Producing CDs and Chessed Hamodia Junior February 8

Producing CDs and Chessed

By Debbie Shapiro

Can you imagine living in a factory? Well, meet Tzvi and Elisheva Vindler. Their factory, Remez productions, duplicates discs, is operated from their three room apartment. All day long, the machines are producing discs in the spare bedroom while workers are busy packaging the discs on the dining room table.

Mr. Vindler, why do you run your factory from your home?

That's a good question! We do it for our workers, so that they'll feel comfortable and at home while on the job. All our workers have special needs. They have trouble doing many of the things that we take for granted. Only one of our workers can count, for example, and most of them do not understand the meaning of money. Since they work in a home, if they're tired of working they can go into the kitchen and help my wife with the cooking – and learn important life skills at the same time – or even lie down in the bedroom and take a nap.

"Even though we pay our workers a regular salary, we're really a rehabilitation center. I work hard at teaching our boys life skills. It takes a lot of patience to show them how to buy something in the store. They have to be taught how to get to the store, find the proper product, pay for it, take their change and return home without losing anything, or getting lost themselves. Although they find it difficult – for most of them, it's the first time they've ever been given any responsibility – when they are successful, they are so very proud of their accomplishments!"

How did you get involved with people with special needs?

"Before I opened Remez Productions, I had a worked for a computer company, delivering and installing computer parts. Then I hurt my leg at a wedding and wasn't able to carry heavy things. So my boss hired a mentally disabled young man to carry things for me me. I really enjoyed working with him, and was able to teach him many important life skills, such as how to count and how to cash a check. He soon became part of my family, so when I opened Remez Productions, he continued working for me.

Today, we have six young men working here. Each of them is unique. Shlomo, for example, talks to himself. [I'll either use a pseudonym, or if it's ok with the parents, I'll use their real names. tell me a litte about each of the workers, including name, problem and what type of work they are capable of doing --- Jack lives just down the block, but he gets lost walking to the factory, so someone has to accompany him. He can, however, paste labels on the CDs, a job that requires a lot of attention to detail. ???? can't tie a knot, but he can???? . We taught ???? how to burn CDs, a job that requires a lot of skill and WHAT ELSE? We were all so proud of him, and he was so proud of himself!

The boys have other challenges too. They have to be kept constantly busy, so if we don't have work for them in the factory, we keep them occupied cutting vegetables or sweeping the floors. Erev Pesach, one boy even cleaned the stove and refrigerator! NAME is constantly washing his hands, while NAME speaks to himself throughout the day. Each boy is different. They have unique personalities, and individual strengths and weaknesses – but then again, doesn't everyone?

When did you open Remez Productions?

About five years ago. A friend of mine needed a lot of discs duplicated, but couldn't find anyone to do it, so he asked me if I'd take on the project.  At first, we duplicated the discs on several computers, but that was REALLY time consuming. Then, I built a tower of twenty duplicating machines. Today, we three towers with a total of sixty duplicating machines.

Very often, the discs need a lot of editing before they can be duplicated. A disc of a school play, for example might be a combination of three different videos; that way we put in the good shots, and leave out all the bloopers. COULD YOU TELL ME A GOOD STORY ABOUT THAT – FOR EXAMPLE THE GIRL BLOWING HER NOSE ON STAGE, WHICH YOU REMOVED, OR SOMETHING SIMILAR! Sometimes the audio quality is not so great, so I fix that with the computer, or I do special effects, such as adding an echo or combining voices. It takes a lot of skill and patience to make a topnotch product.

Once the disc is ready, we start duplicating them on our towers. Have you ever burnt a disc on your home computer? Well, that's what we do when we duplicate discs here in our factory, but instead of burning just one disc, we burn anywhere from fifty to five thousand! We have three towers of disc duplicating machines, and each tower consists of twenty machines, so we have a total of sixty duplicating machines. It takes a lot of skill and patience to duplicate the discs properly, so either my wife, Mrs. Vindler, or NAME OF WORKER does it. They place an empty disc into each machine, close the machine, and two minutes later, when the discs have been duplicated, they remove each individual disc and place them on the table, for our workers to take into the living room where they will label and package them. Sometimes, if we have a large order, Mrs. Vindler or NAME will spend a full eight hours duplicating discs! It's a lot of work, but they enjoy doing it because they know that afterwards people will enjoy watching or listening to the CDs.

