As we come up to the fifth yahrzeit of Chaiya Drabkin, co-founder of the Jewish Caring Network (JCN), all of us who knew Chaiya, and all of us who benefited from the incredible work of JCN, are filled with emotion.
When we think of Chaiya, we think of her unstoppable optimism and simchas ha'chaim (joy) which remained until the end, the devotion to chesed (kindness) that could not be deterred by any circumstance, not even the circumstance of her own devastating illness.
And yet we cannot help but remember the middah (character trait) that she embodied — simcha (happiness)— and smile at the warmth and joy of the memories she left us. Whatever Chaiya did, she did with simcha. Whether it was planting a garden, teaching music, even cooking a pot of soup for her children and grandchildren, her every action was an act of joy, flowing from her own wellspring of simcha, and reaching out to everyone she met.
Which she first received her diagnosis, she looked in the mirror, and said, I will accept this and I will not be sad. I will handle this nisayon with simcha.
And she did. No one on the chemo floor at Johns Hopkins — patients or staff — will ever forget Chaiya, the woman who came to chemo with a huge smile, who decorated her chemo infusion pole with smiley faces, who handed out her business card to everyone, a card which read: Chaiya Drabkin: D.O.P.T.F.C.S.!! (Director of Positive Thinking, Future Cancer Survivor!!).
Chaiya leaves her extraordinary legacy of simcha, simcha that knows no bounds and yields to no obstacles.
Raising Money for the Jewish Caring Network.
When serious illness strikes, the entire family is affected. Jewish Caring Network is dedicated to providing a full range of support services to families facing life-threatening, lifelong, and serious illnesses while preserving their privacy and their dignity.
Funds raised from the JCN5K will enable us to provide programs, activities, and services to our families and lets them know we are standing beside them throughout the duration of their illness, treatment and recovery.
