HAVERHILL — To say Israel is getting a taste of Haverhill would be an understatement.
The son of Haverhill Rabbi Ira Korinow is a doctor at a medical center there.
The rabbi and his wife are there now visiting him.
And they brought even more of Haverhill with them — toys bought by Haverhill children for sick children in the younger Korinow's hospital.
The toys were purchased by students at Kadima Community Day School at Temple Emanu-El in Haverhill.
At the school, doing good deeds or "mitzvahs," such as visiting the sick, is one of the 613 obligations noted in the Torah, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, said Gail Korinow, wife of the rabbi.
"Being kind to others and doing lots of good deeds is important to us," said Ariel Krasner, 6, of Andover, a student at the school. "These toys are a mitzvah for sick children in Israel."
This winter, children at Kadima have been collecting coins to buy toys for children being treated in the oncology department at Tel HaShomer/Sheba Medical Center, Israel's national hospital.
The children collected more than $90 and were able to buy 10 toys, including Transformers and an Etch-a-Sketch.
The toys will be delivered to sick children by Gail Korinow, who is director of Judaic studies at Kadima. She and her husband are in Israel this week visiting their son Doron, who is working in the pediatrics ward at the medical center.
"This is a wonderful lesson in math, social studies, Israel awareness and tzedakah, which is charity — giving back to society," Gail Korinow said. "Children learned that sometimes giving toys away is as much fun as receiving them."
In addition to the toys, children made get-well cards in the shape of clowns. Gail Korinow said the Tel HaShomer/Sheba Medical Center has volunteers who dress as clowns as entertainment for children who are being treated by doctors.
"Doron told us there are more clowns in the hospital than doctors," Gail Korinow said with a smile.
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The Haverhill-Israel connection
Doron Korinow — the son of Haverhill Rabbi Ira Korinow and the rabbi's wife, Gail — is a doctor in a children's ward at Israel's national hospital.
The rabbi and his wife are in Israel visiting their son this week.
Students at Haverhill's Kadima Community Day School bought toys for children in the Israeli hospital and sent them with Gail Korinow.
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