One of our workers brings the finished discs to the living room, where our workers carefully place the labels on the discs. Working with each customer, I design the labels and then print them on special adhesive paper, so that all our workers have to do is peel back the paper and place the label on the disc. We always have a tape going, and our supervisor NAME is there with the boys to make sure that they do the work properly. It takes skill to stick the labels on. First, the labels have to be carefully removed from the paper, then they have to be put on the disc smoothly, and not bunched up. If the boys place the sticker on the wrong side of the disc, the disc becomes unusable. It sounds pretty uncomplicated, but our workers are disabled, and it took a lot of patience to teach them these skills.

While some of our workers are placing labels on the discs, other workers are packaging them, either in clear plastic casings or in small plastic bags. Here, the boys are taught how to hold and package the disc without damaging it. Did you notice that our dining room table is covered with a special felt (???) cloth? That's to prevent the discs from getting scratched.

Now that the discs are labeled and packaged, we just have to pack them in boxes or plastic bags and deliver them to the customer. Many different types of people use our service; from rabbis, to kiruv organizations to all the seminaries in Jerusalem. Even the police and the Jerusalem Municipality come to us to duplicate discs. It's wonderful to be able to help so many people with our work: our customers, the people who listen to the discs, and our workers.

Dazzled by the Daylight Binah February 2011

Title: Dazzled by the Daylight

Subtitle: Shedding superfluous shells

Byline: As told to Debbie Shapiro

Lead in:

"When we do something with mesiras nefesh, we're so focused on our goal, on where we're going, that the things we have to give up on the way are inconsequential and meaningless. Could you imagine Yehudah Hamacabee saying – or even thinking, 'I really love throwing the discus, but I'm giving it up to learn Torah! I'll miss it, but I'm going to have mesiras nefesh for Torah'?" I had just finished speaking to a group of seminary students and was about to leave when one of the girls, a young woman with bright, sparkling eyes and long blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail, came over to me and said, "I really connected to what you told us. When our family converted, we were so focused on becoming Jewish that everything else became superfluous."

Brachah tells her story:

Text:

I grew up in a warm, sheltered home in rural Canada. We were totally family-orientated; my mom's parents lived in the other section of our two-family house, while my dad's parents lived down the block. My aunts and uncles all lived just around the corner, so there were always tons of siblings and cousins around for me to play with – I was never bored! My parents were hard-working country folks. My father had a job in a factory and my mom was a hair stylist. They had everything anyone could possibly desire — a supportive family, five  healthy children, a beautiful home; everything, except meaning.

My parents felt that something was missing, and began looking into religion. Of course they started by studying the Bible. It didn't take long for them to realize that the words of the New Testament contradicted that of the Old. Since Christianity stems from Judaism, they decided to go straight to the source --  and joined a Jews for Jesus congregation!

Here, too, it wasn't long before they saw through the hypocrisy. In our Torah study classes, for example, we learned that Jews are not allowed to work on the Shabbos, yet, the so-called rabbi and his wife would almost always stop off at the bank on their way to services. We didn't understand why they were constantly putting down those 'old fashioned' Jews who keep the Torah and refuse to see the light of the New Testament (sic). Although the services were spirited and full of life – I remember getting up to dance at krias haTorah – we sensed that the people in charge were trying to hide things from us. My parents were constantly arguing with our teachers, but it took them a year until they finally decided to disengage themselves off from this cult.

By this time, my parents had come to the conclusion that the so-called New Testament did not make any sense while the Old Testament is emes – which means that the truth liesay with the Jews. My father, however, had no idea where to find authentic Jews, so he did a computer search on Judaism. He discovered a Chabad House located about an hour's drive away from where we lived. My mom phoned the Chabad House and left them a message, explaining that although we're not Jewish, we're interested in learning more about Judaism, but no one called back. After she tried three times without a response, she left a message saying, "I know that you're supposed to turn us away three times. But we're interested in learning about Judaism, and no matter how many times we're turned away we're going to find some way of doing it, because we know that that is what we must do." 

The rabbi invited us to join the congregation for Shabbos morning services, and then extended a personal invitation to join his family for lunch. So Shabbos morning we drove to shul and remained there until after havdalah.

We loved it. It was so amazing – there were so many people at the rabbi's table, and everyone was so real, so connected. Most of the guests were, like us, discovering Yiddishkiet, and they asked lots of questions. The rabbi and his wife responded to each and every one of them in an honest, forthright mannerway. 

