Pnina Souid
The Mitzvah Man relayed the following story:
I was driving along in Brooklyn and when I got to a red light at Nostrand Avenue I noticed a homeless man sitting by the bus stop without shoes and socks. I was shocked, and my heart went out to him. I pulled over to the bus stop and handed the man my shoes and socks. I have plenty of shoes and socks to spare at home, I could afford to give what I was wearing to this unfortunate fellow. He so appreciated this small act of kindness.
I happened to notice a woman who had stopped to take a photo of me handing over the socks and shoes. What I didn’t know was that she was going to post the photo on the internet with the caption “Look at This Act of Kindness.”
A Mother Reaches Out
The man’s mother lives in Detroit, and she saw the photo. She contacted the photographer. She told her that the man in the picture is her son and she desperately wanted to know if he was alright. She asked to speak to the kind man who bequeathed him the socks and shoes off his feet.
I was contacted by a friend who told me, “Michael, the mother of the homeless man wants to speak to you. She wants to know if he is alright.”
Of course, I did not know the man, but I said I would be happy to speak to his mother. I was given the mother’s number. When I spoke to her, she expressed her deep appreciation for the socks and shoes, and she told me that her son is Jewish. She hasn’t seen him for three months.. He travels from city to city, state to state, never staying very long in one place. She said, as would any Jewish mother, “I want to know how he is!”
I asked if she had any clue as to where he might be. She told me that she knew of a rabbi with a shul in downtown Brooklyn who lets homeless men sleep there at night. She gave me the contact information and I called the rabbi right away.
Angelic Rabbi
He told me that many years ago he started offering a place to sleep for just one homeless man, and now there are 50 homeless men who he helps. They sleep in his shul from 10pm, after the congregants leave, until 5am, when the congregants will be coming back. Additionally, the rabbi collects leftover food from kosher restaurants to distribute to these homeless men whose only home is his shul. The rabbi sighed. “I sustain them as best as I can.”
I asked how I could help him. He told me that the men are sleeping on the floor or on broken benches.
The Mitzvah Man Organization got into gear. We headed over to the shul with brand new cots, blankets, pillows, and other necessities.
The next day a team of volunteers loaded cars and vans with brand new coats, sweaters, socks, shoes, and more, and brought them to the shul. The men had tears in their eyes. They were so very thankful to get the brand new items.
There is a message here – if you find an opportunity to do an act of kindness – go do it! You never know where it can lead. And it didn’t matter that the homeless man was Jewish or not. I would have helped him even if he was not Jewish!