[VIDEO IN EXTENDED ARTICLE]

It is now a veritable rescue operation – but for a pair of Talis and Tefillin.

The Tallis and Tefillin, owned by a melamed, were lost in the Lee Garden Shul, a Satmar Shul on Lorimer Street, in Williamsburg. In that shul close to 2000 people daven and learn there each day. The Tefillin were placed securely in a cubby outside the Beis Midrash. On Wednesday morning, after the Tefillin were placed in the cubby, the melamed went to teach.

Slowly, the Tefillin bag inched its way forward. There was a garbage can next to where the Tefillin was kept. At precisely 7:09 PM last Wednesday, the Tefillin gently slid down into the garbage can. There were people standing around, but no one had noticed.

The melamed looked for his Tefillin the next Thursday to no avail. He borrowed Tefillin. Finally on Motzai Shabbos, they looked at the security camera footage. That is when they saw the Tefillin slide off.

The garbage was picked up Shabbos morning.

The askanim went into action. Rabbi David Niederman from United Jewish Organizations of Williamsburg was contacted who got in touch with the sanitation department. The sanitation department has a transfer hub located at 221 Varrick Avenue in Brooklyn, New York.

The garbage got mixed into thousands of tons of other New York City garbage.

By the time this information was found out, the askanim were informed that the garbage was already on the train headed toward a landfill upstate – in Fairfield, New York. They were able to narrow it down to fifty specific railcars, containing some 1000 tons of garbage. The garbage will arrive on Friday in the landfill in Fairfield on Friday morning.

Waste Management is the company that outsources New York City’s garbage, which ends up being transferred to a landfill upstate.

The sanitation department itself searched for it, and the managers of the landfill graciously gave the askanim one day – next Monday permission to search for it. The content of the railcars will be spread out at a large site at the landfill where the content of the fifty railcars will be spread out to look for the Tefillin. Over 100 volunteers will be needed for the day. The volunteers will be outfitted with special rakes and safety gear in order to work at the landfill. Food and travel expenses will be covered.

The Askanim and friends are now looking for volunteers for next week that are ready to join the search. They hired a local employment agency near Fairfield to assist in the search.

A special chessed fund was established.

A Satmar Dayan, Rav Pinchas Katz, ruled that there is a chiyuv to support the effort, particularly in light of the fact that the people who were contacted had expended effort to look for it. He penned a response why it should be done. After the psak was written, the Rav clarified that five frum people should go and oversee 95 workers.

The operation is underway, and funding is desperately needed. Oh and yes, they no longer keep the garbage can below the Tefillin cubbys.

To volunteer or to donate call 646 535-6544 or email [email protected]

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)