Best Cities in USA to Collect for Meshulach?

a note about baltimore--you are correct tova about the voucher system, but the meshulach actually collects the full face value of the voucher, as far as I understand. basically, I pay $5 to the Agudah to purchase a voucher that is only worth $4. The voucher says $4 on it and the meshulach gets the full amount. That extra $1 is distributed to the mosad that I have chosen. (please someone correct me if I'm wrong)
Now, there are people who will drive you around to collect, and as far as I understand in Baltimore, the driver takes 33% of the money earned.

you think that maybe in the time he was spending collecting a dollar or 2 maybe if he got a job he could earn more?
I had one guy follow me to my car (creepy) and ask for money. told me he had no job he has 5 kids etc.
I told him my husband has no job either and we have 7 kids and my husband is out every day searching for a job not begging handouts.
so I told him hed do better getting a job.

I'm confused by the story as well. What medical expenses aren't covered? I know the kupah doesn't always cover every medication or procedure in case of illness, especially the less common stuff, but I'm shocked that someone in Israel could have a $5,000 bill for injuries sustained in a home invasion.

And I would think that for just $5,000 it'd be a lot easier to collect here in Israel than to fly all the way to a different continent at a cost of, what, $2,000 round trip plus more for the visa? It's not like there's no money here.

Now that he's over there maybe he needs to stay to make back the cost of his trip, but if not, maybe it'd be easier for him to just come back to Israel, stay with his own family, and collect door-to-door somewhere in the Jerusalem area. Seriously, I've heard of people getting several hundred shekels a day here begging in the right location, he could raise the whole amount in a month. He could keep everything he gets, and muggings are BH rare.

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I'm sorry if they cannot afford a 500 guest wedding for their 9th kid, but I'll not be funding it (or funding their 20 yr old newlywed apartment when my PARENTS just finished paying theirs last year!).
They want a large family and owner lifestyle? Let them get education. Or work like a dog. Or do without. Or just not spit on non shtark Israeli charedi people (while taking their sinful money).
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Diamond Member Joined: Feb 02 2006 Posts: 4771

That.
It's a bit much to post a thread with that title, at least it sounds that way to me.

What about "Best Universities/Parnasas in USA to work for meshulach so they don't have to be a meshulach"?

I used to be very idealistic and assume everyone was "to each their own" and respectful of others' rabbanim and minhagim and that such a frum looking person wouldn't lie or ask money for crazy lavish simchas because someone soooo shtark was probably oblivious of the materialistic trends!

Halevai.

Like Marina I think in Israel a lot is covered when it's really, really needed. I don't trust the sob stories anymore.

Silver Member Joined: Mar 25 2008 Posts: 650

There is a lot of organizations in Israel (that we support each month through tzeaka) that help with those kind of problems. They may be gemachs for loans or just plain support system such as kuppas hair or vaad a rabbanim, or others that I don't know about. I get their annual reports and they do deal with those kind of emergencies. Maybe you can contact them and arrange something. It seems a better solution than to have this man walking around the USA without a clue. They do require paperwork, but they are very fast.

shalhevet, thanks for the explanation.

I still don't understand why go abroad. Maybe it's a hareidi thing? Do some hareidim feel that yeshivish/chassidish people abroad are more likely to help them than are non-hareidi Israelis? Or a chassidish thing, where people ask for money within their own chassidut even if it means going to a different country? Do they try to get money here but nobody gives to them?

I know MO and DL people who have unfortunately been in need and were able to get help right here in the community. Of course it's still tight and not everyone gets everything they need, which IIRC is true abroad as well. But still, if the rav is backing someone's request, people have raised 1,000-2,000 shekels in a couple of days, with no expenses to cover (airfare, carfare, visa, etc).

Like I said now that he's already abroad maybe it's best for him to finish collecting there. I just hope people don't have the impression that there's no tzedaka here in Israel, that people have to go to the lengths the OP describes of wandering around a foreign country getting mugged.

Platinum Member Joined: Nov 01 2009 Posts: 8258

Ive never had a meshulach come to my door in Teaneck (something I really appreciate). In Monsey its very common.
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Platinum Member Joined: Nov 01 2009 Posts: 8258

Ora, maybe someone donated airline miles for the ticket? I know people who do that.