Please find below a message regarding the fundraising efforts to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy:

Dear Community Member,

I'm sure many of you were just like me last week. We watched in horror as Hurricane Sandy took down some of the most powerful cities in the USA. We all heard the stories of how it affected millions - including many Jewish communities. Unlike Katrina, however, as major cities like Manhattan started to come back to life, the coverage died down and we all assumed that things were pretty much back to normal.

THAT IS NOT THE CASE.

For many Jewish communities, such as Sea Gate, Bayswater, Far Rockaway and Five Towns, it is still like New Orleans was. Houses are shattered. Businesses are ruined. Belongings are destroyed. The once beautiful neighborhoods now look like war zones. Many of the people in these communities are currently without a place to live, clothes to wear or food to eat. They greeted this past Shabbos with, quite literally, the "clothes on their back". Besides the short term needs of basic necessities, they will have to somehow rebuild their homes, businesses and lives. The issue at hand is that many of these people did not have flood insurance. For those who did, it will be many months before they begin seeing any of that money.

We here in Toronto have been blessed. This disaster could have easily happened to us. They are honest decent people who, until last week, led the same lives as you and I. Hashem has spared us and now is looking to see how we are going to react.

The questions to ask yourself are what would you want people to do if you were in the same situation? Would you want a million questions of "how bad is it really"? Would you want them to say "let the people in Toronto help first"? or would you want people to give generously and help in any way they could? This is the time to help our brothers and sisters in their time of need. It's a chance to show Hashem that we are B'Achdus. Let's get together as a community and make a difference in these people's lives.

A special Fund has been set up with Achiezer, a relief organization in New York in conjuction with Agudas Israel of New York. We are accepting donations here in Toronto on their behalf. ALL funds we collect will go directly to these victims.

Tax deductible donations payable to "Beth Oloth" can be given to:

• Pesach Goldman or by depositing it to his cubby #30 in the Marder Beis Medrash. As well Pesach can be contacted at pacegoldman@rogers.com or 416-409-5083 to arrange a mutually convenient pickup time
• Moti Seidenfeld, 535 Glengrove Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M6B 2H3.

Alternatively, credit card donations could be made by making an online payment at www.viewmount.com or by calling 416-785-1148.

Read an eye witness recap from someone who recently visited one of the communities.
http://miniurl.ca/2k

Tizku L'Mitzvos,

Moti Seidenfeld