After that wonderful experience, at which time I was seven years old,

we traveled to shul every Shabbos morning. Yes, it bothered us that we had to drive, but we weren't Jewish, and this was the only way we could learn about Judaism. On Sundays, we returned to attend conversion classes, where we studied halachah and were warned about the ramifications of becoming Jewish. We realized that it was a huge responsibility, but by now we firmly believed in the truth of the Torah and knew that this was the life that we were meant to live. We had no doubt about the step we wanted to take, and that knowledge infused us with joy.

So many things made much sense to us – to thank Hashem after going to the bathroom; to be aware of the miracle inherent in the seemingly mundane. It was so right; so beautiful and so, so pure! We met people who didn't own a television, yet their lives were filled with purpose; with a higher calling. And then there was the hachnassas orchim. Total strangers opened their homes – and hearts—to us, as well as to dozens of other guests. We wanted to emulate these amazing people, to continue the chain of chessed that we had received.

It's so wonderful to go back to those memories, to that time when everything was so fresh and exciting, and real – so, so real. I remember telling my cousins and my friends at school about all the wonderful, new things we were learning, but of course they didn't understand. How could they? 

That June and July, my four siblings and I attended a frum day camp. Even though I was only eight, I remember being so impressed with how the counselors were dressed – so refined and tzniusdig, yet they were totally with it, and a lot of fun to boot! For August, my older sister and I attend an all-girl's sleepover camp. We had a blast! Everyone knew that we weren't Jewish, yet, since we were already at the end of our conversion process, we were accepted with open arms. I even won the Brachos Bee for my age group! One of the other girls in my bunk had seventeen – seventeen!!! – siblings. I couldn't imagine such a large family, yet she was so normal and happy, and certainly not deprived!

Meanwhile, my parents continued to attend classes and learn whatever and whenever they could. At first, the rabbis were tough, and tried to scare them away, but then, when they realized that they could not be deterred, they were supportive and encouraging. My parents, on their part, did whatever they were told, although at times it was far from easy. They had no doubts that they were on the right path, and they were so excited about everything new that they learned. We couldn't wait for the day that we would have the zechus of becoming part of Am Yisrael.

The most difficult challenge for us was to leave our home town to move to a Jewish community. After all, my parents had grown up in that small, rural town, and their families still lived there. Although we were moving in a very different direction from them, they realized that we were happy with what we were doing and accepted us for who we were. My parents were concerned people in the frum community would not accept us. But Hashem arranged for us to find a small town where we fit in perfectly, and, in an amazing turn of hashgachah pratis, a house was available for rent directly across the street from the Orthodox shul!

We were bursting with excitement during the last final days before our actual conversion. We couldn't wait until the moment would arrive and we'd immerse in the mikveh to become part of the Jewish people. During those last few days, we chose our future names. I kept on changing mine, until finally, my Mom just said, "Ellen, we're calling you Brachah, and that's that." So that's how I came to be called Brachah, and what a blessing it has been!

Emerging from the mikveh, I felt whole; it was a sense of completeness, that I was finally who I had been meant to be. I turned to my mother and said, "Ima, I feel as if I've been Jewish my entire life." But the truth is, I was right. My neshamah had always been Jewish and had accepted the Torah together with all of Am Yisrael on Har Sinai.

From the mikveh, our entire family went straight to shul where we were formally given our Hebrew names. Then a funny thing happened. The Rav informed us that we had to immerse again in the mikveh, as the filter had been accidentally left on. So we immersed a second time, and finally we were really part of Am Yisrael! 

Now that my parents were Jewish, they had to marry with a chupah and kiddushin. They planned on a small ceremony in the rabbi's study. Instead, the community prepared a beautiful chasunah for them, replete with live music, leibidig dancing and a delicious home-cooked seudah. My sister and I were maids of honor, and got to wear beautiful long gowns. We felt so welcome; the community was reaching out to embrace us into their midst.

I continued attending the same all-girls' summer camp that I had gone to before my conversion. Eventually, I became a counselor there. For high school, I traveled each day to a major city an hour and a half away to attend Bais Yaakov. I loved Bais Yaakov and really fit in – I even became GO president and was very active in running the various youth programs. Someday, b'ezras Hashem, I hope to become a teacher and kiruv professional, to share my love of Torah with others who have not had the privilege of a Torah education.

Today, we are an integral part of our town's Jewish community. Our home is always bursting with company; all my friends and my siblings' friends congregate in our home, because that's where the action is! On Shabbos, we always have a table full of guests. We thrive on it; it's the highlight of our week.

