before.
The Rose family had been a vital part of the GHA family for a long time, with both Dr. Daniel and Jacqueline Rose teaching at GHA and their children attending the school. The Roses had returned to their home in Israel; and although they were out of sight, they were never out of the minds or hearts of their friends at the Greenfield Hebrew Academy.
Orli had come to the school to speak about a cause that had long been very important to the Rose family: the Schneider Children’s Hospital in Petach Tikva, Israel.
In 2006, a young cousin of theirs had been diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer. The Rose family, eager to help somehow, had started running races to benefit the hospital that had done so much to bring their little relative good health.
So when Orli was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in January of 2013, the Roses already knew where the best care was to be found. And now that Orli has completed her treatment, once again, the Roses are giving back – and the Greenfield Hebrew Academy is standing right behind them, ready to help.
Spearheaded by Orli’s former classmates, now in the sixth grade, GHA has created a mitzvah project to benefit the Schneider Children’s Hospital. It will include a 5K run/walk called LaRutz LaTet L’ha’Ir, (“to run, to give, to light”).
L’ha’Ir refers to both the date the race will be run (Nov. 26, just a few days before Chanukah) and to Orli’s name, which means, “my light.”
“The doctors and nurses who looked after me were really nice,” explained Orli. “Once, a rabbi there even gave me a bracha (blessing) for good health.”
Each family at GHA is being asked to contribute at least $10 to the fundraiser. Older students will complete the 5 kilometer circuit between 10 a.m. and noon on Feb. 26, while younger students will do their walk/run around the soccer field.
Meanwhile, in Israel Dr. Rose has created a marathon that will be run from the family home to the grounds of the Schneider Children’s Hospital, 42.2 kilometers, with a carnival at the finish line. All funds raised from both events will be donated directly to the hospital.
“Our students may graduate or move away, but we never forget them. They are always part of our GHA family, and members of a family care for each other,” says Interim Head of School Leah Summers. “We are so grateful to the Schneider Children’s Hospital for taking such great care of Orli, and we’re delighted to have the chance to ‘pay it forward’ to help other children to get the care they need.”
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