Rikki (Hanna), an 11 year old girl and an only child, thrived under her parents diligent care in their home all her life. Numerous individuals, with the aid of a local Agency, schemed against Rikki’s parents to have her forcefully removed from their home and to have her placed as a foster child in one of the collaborator’s homes. The collaborator’s scheme succeeded by involving Social Services (ACS) in their malicious agenda. Through false accusations, they had Rikki torn from her parents on October 15, 2018. The foster parents claimed to be protecting Rikki with an eventual plan to reunite her with her parents. At the same time, they were secretly filing to permanently adopt her.
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The foster parents, in conjunction with the Agency, deliberately disobey doctors orders and do not provide Rikki with her proper dietary, educational (IEP/ IESP) and medical needs. Rikki’s wellbeing has therefore deteriorated drastically to the point that her life is in danger. In addition, the Agency does not allow Rikki to recite brachos and the foster parents force her to be mechallel Shabbos. Rikki is extremely distraught in her forced foster home and cries to be brought back home to her parents. She incessantly screams at the foster parents: “You’re not my Mommy and Daddy!” “I want to go home!” The foster parents and Agency constantly threaten Rikki from sharing her feelings with her parents of the painful truth of her situation in the foster home. In the meantime, on April 4, 2019, the Agency succeeded in convincing the court to completely sever the biological mother from any contact with Rikki, while attempting to execute a similar scheme against the biological father, with the direct intention of quickly facilitating adoption.
With Hashem’s help, together with much help from the community by means of public funding and influence, the adoption that was scheduled for August 15, 2019 was postponed for two months. On October 17, 2019 the scheduled adoption was again deferred, and the mother’s visitation rights which had been suspended for over six months were finally restored.
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From the day the biological parents entered court on April 14, 2016 to the present day, all claims against the parents made by ACS, the Agency, the foster parents, and their cohorts have been disproven with irrefutable evidence. Despite all this, Rikki is still not being returned to her parents due to “concerns.” No explanations are being provided as to what the “concerns” are, and the Agency together with ACS are utilizing all their tactics and resources to achieve permanent adoption in court.
The parents have summoned the opposing parties to Bais Din but the parties refused to come. The Rabbonim have therefore stated that this issue must be dealt with in a legal manner. There is a case specific legal process available that is guaranteed to bring Rikki home quickly, but the legal fees to proceed with it are $500,000. The Rabbonim have stated that “According to the Torah, this is a true mitzvah of pidyon shvuyim and hatzolas nefashos and the child must be returned at all costs.” Hashem is on Rikki’s side, as He always has been (see Koheles 3:15) and will ultimately make her and her parents succeed, but as human beings, we must do our part. Please help these parents with as much as you can to bring Rikki home safely.
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May this campaign only reunite Klal Yisrael, stop the sinas chinom and motivate all those who harmed Rikki to do immediate teshuva, and thereby allow for the geula sheleima to come!
Unfortunately, R Malkiel Has been misinformed. This article is filled with a bunch of lies. To begin with, the foster family lives on my block and is a wonderful and warm family. The father is a tremendous תלמיד חכם whom the whole block asks their שאלות to. Additionally, Rikki was in my daughter’s bunk and is very settled.
Continued from earlier post. Unlike the authors of this article who are forced to fabricate lies to get their daughter back, I have info about the mother’s illness that actually WAS a danger to the child’s emotional and physical development. Vozeineis- you should prob not post this second comment but you’re welcome to reach out to me and I can give you verified information but kindly remove this article from your newsfeed.
S.R., the foster family may be the nicest people in the world, but it is NOT THEIR CHILD. The Rabbonim who signed probably know things that you, a mere neighbor, do not know.
S.R.
When I initially saw this issue, I figured there was more to the story. L’maan Hatzibur, please disclose all information on this issue.
Just a few points:
ACS doesn’t take away children because “Scheming individuals conspiring with local agencies made up a story”
That is being dillusional.
Same for claiming that raising $500k will guarantee that you have your preferred outcome in a legal court of law.
That’s ridiculous.
Also, I can’t believe all those rabbi’s signed that letter that you put their names at the bottom of. Please publish all the original letters.
It is sad that this save Rikki campaign has changed go fund me acounts on numerous occasions. Each time making up a new impending date with a sense of urgency.
It’s sad that all these charity campaigns get a bad name from people who make up lies just to play on the heartstrings of the public as a source of income.
If there are grievances against the parents, the only proper way would be via Beis Din. This is not the appropriate platform for judges and jurists. Make a Beis Din — 3 dayanim with no prior knowledge of this case, should take it on — with both parties present – – and determine what is the emes.
