The Story of Joe Mendelson, A"H

this is joe mendelsohn known by his friends and fans as uncle joe his physical presence alone he's a tall big man with a ready smile cannot be ignored this is a story that needs to be told the story starts in minnesota where joe was living working in his spare time riding a motorcycle with his gang i'll tell you the gang we weren't something that you would fear if you saw us on an isolated road even in the middle of the night we really were a group of middle-aged people and uh we were really road for the excitement of just the ride feeling the air blowing through our hair or at least what's left of mine and it was more of a social run most of the time on a visit to his religious sister in baltimore joe got an inkling that there was something more on shabbos he went to shul and listened intently to the rabbi's speech he enjoyed the relaxed special atmosphere of the table the aristocratic feel of a day in which money making traffic phones and work were all banned from the agenda by the time the day was over joe had just one question for his sister like all this mumbo jumbo everything it's fantastic although i don't quite understand it a lot of it if i just want to talk about hashem you know i can't say all these prayers and stuff we talked about what's like is there some kind of simple phrase or something i can say just to communicate at least my you know beliefs right now whenever you want to speak to god just say two words she advised him just say hashem joe adhered to that advice with a fervor that could only be called religious when he needed something from god he would say baruch hashem i need this or baruch hashem i need that several weeks later joe was riding his bike through town the warm sun shone down on him and lit up the scenery like a photograph he was cruising at a modest 50 miles per hour when suddenly joe's bike lost its traction and started to skid it seemed as though the bike was being ripped out from under him and his large frame slammed painfully into the ground the momentum pushed him along the road for several yards like a bouncing ball banging his head and limbs over and over again baruch hashem he called out instinctively as his head crashed down against the pavement baruch hashem god would help him he knew if he just kept calling him baruch hashem finally his body landed for the last time about 50 feet away from his bike joe tried to move but he couldn't he willed his fingers to wiggle a bit and they did that was the first thing i did was wiggle my fingers and my toes i wasn't quite sure where i was and and yes it is true i was just repeatedly instinctively saying and just thanking god for not killing me that day and as i was in the hospital healing with my broken bones ribs and so forth i did a lot of reflection how you know there was more to life than just writing and a lot of the things that we hear about yiddish kite aren't just a myth but they were the answers to to the life that i was looking for upon returning home joe wasted no time becoming involved with the jewish community in minnesota not one for half measures he became completely torah observant within a short time the next step was to take on a serious commitment to learning joe uprooted himself and moved to lakewood new jersey which he had heard was the jerusalem of america there he sought out the most learned people he could find to learn with him who could refuse uncle joe about a year later joe was introduced to hillary engagement marriage and the imminent birth of a child all followed quickly the couple felt divinely blessed having been granted all the gifts that so many other people had to pray long and hard to obtain but then the smooth ride hit another skid hillary was beset by major complications that threatened both her life and that of the baby she was rushed to the hospital and a frightening medical drama unfolded joe turned to hashem now he knew many more ways to reach out to him many more words to say than his simple baruch hashem and he said them all with his whole heart surely the god who had saved him from dying on the pavement of a minnesota road would save his righteous wife and their unborn child nothing seemed to help hillary's condition worsened and the doctors were trying desperately to give the baby a little more time to mature before performing the emergency delivery that seemed inevitable one day when the situation had taken another bad turn joe realized that there was only one person who had the power to change things hillary hillary everyone's dominating for you everyone from minneapolis miami maryland i think hashem really wants to hear from you i can't do it you need to step up to the plate i know you don't have the strength for the to feel those or the long ones or the long words but i know you can echo out hashem show them express the gratitude express everything that you have you're thankful for and just say it hashem would take care of it like he did for me and he'll do it hillary nodded her head and then began repeating until she felt that all of her longing for a healthy baby and for her own life had been delivered to the heavenly throne a few days later hillary gave birth to a happy baby girl joe spent those first few years in lakewood working at ura a cure of organization with his infectious can-do attitude and million-watt supply of positive energy he was the perfect person to help jewish children discover what he has discovered that hashem is just waiting to hear from his children joe's simple belief and trust in hashem quickly puts every situation into perspective may he have the merit to inspire many others to take the journey to a life of torah and mitzvos [Music] you