Personal story

At the tender age of 12, while living in a tiny Israeli hamlet, I contracted rheumatic fever. By the time it was discovered, I had already suffered heart damage, At 19, I found it increasingly difficult to breathe and had trouble performing such simple everyday tasks as walking up a flight of stairs. My parents were told I would need three valves replaced. They had no idea where to have the surgery done and where to find the best doctor.

Fortunately, they soon heard about the MRA through a friend in America. We won’t ever forget what they did for us. Rabbi Schnitzler picked us up at the airport the day we arrived, and from that moment on, I felt like a cared for member of his family. One of America’s top heart surgeons agreed to conduct the operation. Flight arrangements were promptly arranged for my mother and me. Before I was anesthetized, the doctor carefully explained what they plan to do. “We are going to take your heart out of your body, put it on the table, work on it and then put it back,” he said. I told him I understood. The doctor than gently asked if I was scared. I said, “No. Because I know you can’t move even one of your fingers without the help of the one Above.” Rabbi Schnitzler stayed with me through the operation and recovery. Thank God, I came through with flying colors.

My heart function is as if it had received a new lease on life, as if it were new. In two months I will be getting married. I owe a debt of gratitude to the MRA.

At the tender age of 12, while living in a tiny Israeli hamlet, I contracted rheumatic fever. By the time it was discovered, I had already suffered heart damage, At 19, I found it increasingly difficult to breathe and had trouble performing such simple everyday tasks as walking up...

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