Big Mike Gondelman – making a difference everyday!

Big news for July 2017 Big Mike Gondelman is moving to Miami, Florida as his permanent resident. He will be missed and his service appreciated (including his family), thank you from all of us in Jerusalem and much blessings of success beyond! B’H 🙂

Meir Leib/ famously known as BigMIKE is a man with a Big Heart, & friendship and work that brings the Midnightrabbi inspires much inspiration

We all need faith in ourselves to be a success like Big Mike!

Big news, the Jerusalem Sober House  headed by Big Mike himself is working wonders!

Read below for more about Big Mike and see the website www.jerusalemsoberhouse.com for more information about the program.

To donate please click here! (please mention Eli sent you in comments thanks)

I am Big Mike , I am a Orthodox man living in Yerushalayim with my wife and 3 small children.

I am a licensed CASAP (Certified Addictions and Substance Abuse Professional) who works as a private therapist with a specialization in drug addiction.

I am also available for “crisis intervention” including reccomending ongoing care and rehab to young adults both here in Israel and abroad.
I make myself available to escort young people from Israel to America
to attend rehab. I have worked for and with Yeshivas here in Yerushalayim as a drug counselor
doing private and group therapy on a regular basis. I was also trained
as a kiruv professional in Ohr Lagola through Ohr Somayach in
Yerushalayim. I also learned there as a bachur and avreich for 7 years.

I am an active member of Nefesh Israel, an organization of Orthodox mental health professionals, and I regularly attend their conferences. In my spare time I try to keep up with the young adult population of American and American-Israelis living and learning here in Israel. I am a recovering alcoholic
and drug addict and regularly attend AA and NA meetings where I also
sponsor other members. As a person who has “been there and done that”
I can relate to people going through the same thing in a way that
others cannot. Much of the work that I do is Pikuach Nefesh in it’s
truest form and I feel that it is my life’s work to save people’s
lives.

My Story

I was born on February 19, 1977 in Bayside New York. I am the second of 3 boys and I grew up in a Conservative Jewish household. As a small boy my family moved to Rockland county eventually settling in Suffern, New York, right next to Monsey. As a young teenager I became addicted to alcohol and drugs and continued using them until
I became sober 10 years ago. I was always a “big kid” and by the time I started high school I was 6’4″ and weighed 280 pounds. At 17 I reached my current height of 6’9″. As you can imagine in high school I played football. Everyone thought I would go to the NFL but my addiction prevented me from attaining my goals. At the age of 18 I went to rehab and lived in a halfway house in Arizona briefly, returning home to New York to finish high school. I received a football scholarship for college but only attended for a year, again because I just couldn’t stay sober. After college I worked in various jobs earning money which I spent on drugs until I became involved with AA and NA. In my search for sobriety I had to define my “Higher power” and after looking through every religion I was finally introduced to Orthodox judiasm by a kiruv Rebbetzin. Eventually I decided to go to Israel to learn more and I ended up in Ohr Somayach where on the first day I held up a gemara upside-down and didn’t know the difference. I met my wife a year and a half later and we settled in Yerushalayim where we started a family. Boruch Hashem our children are being raised in a Torah filled environment. My hope is to bring more young people to Torah and a healthy straight life of mitzvahs and gemilus chasodim. As you well realize to run a program like I envision costs quite a bit of money. The need for such a program is obvious and the time is short. We are losing young people by the thousands to substance abuse, assimilation and the feeling that they are not accepted in so called “normal” yeshivas and in the frum community Time is of the essence in bringing these youngsters back to Yiddishkeit and your monetary help is critical. We realize that there are many worthy tzedokahs out there but we as former substance abusers are uniquely suited to be the shluchim to help these people. We trust you will agree and generously help us. Wishing you and your family health and Yiddishe nachas,

If there are any questions see below!

• Sincerely,
  Big Mike

Contact Information 

0526999878 

+1 845.738.2389 

bigmikeisrael@gmail.com

Please see the website www.jerusalemsoberhouse.com and see if u can make a dream come true!

Please feel free to contact Jerusalemsoberhouse@gmail.com and mention 

Eli Goldsmith sent you. Please contact Eli for sponsorship/donations and info for clients about our great program- umuse613@gmail.com 

Please feel free to contact Eli Goldsmith!
Israel 00972-57-317-5856
Email Eli Goldsmith umuse613@gmail.com