Last Motzei Shabbat, November 19, almost 400 people gathered at Congregation Keter Torah to honor Chani Herrmann of New Jersey Yachad, who has served as its director since its inception 10 years ago.
The attendees consisted primarily of Yachad members and their families. In virtually every family, they were able to relate a story of how NJ Yachad, which many said is synonymous with Herrmann herself, had touched their lives in a deep and important way. During the presentation portion of the evening, frequent applause and cheers penetrated the air as videos were shown, detailing the growth of New Jersey Yachad over the past decade, including the creation and development of many of the programs and services that it now provides. The audience was particularly charmed by Yachad member Tamar Schlanger, who aptly described how Yachad played a role in her life and her relationship with her friend Chani.
NJ Yachad provides a wide range of activities for its members, including support groups, vocational training and social programming. Yachad is an agency of the Orthodox Union—the National Jewish Council for Disabilities—a global organization dedicated to addressing the needs of all Jewish individuals with disabilities and ensuring their inclusion in every aspect of Jewish life. Through Yachad shabbatons and both regularly scheduled and special seasonal events, Yachad provides respite care to well-deserving families.
When she spoke, Herrmann shared that she began the task of encouraging siblings, other family members and the community itself to learn and become educated as to the importance of integration of families with special needs in schools, shuls, camps and workplaces. She explained that part of Yachad’s mission is to also provide support groups to encourage siblings of young people with special needs to meet with each other. Yachad parents’ groups have also became a huge form of support for these families.
As years passed, she noted, many of Herrmann’s original Yachad members began to age; their needs changed, and the worries of their families increased. With those changes, NJ Yachad needed to adapt as well to its community’s changing needs. This process has been a positive experience for the communities involved as well, as the families now know that they can reach out to Yachad for help with practically any situation with which they require support. An outgrowth of the changing needs of the group is now NJ Yachad’s world-class job-training program and its counseling service for those who are presently employed as a result of the initiative. The program maintains constant contact with both employers and employees and works to ensure satisfaction and comfort on both sides.
Welcoming the large number of attendees was Miriam Pfeiffer, at whose home the event was initially planned to be held. It quickly became obvious, however, that the number of people anxious to honor Herrmann was considerably more than the Pfeiffer home could accommodate. Miriam and her husband, Allen, continued as the hosts of the evening in the larger, more comfortable venue at Congregation Keter Torah.
A poignant and significant occurrence during the evening was the establishment of the Devorah Stubin z”l Memorial Scholarship Fund, which will be used to enable Yachad members to attend various Yachad programs. Quiet pervaded the room as a video presentation was shown of Devorah’s short and meaningful life, whose concern to do chesed was primary to her everyday life. Her parents and brother accepted a plaque in recognition of the onset of this new fund.
Learn more about NJ Yachad and contribute at https://www.yachad.org/yachad-programs/new-jersey-yachad/.
By Nina Glick
