Testimonials
“It definitely saved my life”
– Pearl Nager
When the CMC offered me a “Life-Alert” emergency medical alert system, I was 92 years old with a bent back, swollen legs and an unsteady gait. I depended on my walker to go anywhere, and I could barely stand for ten minutes at a time without needing to rest.
One day, I called Rabbi Jaworowski at the CMC because the electrical power to my apartment had been shut off. The Rabbi came straight over, reassured me, and reset the “Life-Alert” system, confirming that it was back in working order again following the power shut-off. It was providential that he did so, because that same afternoon I suffered a terrible fall in my living room. I couldn’t get up and was definitely unable to reach a phone, but I managed to press the button on my Life-Alert necklace. As a result, emergency responders were at my apartment in next to no time; they helped me to get off the floor, assessed my condition, and made sure that I was ok.
The life-alert system that the CMC gave me definitely saved my life. If I was not wearing that button on my necklace, who knows how many hours, days or weeks I may have been lying on the floor all by myself, with nobody at all to check on me or to help get me up? I am eternally grateful to the CMC for encouraging me and helping me to get one of these systems!
MEDICAL TRANSPORTATION
“Literally a life saver”
– Barry Robinson
There are not enough words to express my gratitude for the CMC and its wonderful services. The transportation service is amazing, and for me, it was literally a life saver. Prompt, helpful in every way, and always with a smile; the CMC always made me comfortable with all my requests.
Baruch Hashem, my recuperation has finally turned the corner, and I am now able to get in and out of our own car. We still need to continue therapy, but now we can do the transport on our own.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
May you continue to provide these very important services to our community.
HOSPITAL VISITATION AND PATIENT ADVOCACY
“The Sense of Reassurance was Priceless”
– Shimon Cohen, Nosson, Chanie and Nachie Cohen, and Debbie Miller-Rosenstein
When my wife was going through her end-of-life illness, it was an overwhelming period for her and for our family. The CMC’s expert assistance and advocacy was enormously helpful and reassuring.
At a time of great emotion and anxiety, Rabbi Wolf helped us to absorb the information from the doctors that we needed to know. And when there were crucial medical decisions to be made, the Rabbi helped us obtain advice and counsel from multiple expert opinions. He helped us deal with the issues of home health care, and when the question of hospice care arose, Rabbi Wolf’s support was instrumental for us.
My wife had very definite wishes, which were based on her religious values. For my wife, the extent of the CMC’s advocacy and support to ensure that her wishes would be implemented was incredibly reassuring. This definitely helped alleviate some of the distress of being an “end-of-life patient”. With Rabbi Wolf by our family’s side, we had an advocate every step of the way. The sense of reassurance was priceless.
HOSPITALITY SUITES
“Intellectual and social stimulation, joy and quality of life”
– The Rowner Family
One Friday morning, Aaron Rowner’s daughter Adina felt the beginning of labor pains and went to Evanston Hospital. Progress was slow however, and less than two hours before Shabbat, the doctor told Adina and her husband and mother that they needed to go home, and to return to the hospital only with increased labor intensity.
“It was a very stressful situation,” says Aaron. “We didn’t have a chance to prepare Shabbat food, and it was upsetting to be forced to go home when we were fully expecting that Adina would need to return within 24 hours to give birth in the hospital. We needed an alternative option.
The accommodations at the CMC’s hospitality suite – including the space to rest, the variety of hot Shabbat food that was available, and the convenience of being so close to the hospital – were unbelievably helpful and reassuring to my daughter and to our whole family. The best part however, was the manner in which the service was offered, with incredible devotion and willingness to help.”
SENIOR CENTER
“Unbelievably convenient, helpful, and reassuring.”
– Raysal Kotz
When older people retire from work and slow down from their hobbies and their busy family responsibilities, they need to fill their days with productive, stimulating enjoyable activities. The CMC senior center offers some amazing programs and classes, and the atmosphere is always warm and welcoming. Often, one may observe a certain sense of invigoration that the seniors feel as soon as they walk through the door in the morning, which is sparked just from the sense of warmth and friendly interest that individuals take in one another.
It’s great that there is a wide variety of programs at the senior center, as there is something for everyone to enjoy and look forward to. Programs on the weekly schedule include Torah classes, chair exercises, cooking class, video focus on Israel, game day, and volunteering for mitzvah projects. The monthly birthday party is always fun, and the offerings on the daily lunch menu are always fresh, hot, nutritious, and tasty! The CMC transportation shuttle that takes seniors to and from the senior center every day adds tremendous convenience to a service that already offers great benefits of intellectual and social stimulation, joy, and quality of life.
SIMCHA VISION
“It gave me pride, joy, and such incredible meaning”
– Zlata Burd
Several years ago, I lost my dear grandson, Gershon Burd, to a tragic sudden accident. Years later, as Gershon’s son was about to celebrate his bar mitzvah in Israel, I was feeling very sad and lonely because my old age and poor health left me unable to join the rest of my family to celebrate my great-grandson’s special day.
However, Rabbi Wolf told me not to be sad and not to worry. And although I found it impossible to believe, he said that the CMC would find a way for me to participate in the celebration too. Sure enough, after an amazing chain of events, in just one day Rabbi Wolf managed to arrange for a real-time interactive audio-visual hook-up from Israel, to live-stream the following day’s bar mitzvah celebration in Israel directly into Chicago!
For the day of the bar mitzvah, the CMC invited many people to come and wish me mazal tov in person. They set a beautiful table with flower arrangements and trays of delicious cookies, fruits and other goodies.
Watching the bar mitzvah via the live hook-up was amazing. I was able to see for myself the style of the décor, the food arrangements and the special outfits that my family were wearing. I was able to hear the bar mitzvah boy’s speech, which gave me so much pride and joy! And it was incredibly meaningful for me to speak with all of my great-grandchildren at the special occasion, and to give each of them my personal blessings.
I cannot describe how thankful I am to the CMC for making it possible for me to participate in my family’s simcha. The way in which it happened made me think that Rabbi Wolf and his son are both angels sent from heaven to help me.
INTENSIVE CASE ADVOCACY AND SUPPORT
“Their support was like a miracle for me”
– Gene Davis
When I first met Rabbi Jaworowski of the CMC, I was in a very difficult situation. I have always loved collecting books, but at this stage of my life, my favorite hobby was getting me in serious trouble. Almost the entire living space of my apartment was jammed from floor to shoulder height with towering mountains of thousands of books, all groaning under their own weight. Because of these books I had barely a few inches of open pathway to maneuver from the front door to the bed or kitchen. On more than one occasion the piles had caused me to trip and fall, hurting myself badly.
In view of the health and fire hazard, my building had given me multiple warnings that I was in violation of the terms of the lease. I knew that if nothing changed I would soon be facing the possibility of eviction, and I was terribly worried about what would happen to me. However, on my own I just didn’t have the physical or emotional ability to even make a dent in the mountainous clutter of books.
Thankfully though, the CMC helped me, and their assistance and support was like a miracle for me; it absolutely changed my life. The Rabbi helped me organize my books and empowered me to remove some of the enormous mountains that were cluttering my apartment. Thanks to the CMC’s help I was able to stop worrying about eviction; instead, I was able to start enjoying my increased living space and quality of life!