It’s called ‘making a difference’. Making a difference in the lives of courageous people who are faced with life’s crises. And sometimes it is making a difference by actually saving lives.
A long-time Queens resident together with his family have truly made a difference in the lives of so many with their recent donation of a Command Center- an office on wheels- to Ezer Mizion. Dedicated by Allan Kinches, Reuvaine and Joyce Kinches and Elliott and Nicole Kinches in loving memory of Marilyn Kinches, Morris and Ann Kinches, Norman and Geraldine Katz, Norman Kinches, the Command Center has already begun helping Jews worldwide.
The new Command Center had made its debut on Lag B’Omer. The logistics in coordinating the myriad of details involved in facilitating transports for the elderly, the disabled and the ill by Ezer Mizion’s Ambulance Service are complex indeed. The Kinches Command Center trailer played a major role in facilitating ambulance transport for mobility impaired people up and down the mountain. It has a full IT setup, with computerized map displays of the entire Meron area. The trailer has its own AC and generator and was set up with its own land-line phone system for coordinating the trips to and from the ziyon of Rabbi Shimon and the entire team. (Land-lines are used for greater reliability. Last year the cell phones at Meron all crashed, and Ezer Mizion was the only communication source, via land lines. Ezer Mizion land-lines were then shared with Hatzalah for their vital work.)
The Ezer Mizion International Jewish Bone marrow Registry has saved countless lives but too many are still waiting for the genetic match that will translate into a life-saving transplant. It is vital that the registry be enlarged to increase the chances of a positive response to each heartrending query. The Command Center was put to good use towards this end. At Elad, we came closer to our goal when 800 (!) Yeshiva students from Yeshivat Torah veTefarta registered as new potential donors using the Kinches Command Center as its base. These new registrants will remain on the database for decades, ready to save the life of any cancer patient of matching genetics.
No sooner does the Command Center complete one assignment than it is needed for another. Summer has arrived and Ezer Mizion Summer Camps are in full swing. Some camps serve children with special needs enabling them to continue their growth during this period when there is no formal schooling plus allow the families to enjoy a breather when they can bond in summertime fun without the complexities and extreme difficulties of including the special child. Other camps serve families dealing with cancer enabling them to experience a vacation from cancer enjoying family fun and good times together.
The Kinches Command Center will be stationed at the Ezer Mizion Camp for Special Needs where it will serve as a hydrating station and afternoon refreshment stand, distributing snacks and goodies for 400 campers and 550 volunteer counselors and staff. It will also serve as an on-site outdoor distribution or service station for any of the particular needs relating to any specific day’s activities. Like what? Like a full-day of rides with a Traveling Amusement Park or Floating Air Castle Day when campers, staff and volunteers are treated to ice cream. How did we manage other summers prior to the Command Center? Simple. Mesiras nefesh. Our volunteers sat all day under the broiling Israel sun with only a table shade to protect them and the snacks they served. Ice cold drinks? Ice cream? Only a dream…
As summer merges into fall, the Kinches Command Center will fill many more roles enabling Ezer Mizion provide the best service for the 720,000 that knock on the organization’s doors each year.
