Dear Friend,

Another summer has come and gone. A new year is upon us, and once again, it is time to go back to school. Although returning to school is not always easy, for some children, the process of attending yeshivah is more difficult than for others.

Ten-year-old Aaron from Massachusetts attended Camp L'man Achai last summer while his parents were in the process of becoming closer to Yiddishkeit. Inspired by his incredible camp experience, he returned home and told his parents that he wanted to begin attending Yeshivah. His parents didn't take his request seriously because the closest Jewish school was over two hours away. Aaron became more and more adamant about going to Yeshivah, but it just didn't seem like a possibility. On the first day of school, he refused to go and stayed home instead. His parents saw how serious he was, and so they made the monumental decision of sending their son two hours away to the Jewish school in Boston. For the remainder of the school year, Aaron's parents drove their son to Boston every Sunday, where he lived with his grandparents and attended Yeshivah, and then drove him back home again at the end of the week. Aaron is just one of the thousands of children connected with L'man Achai, a unique organization dedicated to the revival of Yiddishkeit. This past summer, over 250 children were involved in their various Kiruv activities. Many were placed in various sleep-away camps, including L'man Achai's own camp. The slogan in camp this summer was "Camp all Year" - to keep the spirit of Judaism in practice all year round.

But the task is very difficult. Children who have attended public school last year have embraced Yiddishkeit and now want nothing more than to attend Yeshivah. Yet despite the tireless efforts of L'man Achai to register these children in yeshivah, many still await placement and have nowhere to go. Some children are refused because of language restraints, transportation difficulties and the standard, "He just won't fit in here". Yet the children's hearts yearn for Yiddishkeit. How can we say no to saving the Neshamah of a Jewish child?

There are many who are not so fortunate. Children like Andrew, who refused to go home from camp with his parents because they came to pick him up on Shabbos. Children like Daniel, who eats only fruit at home because he does not trust his parents' Kashrus. Children like Baruch, who was full of emotion at his Pidyon Haben this summer. These fragile, precious Neshomos are in jeopardy if these children remain in public school.

Every Jewish child deserves his chance to attend Yeshivah. Each Neshamah that basked in the glow of a Torah summer must not be allowed to wither. In addition to placing hundreds of children in Yeshivahs each year, L'man Achai has its own Yeshivah high school for the many teenagers who are eager to receive a proper Jewish education. The value of a Torah education is reflected in the children's devotion to every Mitzvah they learn about. Lessons are reinforced with Shabbatons and Yom Tov gatherings. L'man Achai volunteers spend hours tutoring these children and their families about the basic tenets of Yiddishkeit. We stand at their sides, as Torah becomes an integral part of their lives.

You can make a difference on these impressionable young minds. You can send a child to a Talmud Torah program, yeshivah, or a Jewish day school. Dollar for dollar, it gets translated into hours of Torah values, eye-opening Shabbatons, Yom-Tov gatherings, and the observance of mitzvos... the continuation of our heritage. Help L'man Achai in our extraordinary efforts to reach out to our fellow Jews. The next generation of Yiddishkeit depends upon this.

May you be blessed with a happy, healthy and successful year.