Yosie Fogel z’l Memorial Reception Held on Behalf of P’eylim/Lev L’Achim

On Tuesday evening, July 18th, the Monsey community gathered at the Forshay home of Mr. & Mrs. Yitzie Fogel, for what has become an annual inspirational highlight of the Three Weeks.

The Yosie Fogel z’l Memorial Reception on behalf of P’eylim/Lev L’Achim celebrates the memory of an unforgettable tzadik while at the same time perpetuating his passion for helping others. Yosie Fogel z’l devoted his heart and soul to helping Lev L’Achim fund PROJECT RISHUM, their Torah school enrollment drive in Eretz Yisroel. And thanks to his efforts hundreds of boys and girls are today living lives committed to Torah U’Mitzvos.

Yosie’s legacy is propagated by the entire Fogel family, led by his brothers Shalom and Yitzie, who carry on the mission of reaching out to their neighbors and associates in order to boost the enrollment drive during the crucial final weeks before the new school year.

Yosie z’l forged a special bond of love and mutual respect with the unforgettable Tzadik Rav Uri Zohar zt’l, who made a point of attending this event for many years. The evening marked the recent first yahrzeit of Rav Uri’s zt’l.

Rav Lipa Geldwerth, the dynamic Mara D’Asra of Khal Kol Torah of Flatbush and R’M at Yeshiva Torah Temimah, whose passionate delivery has made him one of the most sought-after Rabbinic lecturers of our time, was the guest speaker. Rav Geldwerth delivered an impassioned address and noted that Yosie Fogel z’l embodied the words “Lev L’Achim” in his love of his fellow Jew and his devotion to the movement in Eretz Yisroel.

The overflow audience, which filled the living and dining rooms and was directed to various parts of the Fogel home where they followed the proceedings via video-screen hookups, was treated as well to a spellbinding video production: “Rav Uri Zohar zt;l: The Heart & Soul of Lev L’Achim”. Through the eyes of the video lens, the audience “saw” the nationwide network of evening Batei Medrash of Lev L’Achim, the operations of Lev HaKotel, the Midrashot for teenagers, the Door-T0-Door home visitations by thousands of volunteer Kollel yungeleit and their effect on hundreds of individuals. They witnessed the change in thousands of people and their newfound aspirations to grow in Torah and Mitzvos despite the many obstacles they face. And they saw how all of these programs bore the imprint of Rav Uri Zohar zt’l. The poignant photos at the end, recalling the many years of Rav Uri’s friendship with the Fogel family, moved the audience beyond words.

As the speakers invoked the memory of Yosie Fogel z'l and his unparalleled devotion to his fellow Jew, it became clear why this great ohaiv Yisroel was so passionate about Lev L'Achim. May the many children who will taste the beauty of Torah for the first time this September, thanks to this event, stand as a living tribute to the legacy of Yosie Fogel z'l and his partners at P'eylim / Lev L'Achim.