My non-Jewish grandparents are very supportive of our life style.  My grandparents even helped pay for my seminary tuition, and my grandmother plans to visit me later on this year. Both sets of grandparents have two full sets of dishes set aside in a closed cupboard for our use. Before Sukkos, my grandparents help my father cut s’chach for the sukkah. Although they are different from us, they try to understand our lifestyle and remain part of our life.

I recently visited the rabbi and his wife who originally helped my family in their journey to Yiddishkeit. I know that they had tremendous nachas seeing the fruits of their labor. They remembered me as a non-Jew, taking my first, tenuous steps towards a life of Torah and mitzvos, and there I was, a Bais Yaakov girl, fully integrated into the frum world, almost an adult at eighteen years of age, totally devoted to a life of Yiddishkeit. In an amazing turn of events, the summer before I came to in Israel for seminary, I was counselor at the camp that his children attend, and ended up teaching his children Torah! Life goes around in a circle, and we never know where it will take us!

Every day, I thank Hashem for bring me close to Him and His Torah. It's so wonderful to be part of Klal Yisrael. In my seminary interview, the rabbi asked me if I ever miss my previous life. I explained that although we had sacrificed certain things to become Jewish, what we gained was so much greater and so wonderful that the things we gave up became superfluous. Our life today is so rich and full of meaning.

Prior to this interview, I went to the Kosel and recited Tehillim. I was struck by the words of kapital 34:11,"Young lions suffer want and are hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good." What emes! When a person has Torah, nothing else speaks to him. 

Eyes to the World published Hamodia Februar2, 2011

Eyes to the World

An Eye Opening Israeli Program

By Debbie Shapiro

Sunday morning I was up early to catch the number 110 bus to Modiin to meet Lisa Baron Haet, International Liaison of IGDCB, Israel Guide Dog Center for the Blind. From the bus stop Ms. Baron Haet drove me in her bright yellow car to the IGDCB campus, located some twenty minutes south of Tel Aviv. I had seen these amazing animals at work, leading blind people through the treacherous Jerusalem streets, where cars are often parked smack in the middle of the sidewalk and piles of building material and low-hanging trees make pedestrian navigation a real challenge even for those fully sighted, but I only recently found out that these dogs are now being bred and trained not far from my home.

In the last ten years, IGDCB has given hundreds of blind Israelis the gift of independence. When Guy Simchi became blind at the age of 33, he felt the outside world close before him. "The fear and despair was so powerful, I just wanted to go to bed and stay there for the rest of my life." He hated using the cane. "Everywhere I walked, I was accompanied by the noise of its tap-tapping on the ground. Once in a while, I would inadvertently hit the legs of people passing by and often bumped into things- electric poles, trees, people. I felt like a failure."

All that changed January, 2007 when Simchi was paired with Turner, a black Lab. "Today, Simchi and Turner are practically inseparable. The dog accompanies him when he walks his son to preschool and even joins him while he counsels clients in his position as a psychiatric social worker. For Simchi, his dog, Turner, has "lit up the darkness for me."

IGDCB is the brainchild of Noach Braun. Braun, a former kibbutznik, got his first experience working with dogs while serving in the Israeli Defense Force. Upon completing his service, he decided to become a guide dog trainer, as it would combine his love of animals with his desire to help his fellow Israelis. He took his initial two years of training in the Guide Dog Mobility Instructor Training Program at Pilot Dogs, Columbus, Ohio, and then continued his studies in England. In 1991, Braun returned home to open the first guide dog school in Israel. Meanwhile, his wife, Orna, studied dog breeding, which, in today's high-tech world involves genetic research to produce intelligent and resilient animals.

IGDCB's first graduating pair was Chaim Tzur, a concert violinist from Jerusalem with Tillie, a Labrador retriever that was given as a puppy to Noach by the guide dog school in London. Tzur lived together with Braun and his family while receiving his instruction and training. Since then, Braun, together with his wife and twenty-two staff members, have graduated three hundred and thirty-seven partnerships.

@A Visit to the Center

Pulling up into the parking lot just outside the center, I have visions of huge German shepherds jumping on me while trying to lick my face, and pray that I don't faint on the spot. But although I see many people walking around and pass an obstacle course designed to train dogs to navigate difficult terrain, I don't encounter any dogs, nor do I hear barking (whew!).

