"I Found 1003 Pairs of Tefillin, and I Hope You Won't Need Me"

When we contacted Shashi Karko a few days ago, it was because we learned that after years of working to find lost items forgotten on buses, especially tefillin, he had successfully found his 1000th pair, closing a very emotional circle.

However, in our conversation, it turned out that the round number was already behind him. Just this morning, he helped return the 1003rd pair of tefillin, and he is now looking towards the next thousand.

A One-Man Operation

So how did it all start?

It turns out that Shashi worked for nearly 50 years at Egged in various roles, and over the years, he developed a special skill in finding lost items. Today, after he finished his job, he continues to do so with even more intensity - he finds bags, strollers, wallets, suitcases, striemels, hats, and whatnot? "For me, there's no such thing as 'can't find it'. If it can't be found, we try again and again until we do," he asserts.

That's how he helped find an envelope with 46,000 shekels, as well as books, wallets, cameras, jewelry, and especially tefillin. "You can't put into words the great anguish of people who forget their tefillin," he says, "you can really hear the pain in their voice because it's not just about financial damage, it's much more than that. People sometimes cry to me on the phone and tell me they did everything to locate the tefillin and just couldn't."

But what's your secret? How do you do it?

"Over the years I learned that to find lost items, you first have to listen carefully to the person who lost it and try to interview him, to understand where he lost it, where it happened, and what exactly the item looked like. Sometimes during the conversation, he remembers that the item wasn't lost on the bus at all and even finds it in another place. Additionally, I always suggest, regardless of whether the person is religious or not, to say the well-known verse as a good luck charm for finding a lost item: 'Rabbi Binyamin said, everyone is considered blind until Hashem enlightens their eyes, from here, Hashem opened her eyes, and she went and filled the jar,' and then I get to work: I have 1,500 contacts on my mobile from all different transport companies, and I strive to connect everyone who calls me with someone who can help find it. Sometimes it's a challenge because there's pressure to find the item – for example, a yeshiva student who lost a suitcase with all his clothes, bedding, and items he took with him to yeshiva, and he doesn't even have anything to sleep with at night, or a groom on the night before his wedding who lost his expensive striemel, and so on. In such situations, I turn the world upside down, and with *siyata dishmaya*, I often succeed in finding the lost item in less than an hour."

One of the people involved in his activity is Rabbi Chacham Shalom Shem Tov from the Ohel Moed Synagogue, who always encourages him to help anyone who loses an item. "I recently participated in a Torah lesson by the rabbi, where he told us about Rabbi Abba Zion Shaul who brought candies to the Porat Yosef Yeshiva, and when his students asked him, 'What's the occasion?' he replied, 'I performed the mitzvah of returning lost items, so I brought you treats.' Immediately after the lesson, I bought candies for the attendees of the Kollel and happily distributed them. However, I was later warned that if I distribute treats for every item I find, I'll have to open a candy factory."

Without Compensation, From the Heart

Over the years, Shashi became one of the largest operations for returning lost items in the world. "I have no day or night," he says honestly, "people call all the time and there are dozens of inquiries daily, in addition to the many emails. Thank Hashem, I succeed in 95% of the cases to locate all the lost items, with the help of my dear partners Moshe and Dan Yefet."

If you're wondering, he doesn't accept anything in return and does everything out of pure kindness. "But the blessings I receive are worth more than any financial compensation," he clarifies, "each time I get excited again when people bless me, regardless of which sector they belong to. I try to help everyone, I want to bring as much love and redemption as possible to the people of Israel. By the way, about two years ago, my brother got ill and was hospitalized for a year and a half at Herzog Hospital, where he was sedated and ventilated. During that whole period, I asked everyone I found the lost item for to bless my brother, and indeed we saw great miracles, he was released from the hospital and now I am taking care of him at home. Thank Hashem, there is a lot of work, but I make sure not to say no to anyone who contacts me. I handle every request, and I can't remember even once over the years that I said 'no'. I always respond positively, and I do everything with love and joy."

Last month, Shashi decided to give a special name to his charitable organization: 'Chessed Fund Ashrei Yaakov', in memory of the holy brothers Asher and Yaakov Pali who were murdered sanctifying Hashem's name on the Shabbat evening of Yitro 5783. "I called to tell their grandmother and father about it, and they were very moved," he notes, "I feel it's a great honor that my charity fund is named after these holy and dear brothers."