(Click HERE for photos) Twenty five year old Yittie was devastated when her young husband suddenly passed away, leaving her with two young babies and a broken heart.  Forty year old Bashie thought the world came to an end when she was left alone with ten children to marry off.  And fifty four year old Nechama fell into a deep depression when her husband of thirty five years suffered a fatal heart attack.  Each of these women experienced a terrible tragedy which left them wondering if they could continue to carry on. Yet they were each uplifted and given new hope and inspiration by a wonderful organization called Zeh LaZeh.
 
Zeh LaZeh is founded and directed by the dynamic Rebbetzin Raizy Rottenberg to help the almonos and yesomim of Eretz Yisroel cope with their fate.  To date, they have made a profound impact on the lives of 1300 almonos and over three thousand yesomim.  They serve as a personal support system from the moment that shiva begins, offering resources, initiatives, programs and services.
 
Last week, Rebbetzin Rottenberg visited the New York area on a whirlwind fundraising mission.  Her goal?  To open a Vocational Training Center for these almonos, giving them an opportunity to join the workforce and provide for their families as well as to renew their sense of dignity and self esteem. 
 
The Center is being dedicated in memory of Chaim and Fraida Sima Moskovits, O”H, a young couple who were suddenly taken in the prime of their lives in a tragic car accident, leaving behind a small baby.  A total of four community parlor meetings were scheduled as fundraising events, including one to dedicate the Naftali Bochner Health and Fitness Center , which will be located on the premises of the Vocational Training Center.  Each one of these events was a tremendous success.
 
Most notably, a parlor meeting at the home of Mr. And Mrs. Avrumie Rieder in Boro Park drew a large crowd, many of whom were friends and relatives of Chaim and Fraida Sima, and who were eager to donate generously l’iluy nishmosom.  Reb Yaakov Zimmerman, well-known philanthropist from the Montreal area, flew in for the occasion together with his wife so that he could be mishtatef in this great mitzvah.  The Zimmermans are the grandparents of Chaim and Fraida Sima and are committed to ensuring that the memory of this young couple be everlasting and that this tribute will serve as a tremendous z’chus for their holy neshomos. 
 
Rebbetzin Rottenberg is thrilled with the response to the fundraising campaign.  And so are the many almonos and their children who are looking forward to a new lease on life.  In a short time, Yittie and Bashie and Nechama will wake up in the morning with a spring in their step and a new song in their hearts.  They will board the bus to the Vocational Training Center in central Yerushalayim.  They will join hundreds of their peers in learning marketable skills in a variety of fields such as technology, programming, software engineering, alternative medicine, secretarial skills, architecture or interior design.  They will be able to earn a respectable parnassah and provide for their families.  Most of all, they will be able to face the future again. 
 
For more information about Zeh LaZeh call 718-686-0111, or visit www.zehlazeh.org