As we walk up to Ms. Baron Haet's second-floor office, she says, "I got involved with the Center when I fostered one of their puppies. When puppies are about two months old they're sent to foster families that teach them the skills they will need to begin their training program. The foster families get them used to being around people and introduce them to a variety of new situations, such as construction sites, busy highways and crowded shopping malls. We train them not to beg at the table or chase cats, and to obey basic commands such as 'sit' or 'come.' After I started working here, I would bring my puppy, Angie, to work with me" – she points to an empty spot next to the wall – "that was where he would stay while I worked. After devoting hours to walking him and taking care of his needs, when he was one year old, we returned him to the Center, where he started the intensive five month training course to become a Guide Dog."

Angie was one of the 40% that do not pass the Guide Dog Training Course. Although it succeeded in navigating the obstacle courses and obeying the trainer, it was slightly hyperactive and did not have the patience necessary to guide a blind person. Instead, Angie is living with a blind child and his family, to acclimate the child to having a dog in the house so that  it will be easier for him to get used to working with a guide dog when he get older. Sometimes dogs that don't pass the test are given to autistic children to help them learn to communicate with the world around him.

Ms. Baron Haet introduces me to some of the staff. Many of them have also adopted puppies, and their dogs come with them to the office. I am amazed that the animals remain quietly on their mats. But the moment Ms. Baron Haet starts petting a large white Labrador, the animal grabs a toy and brings it over to us, hoping that we'll play with him.

In the last office, I meet Yitzchak Ben David, IGDCB's Community and Corporate Public Relations Director, and a Guide Dog user since 1994. While Yitzchak is busy answering emails and responding to telephone calls, his Guide Dog is off duty and free to roam the halls or sniff the flowers. But the moment Yitzchak harnesses him with the special Guide Dog harness, it has one mission – to guide its partner and lead him away from danger.

In the hallway, Ms. Baron Haet introduces me to Sagit Kirson, IGDCB's Volunteer Coordinator, who's training a group of volunteers to work with the clients. I notice that the volunteers are carrying blindfolds. "As part of their sensitivity training, they're going to experience for a short time some of the challenges of being blind, especially navigating new terrain," Ms. Kirson explains.

It takes an entire month of intensive one-on-one work with a trainer for a blind person and a dog to become a genuine team. The students spend three weeks working with a trainer at the center, and an additional week of training at home, where they learn to navigate the specific challenges of their own neighborhood. "At first, most of our clients find it extremely difficult –- even traumatic -- to leave their familiar surroundings and live at the Center. At home, they know where everything is and are able to get around easily. But here, everything is new and different and it's a real challenge for them to learn to get around."

As we walk through the Center, Ms. Baron Haet points out that everything in the building is designed to make it easier for people with limited vision to find their way around. There is a wide yellow strip running down the center of each hallway and path, and bathroom fixtures are all bright yellow. "Yellow is the last color that blind people lose the ability to see," Ms. Baron Haet explains, "so some of our legally blind clients with residual vision are able to discern it."  The flooring in front of the stairs and outer doors is also yellow, and include raised bumps to warn the clients to be careful of the steps ahead. In contrast, the flooring adjacent to the walls is black and roughly textured to prevent the clients from bumping into them. There is a large tactile model of the entire campus prominently displayed near the front entrance. Its removable roof allows the students to get a hands-on feel of the building layout, and, when pushed, numerous buttons provide audio explanations of every detail. For a split second, I close my eyes and imagine what it must be like to “feel” my way around the world.

Before leaving the main building to meet the dogs, Ms. Baron Haet takes me to the dormitory. In addition to the spacious bedrooms, there are two dog grooming rooms, where the clients are taught to care for their dogs. "Many of our clients live alone, so we train them how to use their sense of smell and touch to detect any abnormality in their dog, such as a runny nose or cut paws. Since we remain responsible for the dogs' veterinary care, if there's any problem that the client can't cope with, we send one of our trainers to take care of it, and return the dog to the client in top condition."

@With the Trainers

Outside, several trainers are working with the dogs. I watch, fascinated, as one trainer holds a piece of hot, aromatic sausage in front of the dog's nose, then flips it in the air and shakes it up and down to entice him to eat, while the dog's main trainer quietly tells him not to. "We're teaching the dog to conquer his yetzer hara, which in a dog is its instinct,” the trainer laughs. “That's because when a dog is in its harness, ‘at work,’ no matter how strong the desire or pressing the need, the animal's energies must be channeled into serving its partner.” After all, a dog going off to the side to smell the flowers will drag his partner with him.

