By: L. Halevi. TLS is pleased to announce that we are once again hosting our once-a-year, 2-week Web-a-Thon fundraiser for the community-based organization, Tomchei Shabbos of Lakewood.

Why Tomchei Shabbos? Read on:

Pesach is coming!

For most people those words bring a smile to their face. The joyous atmosphere, the food, the rituals, the Afikoman gifts, the Matzah (and more Matzah and more Matzah) , the Chol Hamoed trips, it is simply a period of joy and excitement.

For most people.

For some families, however, Pesach has a totally different meaning. Pesach, to these families, means overwhelming bills, lack of basic necessities, having to make do with a lot less than their neighbors, lackluster Afikoman gifts, if any. For over 850 families, right here in Lakewood, Pesach is an impossible time of year to manage.

Many of these families may receive assistance from their neighborhood Kupos Tzedakah, and some may even be fortunate enough to get some familial assistance, but for the majority of these families, even after the assistance they get, which are used for many of the high-cost Yom Tov related needs, they are still faced with bare pantries. Invariably, they still cannot afford meat, wine, grape juice, fish, Matzah and the other necessities of Pesach, which can break the bank of even better off families.

Are these families to be void of the joy of Pesach?

These are our neighbors! Our friends! Our family! Our responsibility!

The one address where these families turn to for help, year after year, is Tomchei Shabbos. Yes, Tomchei Shabbos has a special Kimcha D’Pischa campaign which literally feeds over 850 Mishpachos, to the tune of nearly $1 Million each Pesach!

Yes, when it comes down to it, without Tomchei Shabbos, there would be no Pesach for hundreds of Mishpachos in our community! It is a nearly impossible task to meet, but one that must be met, no matter what. Tomchei Shabbos relies on the Lakewood community to pitch in generously and help feed those amongst us that need our help the most. We are not talking just a handful of food boxes to help out these families; we are talking full-fledged support for an entire Yom Tov! Each family receives between 18 and 25 cases of Yom Tov products, including chicken, wine, Grape juice, potatoes, onions, cups, aluminum pans, and of course baby fingers for the kids too!

Without Tomchei Shabbos there would be no Pesach. Without the community’s help, there would be no Kimcha D’Pischa fund.

This year, more than ever, your help is needed. Please recognize that Tomchei Shabbos is our collective responsibility. These families need you, and you and you, and every single person in Lakewood to take part in making this Pesach a most joyous one for EVERY family in Lakewood.

With its finger on the pulse of Lakewood, The Lakewood Scoop strongly identifies with the pain and suffering of so many children in the kehilla whose families lack the means to provide them Yom Tov food. We feel the needs of the precious children of these families who would be left with no simchas Yom Tov at all, without the help of the entire community.

We have therefore undertaken to host the Web-a-Thon fundraiser, from now through Pesach, on behalf of Tomchei Shabbos’s Kupas Kimcha D’Pischa – Lakewood’s largest and most encompassing Pesach distribution fund.

Kupas Kimcha D’Pischa provides over 850 families in our community with all Yom Tov food essentials, from wine and matzoh to fish, meat, poultry, potatoes, produce, canned goods and more. The size and scope of the Pesach distribution effectively makes Kupas Kimcha D’Pischa an organization onto itself, with its own staggering, $850,000 budget.

Visitors to TLS are able to pledge or donate directly from our Web-a-Thon portal, 24 hours a day.

In addition to their regular sponsorship options, Kupas Kimcha D’Pischa offers the Sponsor-a-Seder program, which provides donors of $147 and above the opportunity to underwrite a family’s entire Pesach Seder.

The first 5 Sedorim were sponsored by TLS.

Kupas Kimcha D’Pischa is 501(c)3 tax-deductible charity.

To donate now online, CLICK HERE or call 732-276-9142 to do your part to ensure a successful campaign, and in the Zechus of your assistance, you will experience remarkable joy at your own Seder table this year!

Thank you.

TLS