health, mind and body

Calvary launches restoration of Shoah Torah

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The restoration of a historic Torah scroll — a Holocaust survivor — was begun by Calvary Hospital last week at the 92nd Street Y.

Scroll No. 515, from the town of Taus-Domazlice and dating from 1880, is on permanent loan to Calvary from the Memorial Scrolls Trust in London and is housed in the hospital’s Bronx campus. The goal is to repair this Torah so that it will once again be kosher for use in services and Jewish rituals. 

Rabbi Moshe Druin from Sofer On Site, which has helped repair hundreds of Torah scrolls throughout the world, provided a captivating description of the process of restoration.

“We are honored that the Memorial Scrolls Trust has loaned us this sacred Torah; we know that it is our responsibility to safeguard and repair it,” said Calvary President and CEO Frank A. Calamari.

“From the Hospital’s earliest years, Calvary has always welcomed patients from all religions. We are dedicated to providing the best end-of-life care that a person can find. At Calvary, we also honor and celebrate the spiritual and faith traditions that are so important to our patients, families and staff.”

The Hospital’s outreach to the Jewish community, and the Torah Restoration, has been spearheaded by Executive Medical Director Dr. Michael J. Brescia.

Once the Hospital raises enough funds to pay for this restoration, remaining funds will be used to benefit all patients and families at Calvary’s inpatient facilities in the Bronx and Brooklyn, Home Hospice patients throughout the greater New York area, and at the Dawn Greene Hospice in Manhattan located at Mary Manning Walsh Home.

Three Rabbis care for hundreds of Jewish inpatients and home hospice patients at Calvary each year. In addition to kosher food upon request, Jewish inpatients and their families can expect a daily visit from a Rabbi, food from an expanded Kosher Hospitality Room, dedicated Shabbos Lounge, Kabbalat Shabbat service, and celebrations of all major holidays.

Since 2012, Calvary has partnered with Yeshiva University to educate people in the Orthodox Jewish community about how to access excellent end-of-life care in accordance with halakha. The goal of this partnership is to provide observant Jews with the information they need, to make the right end-of-life care decisions for their families. 

To learn more about the YU program, visit yu.edu/riets/end-of-life-care and click the button called “Rabbinic Consultation Form.” To learn more about Calvary, visit calvaryhospital.org and click on the first bullet listed under “What’s New.”