Entering the dead of winter, the simple act of walking home from shul or going to or from an evening meal with friends on a Friday night is fraught with an increased level of danger from passing vehicles who may not see pedestrians crossing their path. This is especially true for those wearing dark clothing, making them all but invisible.

To alleviate the potential for tragedy, the Orthodox Union’s Department of Community Projects & Partnerships has been providing bright yellow reflective belts for a number of years to any shul representatives who request them. Worn over coats, these belts provide greatly enhanced visibility and signal to motorists to proceed with caution.

The program is more than theoretical. About a half dozen years ago Dr. Larry Kraut of the Young Israel of Fair Lawn, who was not wearing reflective gear at the time, was crossing the street at a busy intersection several blocks from shul following Friday night Maariv. He was hit by an SUV turning into his path. His injuries were extremely serious and it took him many months to recover. As an expression of hakarat hatov following his ordeal, he and his wife, Dr. Evelyn Kraut, decided to sponsor the reflective belts and have been generously doing so since 2018 in the hope that no one else would experience such trauma.

The Jewish Link recently spoke with Rebbetzin Judi Steinig, who heads the program for the OU. She shared that “People are taking this danger very seriously, which led to the OU’s implementation of the program 11 years ago. Initially there was a charge for the belts but since 2018 that charge has been dropped due to the incredibly generous and gracious sponsorship by the Kraut family.”

She emphasized that a shul does not have to be affiliated with the OU to receive the belts. “We want everyone to be safe.” Although the belts are provided free of charge, the OU does incur shipping fees and therefore welcomes voluntary donations.

Steinig emphasized that requests only be made by shul representatives. The OU cannot process requests from individuals. Also, the reflective belts are meant to be reused each season, which means that unless there are extenuating circumstances, shuls which have previously received belts should not be reordering them due the limited quantity.

To request reflector belts for a shul, visit the OU website at www.ou.org/community/ou-shul-reflectorbelts. Phone orders can be placed by calling

(212) 613-8300.

Robert Isler is a freelance writer who focuses on Jewish issues. He can be reached at [email protected].