I also know the real parents as well as the extended family. Even if any of the accusations were true , the grandparents asked to take care of their granddaughter. They were refused. Aunts and uncles requested to take in their niece. They were refused.
Why?
The couple that has custody is furious with the real father for marrying someone they disapproved and are making good on their threat of destroying their lives.
There is a rea$on why Brooklyn rabbonim haven’t signed against them.
Only Cleveland, Monsey, South Fallsburg, and finally, Lakewood rabbonim. They aren’t feeding at the cash trough of the extremely wealthy wannabe foster parents and could afford to speak the truth.
It says above that: “The parents have summoned the opposing parties to Bais Din but the parties refused to come. The Rabbonim have therefore stated that this issue must be dealt with in a legal manner. “
Lol at Circle. Where in the world do you come up with blatant lies. The foster parents are extremely Choshuv (and not in the monetary sense) people. The foster father is a Rov who many people ask their shailos too and is someone that is an adam gadol. The foster parents are not extremely wealthy or even wealthy. Just good people who have taken in a child. That you resort to such statements and that the campaign writes that the foster parents are making Rikki be mechalel shabbos shows the lengths of deception involved in this unfortunate story.
Circle,
The real father married a very real sick women. Her father is sick as well. The mother abused the girl for years. Google “MSBP”.
Every anonymous donor is the family trying to make it bigger than it is.
This entire story is a bunch of lies.
Only after their child was born was her symptoms obvious with all the abuse. I saw when they ran away from Brooklyn and came here to Monsey, I live in Monsey and have been asked by them on numerous occasions to call people and read a script. Really wacky people. Thank God her mother’s extended family is not involved with her, they are all nuts. Everyone knows it here.
And the rabbi’s never signed the letter. It’s all a bunch of lies.
Anyone who puts their cause on Gofundme especially trying to collect a half million dollars, should really research what this is all about. I usually donate at the Chesed fund and only when it’s verified. I would think that such a major case would have a lot more Rabbonim and askanim involved than what I see on their website. Then again, this thing may be so convoluted that I could be wrong.
So if the foster parents are so choshuv please explain why they wouldnt fight to let this child at least be with grandparents or aunts? There has to be at least one capable relative. As a total stranger to this case, it is hard to comprehend the foster parents stand on this case where there are relatives.
Ohel may be doing some good, but sometimes to many they have destroyed Jewish families for no legit reason and this case is one of them. What a stain on our community.
I have been around many gedolim in my life, and one thing, I saw with my own eyes, it is that gedolim do not decide things by themselves. Any Ruv worth his salt consults with gedolei hador like R’ Chaim Kanievsky before making decisions. I have set in meetings with hamashgiach Matisyahu Salomon, and I was amazed every time he had the smallest of shaylos, the Lakewood mashgiach would ask his Ruv, the rosh hayeshiva haruv Yosef Rosenblum, zt”l. I have seen countless of such similar stories, where the foster parents are very well known and highly respected and came from rabunishe families. Back in the 80s, 3 children (ages 5-8) were placed into foster care for 6.5 years (last 4 years by a family in Bedford Hills); it was claimed the children came from a broken home — turned out at the end to be a complete lie. You could be a chushuve Ruv but wait till you come to the olum haEmes and see how many families you destroyed. I don’t know any particulars about this case, but I have been involved in another case where the rabunim supported the foster family and were screaming don’t be naive, the Ruv is a professional – and cursing out all the rabunim that supported the parents — by the time everybody realized the emes, it was too late. Rachmuna litzlun what a churban that was made. Short-term it all looks wonderful, but those children are severely affected when they go into adulthood — they become emotionally unstable, insecure and their marriages are unhappy.
Just to add on to my previous post, I just read a previous post mentioning a particular psychiatric disorder — such diagnoses is extremely rare and extremely difficult to diagnose and needs a tremendous amount of expertise as well as covert video surveillance to accurately diagnose. If that would be the case, then no doubt the child DEFINITELY should be in foster care, but such diagnosis has to be made by independent experts who are experts in that disorder and the diagnosis should be then verified by the rabunim.
To anonymous:
Covert video is not needed. Rabbonim are not mental health professionals or law officials.
Doctors, caretakers school teachers and or nurses are mandated reporters and they not only have a right but an obligation to report suspected abuse IMMEDIATELY.
No one same can argue with that. The parents also don’t need 3 different sentences with 12 different angles to “prove their competence.”
This entire story stinks from both sides.
