Help us Help our Wonderful Abba, Body and Soul!

Dearest family, friends, and friends of friends...

We have been incredibly blessed to grow up with a kind, caring father. Talented, funny, giving, loved by his family and peers.

A true mentsch.

Now in his mid-70s, following the lasting effects of an aneurysm and strokes, and the isolation of Covid, our dear Abba, Nosson, now requires full-time care.

Nosson grew up in Israel, served in the IDF, and lost almost his entire unit in the Yom Kippur war. He raised a religious family in NY and was always there to lend a helping hand to family, friends or those in need in the community from the time he was a young man.

His absolute genius at every trade skill is legendary - he could build a car or a house from scratch, and outwit any electronic device he came across. He once repaired a torn timing belt with a stocking. His elevator company consisted of just him and sometimes his 13-year-old son, when an otherwise entire team of workers would need to be hired. And he did the better and more efficient job.

We are also talking about a man whose health and stamina were equally legendary. He once drove straight from NY to Florida with only a 30-minute nap on the side of the road - while experiencing a ruptured aneurysm that had already lasted a week (he didn't know, just felt a bit off).

Nosson has never lived extravagantly. But not being able to work for the past decade+, meager social security benefits, and need for thousands of dollars in medical bills, he cannot cover his cost of living while also paying off these outstanding debts.

He has two loving children, neither of whom have the means to meet the financial responsibilities required for his current situation. His daughter is a single mother who lives in Israel and has not been employed for a number of years due to a chronic health condition, and his son is raising a young family on limited means.

We were very fortunate to find excellent care for Nosson in one of the few Glatt kosher, Assisted Living facilities in Brooklyn, close to family and friends.

THE FACILITY IS HEAVILY SUBSIDIZED BY MEDICAID BUT STILL BEYOND OUR MEANS.

The monthly cost of $1400 per month includes full room and board, and basic medical services. There are other financial needs that come up in addition to this.

We are reaching out to you to help us help our Abba live with the caring dignity that all of us deserve, and the ability to live without the crippling anxiety of financial stress in his older years, or worse yet, lose the access to that care.

It is our hope that gathering funds to help cover the costs of his care for the next 6-12 months will help him and us be at ease in mind, body and neshama, to take care of him in the best way possible.

May you be sealed in the Book of Life for a good, healthy year. And for your families and communities, and all of Israel. Amen.

Aviva and Elan Yisroel Kugel