Dearest Family and Friends,

Ever since my dad and sister passed away, I have spent a great deal of time thinking of ways to elevate their souls.... It is not easy to lose a loved one, but throughout our experiences, I have come to realize that G-d truly is good and no matter what challenges He puts in front of us, I have tried my best to accept it with love, grace, humility, and faith...

As hard as it is to go through challenges, I realize that the challenges in life are put in front of us to strengthen us.... They can either break us or make us, but in the end, our reactions to them truly will define our success in overcoming them...As such, I have done everything in my power to glean inspiration from the challenges we have endured and have used my dads and sisters loss as a way to propel me to do more and be a better person...I am grateful to Hashem for everything that I have and for giving me the strength and faith to keep going… I am utterly blessed and humbled that He has given me so much and has given me the ability to get through the most challenging of times and hold onto my faith and maintain a positive outlook….

After my dad and Hannah died, I tried to think of ways to perpetuate their memories and elevate their souls... I raised money, donated to worthy causes, and continued to do more Mitzvot and learn in their memories.... For some time, I couldn't help fathom the pain I endured when I got that first call that Hannah was involved in a tragic drowning accident... I will never forget how fast I drove to go help save her life... I told my sister, Moselle, that no matter what, that she should continue doing CPR/Compressions and not give up…I remember speeding and also shaking on the phone and praying with all my heart that she would survive…I remember asking G-d to please have mercy on us, especially after losing my dad just one year prior to that call… I poured my heart and soul out, but sadly, when I got there, Hannah was still being worked on and unfortunately, it was too late for me or anyone to do anything at that point…For days after her accident, I kept crying, praying, and hoping that she would wake up…our family prayed, her friends traveled from near and far, and the community and the world did every thing in their power to pray and be there for us…Sadly, G-d had other plans, and a few days later, my beautiful sister was sent up to heaven…

No words can ever express how hard it has been for us, but after that experience, I took the loss and did everything possible to strengthen myself and connect more… I prayed, learned, and appreciated every day… I realized that everything G-d does is good, and despite the loss, I kept moving forward… I finished law school, persevered, and held on strong… I tried to think of different ways to bring peace and comfort to my family and spent countless days researching different medical solutions that I could provide to the world… Although, I went to law school, medicine has been something that has always been of interest to me…After some time and speaking to numerous special people, we came up with something truly beautiful that can help save lives, but even more so, help comfort and elevate my dad's and sisters soul....

I write this with the most sincerest heart, because those who knew Hannah and my dad, knew how special they were… Unfortunately, they left this world too soon... I just remember holding both of their hands praying to G-d that they would wake up, but sadly, G-d had other plans... Despite the immense pain we have endured, I have decided to take on a special project that will act as a soothing balm to the deep wounds that have penetrated our souls… I believe that it will truly help us have peace and comfort from the losses we have endured, but even more so, I truly believe that it will help make a difference in the community and save countless lives…

It is my mission and fervent desire to never let anyone feel hopeless or helpless in that situation and so I decided that what better way to help perpetuate my dad's and Hannah's soul, then by donating a LUCAS 3 device, which is an automatic chest compression system that manually compresses the heart when someone goes into cardiac arrest…With G-ds help, we hope to donate this device to Hatzolah, an amazing Jewish Volunteer Ambulance Company, which will use this machine to help save lives both in Queens and in Great Neck…

For those that aren’t familiar with what Hatzolah does, Hatzolah is one of the largest Jewish volunteer ambulance companies in the world. The average response rate to an emergency is around two minutes. The work they do is purely on a volunteer basis…their ambulances and equipment have been donated by generous donors throughout the world. I have personally seen the work they have done in the community, and have seen the immense care, love, and sensitivity they have towards helping save a life…

I originally wanted to focus on just reaching out to close family, but I believe that opening this incredible opportunity up to our friends and the community will be more meaningful.... I hope that with Hashem's never ending assistance, we can accomplish something amazing that will not only help Hannah and my dad, but will truly help save myriads of lives....

This project, although lofty, is something that I truly believe in and is very close to my heart… I hope with G-d’s help and the help of family, friends, and the community we will be able to raise the necessary funds to purchase a new LUCAS 3 Cardiac Machine, which will be donated to Hatzolah of Queens/Great Neck.... My hope is to one day supply as many devices as possible, but for now, I decided to stick to this one device in the hopes that we can truly help save others in Hannah and my dads memory…If G-d wills it, and we raise more money, I hope to use the remaining money to donate more equipment to help save more lives…

The total cost for a LUCAS 3 runs around $15,000.00- $20,000.00. The machine manually compresses the heart, which in turn can help operations for medical responders and paramedics. When someone goes into cardiac arrest, the first thing that happens is that the heart stops and blood flow and oxygen to the brain and other organs are disrupted. As such, if the heart stops beating, what ends up happening is that the brain cells and other organs begin to die and there isn’t enough oxygen and blood circulating to keep the patient alive… Responding as fast as possible is crucial, as after 4-6 minutes, the body and brain begin to shut down… When someone does CPR or compressions right away, it literally helps pump the heart for them, which helps in potentially saving them from death… Because the heart stopped beating and pumping blood, doing the compressions manually circulates blood and oxygen to the rest of the body until it is able to beat on its own…