The family should not brush the abuse under the rug and get the mother help. And the extended family should have reported this abuse sooner.
A child that is being abused NEEDS TO BE RIPPED AWAY FROM THE ABUSER(S) EVEN IF IT’S A PARENT, END OF STORY. You don’t need rabbonim to tell you that.
ACS in the super liberal state of NY BENDS OVER BACKWARD IN ORDER TO KEEP THE CHILD WITH THE PARENTS. IF OHEL WAS INVOLVED, THEN THAT MEANS ACS DETERMINED THERE WAS A REASON TO REMOVE THE CHILD. That’s enough for me.
To Ben p. The reason why the campaign is here is because the court system (acs and O-HELL) didn’t allow any family members to take the child. It was pre planed that the child be placed by those people who called it in. Show one ruv that Will say thatthe child should be away from her parents (family). One of the rabunim that signed knows that family that called it in for many years and he said the child must be returned.
By Rabunim I meant this public forum is not the place to debate this case and spew lushon hora. Beis din needs to get all the facts from both sides and review whatever from the licensed medical professionals and issue a psak.
Chozane: LIES.
This campaign is nothing short of a fraud. That’s been proven. The signatures were never issued to the letter they were posted on.
I don’t know what happened but from the way you’re talking, you don’t either.
I work for one of the organizations you mentioned and by LAW, the family is looked at first. It is very telling that you state the child was not allowed to be placed with the immediate family. That can only be because ACS had reason to believe that they were part of the problem.
Did the family HELP COVER UP THE ABUSE? Then NO, no one from that family can be trusted.
Did the family HELP EXPOSE THE ABUSE? Then YES, that family can be trusted.
Does this not make sense to you?
ARE THE RABBIS TODAY SO POWERLESS TO ALLOW THEIR NAMES BE USED IN SUCH A FRAUDULENT MANNER?
Gives a bad name to all these charity campaigns.
Not that you’re the first people to try this so it’s not all your fault, but you guys helped ruin it for everyone legitimate. SHAME ON YOU!
D.f. Use real names don’t hide. If you don’t believe contact the rabunim. And see for your self. If there would be abuse no rabbi would go along with it. I was in court. The only thing they have on the parent are concerns that they don’t even speak out. Concern concerns and concerns but nothing nothing and nothing…..
Comments made by “Daniel Feldstein” stating that the campaign in a fraud is fabricated by Ohel and their cohorts. Mr. Feldstein the grandfather doesn’t know how to use a computer.
This entire story is very fishy.
Also, why was this campaign ended?
It seems a bit shady…
https://www.gofundme.com/f/a-monsey-jewish-girl-ripped-from-her-parents
Yoel Feldstein, why do you use the “anonymous” moniker?
BE PROUD OF YOUR KRUMMA VIEWS!
STAM ABUSE?
It is very clear that in your eyes that some types of ABUSE IS OK while some are not. Sad!
MSBP:
Munchausen syndrome by proxy (MSBP): an extreme form of child abuse with a special forensic challenge.
You segway from that obvious fact to the incompetence of ACS and how Ohel is being makrev kurbunus without a beish hamikdash. Sad!
EMES you speak of? That’s rich.
You put a picture of Rabbi Kotler and insinuate he signed a letter full of lies. (never happened, show the letter) Sad!
“The most loving parents”
“Many people attest to their competence”
“Many rabbonim interviewed them and determined that they are the most loving and competent parents in the world”
According to who? Your late-night top ten Purim list?
“Which side has the best lawyers and more money and if the judge had a fight with his spouse earlier that morning.”
Delusional. No one thinks that Ohel AND Child protective services AND the Judge AND the Doctor/Mandated reporter all were bribed OR woke up on the wrong side of the bed OR had simultaneous fights with their spouses one morning.
“Smear campaign”
Wow. That’s exactly what this is. A Smear campaign where the perpetrators are using the likeness of a minor (their own family!) as a pawn in their sick, sick game.
“Go take away a child of any normal mother, and watch what happens.”
I am not taking away the pain of having a child taken away by ACS.
I will also not overlook the abuse of an innocent child.
The Medical professional had a duty (both secular and religious) to report the abuse.
“There are haluchus אין מקבלין עדים שלא בפני בעל דין – a Beis Din needs to have three Dayunim”
Mandated reporters MUST report suspected abuse to the proper authorities.
They operate under the rule of “the rule of the land”
Any other questions?
These scams come and go all the time.
When you see it all taken down, make sure you ask for a refund from go fund me.
You can give that money to a legit cause instead.