Yoram Maman and the Acts of Kindness: 'I Can't Sleep Knowing I Haven't Helped Someone Today'

It happened on a clear day in 1988. Yoram Maman was just about to finish the squad commanders' course in the army. A son of a family of nine from Kiryat Shmona. Like his peers, Maman had big dreams, but many of them were cut short when he received that phone call. It was a regular afternoon on the base when one of the commanders called him to his office and with a fallen face informed him of a terrible disaster. 'It was my father. He had an accident with the Vespa scooter he had been riding for years and didn't survive.'

His late father served as a fire officer at the Kiryat Shmona fire station for many years, and one of his greatest desires in life was for one of his sons to continue that legacy. His brother, David, fulfilled this, while Yoram turned to study electrical engineering after finishing his military service. Maman takes a deep breath and continues, 'My late father was the pillar of our family, a man with a rare sense of love for others and kindness, always looking for ways to give and to help.' His loss was a difficult and nearly impossible trial for the nine siblings, none of whom had the privilege of having their father walk them to the altar. 'On a daily level, coping has been very challenging, but at least we try to live by the values he and my mother, may she live a long life, instilled in us.'

And what values they are. Not someone like Maman (47), an electrical engineer by profession, to boast about his deeds and contribution to the community, but just to give you an idea, we'll reveal that his schedule during the weekdays is anything but standard. Early in the morning, Maman goes to work as an electrician for a company providing electrical services in the surrounding kibbutzim, and from about five in the afternoon, his second shift begins: the shift of kindness, if you'd like to call it that. In his diary, Maman keeps a list of names of people who need an electrician but can't afford the required sum for repair or installation, and helps everyone without exception, free of charge.

Yoram Maman in his office

'When my brother moved houses, Yoram came and fixed the electricity, tip-top. He even installed two *Shabbat* clocks. But when it came to payment, he really fought not to take a dime. I don't know many people like him, he's truly a man of kindness,' said one of the city's residents. 'Where can you find people like this today, whose only desire is for someone else to be happy, for someone else to smile knowing they've saved a 400-shekel expense? I wish there were more like him in Israel,' added another resident.

When asked why, he has only one answer: 'This is my joy, knowing I've managed to bring happiness to others through my profession. Despite the workload, I try to reach every home that needs me and respond to every call. If I can't make it, I have a team of faithful colleagues who know the work and the operations and fill in as needed. The main thing is that I can rest easy, knowing people have received the help they needed. Otherwise, I find it hard to close my eyes at night,' he smiles.

Why actually?

'I can't explain it. It's something ingrained in me, apparently,' he says.

But that's not all: for those who don't know, Maman is also a member of the City Council in Kiryat Shmona and is part of a committee that deals with needy families, helping them obtain tax discounts. 'There are many elderly people, struggling day-to-day and others who don't understand what they need to do and who to contact to receive the discounts they are entitled to by law. I'm responsible, among other things, for filling out the relevant forms for them, accompanying them to the city hall if needed, submitting exceptional requests and so on. This work is necessary, as there are many people who need help from the public sector, and I serve as a "trumpet" for their voice, which cannot be expressed in any other way.'

To the question of how he manages to juggle all the roles he holds simultaneously, Maman replies, 'It's not easy, but *b'Hashem* there's someone who manages everything and provides *siyata d'Shmaya*, or as we say, "In the way a person wants to go, they lead him."

Do you know other good people along the way, who help the community wholeheartedly? Please write to us at email shira@htv.co.il and include contact information.