Charlotte Herzberg, an eight-year-old girl from Monsey, New York, was riding her bicycle near her home when she was struck and killed by a car. The driver, who immediately accepted responsibility for the terrible accident, was the best friend of Charlotte’s father, Yudi.

“At that moment, my wife and I understood that we were facing an enormous challenge and test,” Yudi said in his eulogy for his daughter. “My best friend did not do this deliberately. It was a terrible accident, and we were not going to allow this tragedy to tear us apart. The Satan was testing us. He wanted to show that our beautiful neighborhood could not withstand machlokes—conflict and division. But the Satan underestimated us. We were going to prove him wrong.”

Yudi and his wife were determined to transform their tragedy into a force for unity and peace among the Jewish people.

The following day, when members of the community came to pay a shiva call, they witnessed an extraordinary sight: Yudi and his best friend—the driver who had struck Charlotte—embracing, crying, and literally holding one another up. Nearby, Chumi, Charlotte’s mother, and the driver’s wife held each other and wept.

Before the shiva ended, Charlotte’s family launched a campaign called “Shalom for Charlotte,” encouraging Jews everywhere to forgive, let go, and move forward. The grieving family is asking people to reach out to friends, relatives, neighbors, and colleagues, to release old grudges and resentments, repair broken relationships, and then share their stories.

At the time of writing, 2,409 stories from 42 countries had already been posted on the campaign’s website.

We can all choose to assign blame and cling to our grievances, the family says. But instead, they are asking people to “take the pledge and make shalom for Charlotte. Bring more shalom into the world and help bring Moshiach.”

The stories are remarkable. Two brothers who had not spoken for years began speaking again. Business partners who had been estranged for three months cleared the air and started rebuilding their relationship. A shul that could have been torn apart by the tragedy chose instead to unite around the campaign. Parents who had become estranged from their son sent him a message saying, “We’re thinking about you, and we hope everything is okay”—and received a response from him for the first time.

During the Three Weeks, we speak often about ahavat chinam—unconditional love. When the “Shalom for Charlotte” website had received “only” 500 stories, Rabbi Elya Brudny, one of the leading rabbis of American Jewry, devoted a class to the campaign.

“I could give many classes about the importance of creating peace within a community and refining one’s character,” he said. “But these days, we are witnessing a living lesson before our very eyes. There are extraordinary people among us who are asking us to rise higher.”

You can take part at: https://shalomforcharlotte.com/

Sasha and Sapir Came Home—and Are Now Building a Home of Their Own

Sasha Troufanov and Sapir Cohen were abducted to Gaza two and a half years ago. On Sunday, they were married and began building a home together in Israel. That sentence is worth re-reading.

Every word spoken beneath the chuppah suddenly took on a deeper meaning.

“Behold, you are consecrated to me with this ring, according to the law of Moses and Israel,” Sasha said as he placed the ring on Sapir’s finger.

In interviews after his release, he said: “When I was abducted, my Jewish identity meant nothing to me. The first time I ever put on tefillin was after I was freed from captivity. I did not know there was a God. It is incredible. I was abducted because I was Jewish, yet I did not even know what that meant. Today, I do.”

Then came the breaking of the glass.

Rabbi Berel Lazar, the Chief Rabbi of Russia, who has supported the couple and officiated at their wedding, placed the glass on the ground and recalled the surgery Sasha had undergone on his leg after being wounded in captivity.

And there he stood, on both feet, healthy, strong, and smiling, as he declared:

“If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill. Let my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, if I do not place Jerusalem above my greatest joy.”

By then, many were in tears.

Sasha and Sapir were abducted from Nir Oz, but their story is also the story of Jerusalem. They both understand that.

Sapir once told me in an interview that her captors would speak to her about Judaism, the Ten Commandments, Jerusalem, and the Torah. The more she knew, the more unsettled they became.

“Ana Yahud,” she would tell them. “I am Jewish.”

One of the terrorists told her he disliked her because she was constantly looking out for the people around her, helping them and bringing “light into the darkness of Gaza.”

He was right.

The seven wedding blessings were recited beneath the chuppah. Sasha’s mother, Yelena Troufanov, and his grandmother, Irena, were there. Both had also been abducted to Gaza and later returned home. Since then, they have become symbols of faith, hope, and Jewish identity, particularly among Russian-speaking Jews.

One person was deeply missed: Sasha’s father, Vitaly, of blessed memory, who was murdered on October 7.

Once again, the ancient words carried extraordinary meaning, a prayer for all that will now fill this new home, and for the home of the Jewish people:

“Who created joy and gladness, groom and bride, rejoicing and song, delight and celebration, love and fellowship.”

Amen. Mazel tov!