In 2016, Yerucham Kopelman had an insight that opened his eyes to a harsh reality. Having been in the funeral industry for decades, he was personally witnessing a scary trend that is heavily supported by data. The trend of Jewish people being cremated was significantly increasing year over year. Countless beautiful Neshamos being lost through cremation, how could this be? A tragic irony only compounded when considering how many lives were lost by burning in ovens Al Kiddush Hashem one generation ago. Something had to change.
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Kopelman, a resident of South Florida and a leader in spearheading the fight against cremation, understood that in order to facilitate change, he needed to create a non-profit foundation that would provide all that is necessary to save a Meis Mitzvah. More than 40% of the Jewish population in South Florida were being cremated. With the help of others who shared in this same vision, The Neshama Foundation was created – clearly an appropriate name.
The short version of the story is that while Neshama has been operational for merely four years, thousands of Souls have since been saved. Mind boggling.
The beauty, as they say, is in the details. Thus, the longer version, a fascinating and inspiring story of Neshama follows below.
Kopelman initially assembled a team of experts in the field. The team consisted of experienced Rabbanim with deep a understanding in the Halachic nuances and sensitivities of Taharah and Kevurah, business people, operations and logistical experts, donors, and others from varied industries. The team was able to strategize, plan, and implement their model, helping to start reverse the downward spiral while providing an unprecedented degree of Chesed Shel Emes.
Yerucham Kopelman, who had been in the industry for 40+ years prior to helping launch Neshama, shared the following, “There were some ‘Aha’ moments in the early days. The more we assessed the situation, the more our awareness was heightened to the severity of the issue. Rather than have this frustrate us, it only further motivated us.”
One interesting data point that was revealed was that for most people the choice of cremation was not one of a specific preference, but a practical consequence given the lower cost than burial.
A plan was hatched with an underlying firm commitment– No Jewish Neshama should ever be limited in receiving an appropriate Kevurah with Kavod Hameis because of financial considerations.
The plan was quickly put into action. Funds were raised exclusively through donations. Word spread, and the needle started moving – burials were beginning to be utilized as opposed to cremation.
Success breeds success. Soon, the team at Neshama were at another crossroads. Chaim Russ, Executive Director, explains: “We were getting calls from all over. Our team was working around the clock with national, and even international situations, with us recognizing that in these situations, ‘no’ is simply not an option.”.
When asked to elaborate on some specific situations, Russ replied: “We had a frum family in NY and Israel who had an uncle who was niftar in a remote location in Canada. He had been born in the DP camps in Germany, and throughout the years had become less traditional. His wife was considering to cremate him, or to bury him in a local non-Jewish cemetery.” “The wife,” Russ continued, “was willing to have the husband buried in a Jewish cemetery if he could be buried next to his parents who survived the war and were buried in NY.” Making the situation even more challenging was that this happened over the weekend of December 25th, where many people and services were closed, and during Covid when restrictions related to crossing the border presented added complexities. Seeing a window of opportunity Chaim Russ and the others at Neshama coordinated with people in Canada and other organizations (with a quick shout out and Yashar Kochachem to Mesaskim in Lakewood, NJ, Russ makes sure to add) to create a cohesive unified front – and they were able to get the person buried within record time in the NY Jewish cemetery alongside his parents.
In June 2019, the team started a separate entity, Neshama Jewish Funeral Services, run by Benjamin Kopelman the licensed funeral director/FDIC. Benjamin points out that Neshama is the only religious Jewish owned and operated funeral home in South Florida.
When asked about next steps, Benji Kopelman’s eyes twinkle with the passion and commitment evident in the success of his team’s effort.
“We have moved into a new building in Lighthouse Point, FL. The building has been renovated to accommodate a larger and more efficient operation. For example, we are the only funeral service that will have its own kosher mikvah for Taharah, two state of the art Taharah rooms and proper accommodations for a Shomer.”
In addition, like other businesses expanding to meet the needs of their clients and audience base, having a larger geographic footprint increases the efficiency of every component of the complex but smooth operation. In that regard, they are currently scoping out other locations throughout the US with new locations beginning to roll out within the next quarter.
When asked about what would be helpful to support growth, Ben Lutz, Director of Development, elaborated on the fact that donations have been critical as the model doesn’t rely on any fees or revenue from the families of the niftar. “It is unreasonable to continue to count on our initial donor base exclusively to fully meet the very large void in the country.”
Kopelman adds that “Rabbi Shmuel Fuerst, Senior Advisor of the Midwest Council of Agudas Yisrael put it best when he said that ‘There should be a Neshama organization in every Jewish community’”. Their vision was further reinforced by David Kushner, Government Relations and Special Projects for Amudim Community Resources, who after meeting the Neshama team, said, ““To say I was impressed by what you have built and accomplished thus far is an understatement. I am humbled by your team’s commitment and passion for both doing the right thing, as well as doing it in the right way.”
Mr. Russ emphasizes that “Donations are critical for us to continue at this pace. The reality is that we need to leverage the momentum of the positive impact we are having. We seemed to have tapped into a sensitive solution for a painful and tragic reality of the growing percentage within our larger community. We have an obligation to resolve this issue, and we have the skills, resources, tools, and experience to do so. It would be naïve to think that this effort can continue its growth at this pace without everyone’s involvement. We are sure that others feel as we do – Achenu Kol Beis Yisrael (The House of Israel are all brothers). Labels these days are arbitrarily assigned to others in terms of their level of religiosity – from the most secular to the most religious. Regardless, we are all brothers – we are all family. We welcome our family who might be interested in hearing more and being involved on any level to reach out to us and join us in our mission to bring all those that are are Niftar to an appropriate resting place, and that it should be a zechus for not only the Neshamos of those who have passed, but also for those who contribute and for the entirety of the Jewish nation.”
A soulful statement that is a befitting and uplifting end to an interview for those saving souls.
For those wishing to hear more The Neshama Foundation can be reached at 833-4MY-SOUL, or [email protected] .
