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Apr 19, 2024, 7:37 AM

Ride Through Without Seder (Order)

The Hebrew word for suicide is l’hitabed – to lose oneself. Our dear son Ariel z”l ended his life by suicide some 7 years ago when he became lost in a whirlwind of spiraling thoughts that tormented his brain...

Dec 2, 2023, 5:56 PM

October 7 and 7 years – A Connection of Calamity

I mourn my son Ariel z”l every single day and require no Azkara to remind me. But on this evening of the seventh Azkara, I mourn the loss of my son with the shadow of the slaughter of “השבת...

Oct 16, 2023, 7:50 AM

Shock, pain, disbelief, stunned confusion and anger about how this could have possibly happened are thoughts many Israelis have had since the horrific surprise attack by Hamas terrorists that took place on the morning of October 7th. Initially, almost to...

May 30, 2022, 5:18 PM

This blog won’t make the news

Suicide is scary and seems unsolvable, so we avoid reckoning with it. If we keep it up, we can expect to lose another 500 Israelis to this scourge each year

Dec 16, 2021, 10:06 PM

Sitting and walking through grief

Mourning my dear son Ariel z”l on his fifth azkara twice within a month (the Hebrew date of his death was November 20th while tomorrow, December 17th, is the day that is seared in my memory) is just another...

Apr 28, 2021, 12:07 AM

Walking the streets of Jerusalem without a mask these past few weeks has been strangely hard, despite the liberating feeling that relative health and normality has returned. The mask, uncomfortable as it is, has served us this past year...

Dec 16, 2020, 7:58 PM

An Untraditional Way to Mourn

Earlier in the month we observed – and did not observe - the Hebrew date of Ariel’s z”l fourth Yahrzeit (anniversary of his death), since my son completed his life by suicide. My wife patched me in via WhatsApp...

Sep 20, 2020, 9:09 PM

Stop the Video and Cry Privately

Researchers have suggested what many caregivers have already figured out on their own: Sometimes there is nothing like a good cry to make you feel better. While society often callously considers shedding tears to be a sign of weakness,...

Apr 3, 2020, 6:10 PM

Coronoa and Mental Illness

During these trying times of uncertainty, fear and isolation, I cannot help but think of my son Ariel z”l, whom I just visited at the Kiryat Anavim Cemetery, after lying to a policeman that I would definitely be going...

Feb 26, 2020, 9:02 PM

Grief: The Tolerable and the Intolerable

Recently I observed, together with my mother and sister, my Dad’s first yahrzeit (anniversary of his death). I miss him. Dad always had a reserved and patient demeanor, and simply observing his stable persona often helped me to calm down. I...

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About Me

Meir Charash, originally from Fair Lawn New Jersey, made Aliyah to Israel 44 years ago. In 1979, Meir acquired a B.S. in Business Management, majoring in organizational management, from Boston University and a MSW in 1984 in Group and Community Work from the Wurzweiler School of Social Work (WSSW) at Yeshiva University. Meir worked as a community worker in Beit Shemesh and in Jerusalem, was the Director of the Israel Office of the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia for 19 years providing fiduciary oversight to donor funds and facilitating Israel – Diaspora relations. Meir’s expertise is in the area of community building, fundraising and organizational behavior. In addition to supervising Wurzweiler social students, Meir worked as Faculty Advisor and Coordinator of the Israel Block Program from 2010 to 2017. Meir is married with three children and resides in Armon HaNatziv, Jerusalem. He is a certified fitness trainer, Thai massage therapist and an avid mountain bike rider having participated for nine years in the Alyn Charity Bike Ride for the Children of the Alyn Rehabilitation Hospital and in two races, the “Epic,” and “Sovev Arava”. Meir served in the armored forces for a year and a half and 15 years in reserve duty.

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