The LUCAS 3 has truly been proven to save lives and has honestly been used on patients who sadly have gone into cardiac arrest…. What fascinated me with this device is that it takes the place of a person doing compressions, which can often be exhausting… The benefit of the LUCAS is that it does perfect compressions continuously and gives people a much better chance of survival… it also makes it much easier for first responders and paramedics to treat and transport a person, as it is extremely unsafe to do CPR on a person in a moving ambulance…the LUCAS is proven to administer perfect compressions continuously and it doesn’t stop or get tired… It is strapped around the person’s chest and can even be used while in an elevator, going down a flight of stairs, or while being transported to the hospital…It doesn’t stop, which is why many people have a higher chance of survival if used accordingly…

No one should ever have to know, but when Hannah had her accident, I just remember that manual compressions had to be done, in order for her heart to beat again…. It was not an easy task, and trying to save a life of someone close to you is utterly painful, emotional, and physically exhausting…I remember crying so much because all I wanted was for my sister to wake up…I felt so helpless and so lost…we were shaking, panicked, and honestly had no clue what to do…I remember telling Moselle not to give up and that whatever happens, just keep doing compressions… Miraculously, after crying and praying to G-d, Hannah got a pulse, but after being rushed to the hospital, she lost it again… At that point, the paramedics actually used the LUCAS in the ambulance…

What’s even more surreal is that a few weeks ago, I had the privilege of speaking with 2 very special Hatzolah members about this idea…When we discussed the LUCAS idea, I never even knew what a LUCAS Machine was, until we spoke about it…A few nights after we spoke, I happened to have read Hannah’s ambulance medical report and noticed that the night of her accident, the paramedics wrote that the LUCAS machine was used on her in the ambulance after she lost her pulse…I didn’t even know this, but after reading that, I truly felt that it was a heavenly sign…

As hard as it is for me to write this, I know deep down in my heart that anything is possible… Hannah was fearless and also did everything in her might to help another person… She was an amazing sister, daughter, aunt, friend, and human being… Her love for others was always so apparent… She had this beautiful energy and her smile would always radiate the room… My dad was the same… An amazing father, husband, grandfather, brother, uncle, lawyer, friend, and mentor…He was always helping people and reaching out to others without any recognition… He was our rock…truly humble, hardworking, kind, funny, and giving…No words can ever express how hard it has been for all of us, but instead of being despondent about it, I have chosen to use this as a way to inspire others, perpetuate their memories, and help save lives….

Despite not being able to save Hannah’s and my dad’s life, I know that their lives were all about helping people…They helped in immense ways, and did so quietly without fanfare… I will never forget how eager Hannah and my dad were to help worthy causes, and I thought what better way to elevate their souls then by helping save another persons life…

It is my goal to raise enough money to purchase the LUCAS 3 device, and with Hashem’s assistance, donate it to Hatzolah of Queens/Great Neck. Currently Hatzolah of Queens has 9 ambulances, and 4 Lucas machines. With this new donation, it will help them save even more lives and help patients who go into cardiac arrest.  Ultimately, it would be amazing to have a LUCAS on every Hatzolah ambulance to make sure it gets to every cardiac arrest as soon as possible, but for now, my goal is to raise one, and see where Hashem takes me….

For those that would like to partake in this project in memory of Hannah, Chana Shaina Bat Yehuda Leib and my father, Yehuda Leib Ben Yosef, please feel free to donate on this page. You can also donate directly to Hatzolah website at https://www.queenshatzolah.org/. Just make sure to write in memo- Lucas for Hannah Kerben and My dad... 

Any amount that you give will truly help make a difference. Your donation is not just another check to an organization, rather, its an actual lifeline for so many people who sadly go into cardiac arrest and need help… you are literally beating their hearts for them…

As busy as we all are, this is a project that I hope to accomplish and with G-d’s assistance and your amazing help, I pray we can help save many more lives…

All donations are tax-deductible and if you need a receipt or more information please let me know and I will gladly set that up.  In the merit of giving and saving a life, I pray that G-d should always elevate my sister and dads soul, but even more so, I pray that G-d should bless each and everyone of you who are truly helping save lives… You have no idea what you are doing, and in the merit of giving, I pray G-d should bless you with health, happiness, success, love, peace, and immense blessing… I also pray that in the merit of giving, Hatzolah should continue their amazing work, save many more lives, and truly make a difference… With your donation, you are not only healing the broken hearts of those who have lost loved ones, but you are utterly helping save the hearts and lives of those who desperately need healing…

With all my love, humility, and appreciation,

Janaya Kerben

Link on what the LUCAS 3 does: http://www.lucas-cpr.com/en/lucas_cpr/lucas_cpr

Link on what Hatzolah does: https://www.queenshatzolah.org/

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