"We use this tiny apparatus, called a clicker, to train the animals." Ms. Baron Haet points to the tiny piece of plastic in the trainer's hand. "When pressed, it makes a clicking noise. At first, when the trainer clicks, he simultaneously gives the dog a tiny treat, so that the dog associates the clicking sound with a treat. Then the click itself becomes positive reinforcement, and the treats are given only occasionally. Eventually, the behavior is so ingrained that the dog doesn't need the positive reinforcement to behave as trained."

After watching the dogs navigate a seesaw and climb stairs, Ms. Baron Haet shows me the sensory garden, dominated by a raised fishpond. Using the same method of positive reinforcement that is used to train the dogs, the trainers have trained the fish to enjoy being stroked. For many blind people, this is their first opportunity to actually 'see' a fish."

NOTE TO GRAPHIC ARTIST: PICTURE OF HAND IN WATER, WITH FISH SUCKING FINGER

@Meet Yariv Melamed

Ms. Baron Haet introduced me to Yariv Melamed, an ex-kibbutznik who began his career as an apprentice in the Center, and later received a scholarship to spend a year in Melbourne studying the clicker method of training Guide Dogs. When asked what he loves about his job, he replied, "It's wonderful to help people open a new page in their lives. I've had clients break into tears of joy after successfully navigating the obstacle course. With their new-found independence, they regain their sense of self-respect and join the world around them. After a month of working together on a daily basis, facing and overcoming fears and limitations, I develop a deep, personal relationship with my clients. Although I don't always manage to get to all of their simchos, all the trainers make annual home visits to iron out any problems, and of course, we're always there if other issues arise."

@From Astro to Zorbo

Visiting the kennels, I learn that the dogs are named according to their litter – with the names beginning with the same letter of the alphabet. So Jingle, Jupiter and Janglo all have the same genetic makeup, which makes it easier to keep track of their behavior, information that is used to decide the genetic makeup of future litters. "We never give the dogs typical Hebrew names," Ms. Baron Haet explains. "After all, the chances are small that someone in a crowded mall will call out 'Hey, Jupiter.'"

Mother dogs with their newborn litters are kept in a separate area, a canine kimpeturin heim replete with soothing music, lots of stuffed pillows, toys and extra-nutritious meals. The pups remain with their mother for the first two months of their lives. Then they are sent to their adoptive families, which lavish them with love and attention and prepare them for the rigorous five-month Guide Dog training course.

**********

Ever since Hashem commanded the First Man to "rule over the fish of the sea and over the fowl of the sky and over all the beasts that tread upon the earth" (Bereishis 1:28), man has trained animals to serve him. Yaakov Avinu kept a herd of between 600,000 to 1,200,000 dogs to tend his sheep (Bereshis Rabba, Vayetezei, parsha 73).  Dovid Hamelech raised dogs, presumably as watchdogs (Rashi, Shmuel II, 3:8). Today, dogs are trained to detect bedbugs and drugs, track down people, warn an epileptic of an impending fit, determine sounds for a deaf person and open up new horizons for the blind.

 

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Blind Etiquette

@ Never pet or otherwise distract a Guide Dog while it is wearing the harness. It is not a pet. Distracting a Guide Dog while it is working can endanger the blind person's life.

@ If the Guide Dog is not wearing its harness, ask permission before petting it or playing with it.

@Never offer food or drink to a Guide Dog. Its owner carefully monitors the dog's food and liquid intake so that he will know when to allow the dog to relieve itself.

@Never grab or steer a person while his Guide Dog is guiding him, or attempt to hold the dog's harness.

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In the Hebrew-speaking Chareidi community, Ariella Savir is a household word. A blind mother of eight – including an autistic son – she's produced dozens of popular children's tapes and CDs. She appears regularly to all-women audiences from Ofakim to Tsfas, where she weaves songs and stories as she talks about the many challenges facing her as a visually impaired woman living a normal life.

Since receiving a Guide Dog three months ago, Ariella has been appearing on stage with her dog, Zorba, who sits patiently at her side waiting for her to finish so that he can guide her backstage.

Ariella graciously offered to tell Hamodia how her Guide Dog has enriched her life.

"My husband was always there to help me and guide me. But when he suffered a minor heart attack, I suddenly realized that I must have my independence, that I can't be completely dependent on him for everything. Getting a Guide Dog was like being released from a golden prison. Yes, I had everything I wanted, and everyone was more than happy to help me, but now I have wings to fly solo. Every morning, I go for a walk and meet my friends. Sometimes, later on in the day I walk to the post office, or do some shopping. Zorbo is my key to the wonderful world around me."