Testimony

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A Halfway House that Goes All the Way

Rabbi Yosef Fisher is just one of those people whose warm and kind smile

stays in your mind’s eye forever.

When our son was 15, one occasion came that he burst out at my wife and

myself, “I’ve had enough of living here,” and slammed the door of our home

behind him. (Thank G-d, that episode was never ever repeated!)

Just shortly after, we received a phone call from someone with a friendly

American voice: “Mr. and Mrs. Brier, this is Rabbi Fisher. I just would like you

to know that your son is staying at my home in Ramat Beit Shamash Beit

overnight.” We had absolutely no idea what sort of connection this person had

with our son. Rabbi Fisher explained that he and his wife provided a “halfway

house” for struggling youth. We put down the phone, making a heartfelt plea

to Hashem to return our son home quickly, but that it should be with a

mending of any mutual hurt that had formed in our relationship.

The next day after our son returned home, I visited Rabbi Fisher at his home.

Tearfully expressing my gratitude, I explained how much my wife and I owed

to him.

From time to time over the years since, our son was privileged to enjoy an

oneg Shabbos with his peers at the Fisher home.

As a baal teshuva myself, I traced my experiences with this type of Zikuey

leRabim. It all started with that legendary Eshel tree where Avraham Avinu

took lost souls under “the wings of the Shechinah”—providing them with food

and lodging, plus – everything coming from a place deeper than the deepest

depths, all in the Name of the Compassionate One that had drawn our

forefather into His eternal bond of lovingkindness.

Intrigued as to what were the internal forces that led this young family man to

take young men he hardly knew under his roof, I asked the rabbi some candid

questions.

Nine years ago Rabbi Fisher started his halfway house. His qualifications

were a deep yearning for making a soul connection with struggling youth. The

emphasis was on forming a friendship springing from a fatherly source. The

boys didn’t just go back out onto the street when the morning came. No

pressure would be put on them except to behave with derech eretz. Many of

them were not shomer Shabbat. They started the first day of the rest of their

life with a hearty breakfast, and were often invited to drive somewhere

interesting with the rabbi, like kivrey tzaddikim.

“Countless times the boys would open up to me, sharing their nagging

pains—and also their most cherished dreams. That was just the start of a long

seemingly endless journey,” the rabbi related. “I try to work with what the kids

want in life.”

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How many people with vulnerable young sons and daughters would ever

consider putting not just themselves—but their entire families—at risk for the

sake of some questionable young character. Was their account ready for this

blank check? “Setting barriers with my family was always an issue” explained

the rabbi.

Throwing up on the floor was the least of Rabbi Fisher’s problems. One young

teen seething in rage at another overnight guest speaking disrespectfully to

the rabbi, burst out, “Just who do you think you are speaking that way to such

a big tzaddik!” Without a second to breathe, the baryon (thug) shocked

everyone by taking brass knuckles out of his pocket. Soon his innocent victim

had left a trail of blood all over the floor.

So, just what are Rabbi Fisher’s dreams for the future? The number of young

men coming to me increases year by year, he exclaimed with a radiant smile.

“Of course, our home is nothing but a perennial stage in the growth of a vision

to play my own part in fixing the world. Baruch Hashem, the Beit Shemesh

council has assured me that a building to house a Hareidi-based hostel is

waiting for me. All that is needed is to find a suitable place, and donors for the

support facilities.”

“And just what was the greatest reward you ever got from your holy work?” I

asked the rabbi. “Keeping kids at risk off the street?”

Without a moment’s hesitation, the answer came out. “Much more than that!

When I get told ‘Your smile and love are something I never got anywhere

else,” I feel that all my birthdays have come at once.”         by  Mr Zeev Breier