Yehuda Lerner, founder and chairman of the Haifa Deaf Club, passed away with a good return

On Monday, January 29.1.24, 1, the late Yehuda Lerner was laid to rest in Kfar Samir. Yehuda laid the cornerstone for the foundation of the Deaf Club in Haifa and was "Member No. 97" in it. He was also the first chairman of the Haifa branch and later, a veteran activist . Yehuda passed away in good health, about two weeks after his XNUMXth birthday.

the concept of 'deafness'

The definition of 'deafness' is adapted to people whose hearing loss or absence is part of their identity, while the definition of 'hearing impaired' describes people with a loss of hearing, after they have already established their identity as hearing people.

Association of the Deaf in Israel It is a voluntary association that was founded in Tel Aviv by deaf young people who saw the need for a social and cultural framework and a place to promote the status of the deaf in all aspects in the State of Israel. It goes without saying that there are other deaf clubs that are not affiliated with AHA but with the welfare departments in their cities.

The goals of the deaf clubs in Israel are:

• To promote the welfare and rights of deaf people.
• To hold social and enrichment activities within the club.
• improve the communication of the deaf community.
• To develop and promote the sign language and deaf culture.

"Deaf in the Mirror of History"

Despite all of this, it turns out that there is still not enough documentation about the history of the deaf in Israel, so a team of activists was formed who voluntarily manage the Facebook group "The Deaf in the View of History", in order to document and preserve various events in the deaf community.

The members of this team are: Debi Menashe, Tali Atadji, Royat Yochai, Benny Shukron and Yael Goldberg. Also, the story of the establishment of "Beit Borla", the home of the deaf club in Haifa, is told with great emotion and precision in the booklet written by Sarit Gervois and Lizzy Shalom.

The deaf club in Haifa was founded and established thanks to the many efforts and tireless work of the late Yehuda Lerner.

The background of the late Yehuda Lerner

His parents did get married in Czechoslovakia, but immediately after that they moved to Berlin, which is in Germany. Yehuda was born in 1927, and when he was a few months old baby, he fainted and the doctor who treated him dipped him once in hot water and once in cold water, thus managing to shake him and he jolted to life. For three years he was in a regular kindergarten and his deafness did not hinder him from conducting himself among the children of the kindergarten. When he was about 6 years old, the family immigrated to the Land of Israel. Only after five turbulent days of sailing did the family arrive at the port of Haifa.

They arrived at Camp Shemen where, like all new immigrants, they received vaccination shots. They were welcomed by Haifa relatives with greetings and joy, but Yehuda was unable to communicate with the children who spoke Hebrew while he only knew German.

After several days, his mother informed him that they were traveling by train to Jerusalem. As a child, he was excited and happy about the train ride, but when he got on, he saw that it was dirty and the cab was really not like the luxurious and elegant train in Germany, so he sat down quietly. This was the beginning of his residence in Jerusalem.

Everyone has a mark

This is what Tali Atadji (author - who writes personal stories of deaf people as well as the novel 'the shell of destiny' and the book of poetry 'Pearl Garland'): "Every deaf person has a mark, just as there are names in Hebrew for boys and girls, so the deaf also have a distinguishing mark, according to the character, or the external appearance."

The day Judah got his name

The family's relatives in Jerusalem were poor and could not accommodate him in their home, so a fabric store owner named Amram took him to his home, along with four other deaf children.
At the time, Yehuda dressed very elegantly, as his mother sewed all his clothes for him, from his underwear to his jackets. She never bought clothes in stores, she only sewed and sewed, it was only when Yehuda was about 12 years old that he asked his mother to buy clothes in stores and to be "like everyone else".

In an interview filmed by Debi Menashe, Yehuda said:

I was a new immigrant from Germany, the children would stare at me because of the fancy clothes I wore, my mother always made sure I went out in my best clothes. I was a very disciplined child, I was brought up in Germany to keep clean, keep the grooming routine, brush my teeth, get up on time. And the children would mock me and bully me.

I got angry. I observe manners and they constantly harass me? I got angry and called them "Poya Poya", as I sign the word Poya in sign language, with the thumb pressed to the cheek and the hand making a gesture of peace. The children imitated me and signaled after me 'Poya Poya' and since then the sign stuck with me and that's how they call me Yehuda in sign language.

After the incident, the three troublesome children were moved to another place and Yehuda was left with another child named Mordechai who was a quiet and introverted child. But the mark of his name "Poya" remained with him all his life.

Yehuda Lerner - How did I get my name in sign language? ► Watch Debi Menashe's video

Building a club that will serve as a meeting place for the deaf

In 1946, when Yehuda was stationed in Kiryat Haim, he met Yohai, his old friend from school in Jerusalem, in the city of Haifa, the two were happy to meet. However, Yehuda thought to himself that there were no deaf people in Haifa, so he occasionally traveled to Tel Aviv to meet with deaf people.

Due to his residence in Kiryat Haim, he traveled by public transport to Haifa, but had to return early due to the curfew in those days, when Israel was under British rule.

In 1949, after the war of liberation, he met a deaf man on the street who told him that there were other deaf people in the city who had just arrived on a Ma'pilim ship. It was a great surprise for him to meet such a large group of ten deaf people. He started talking to them and the communication went smoothly between them. Of course they used sign language and thus managed to explain to each other what was happening to them.

This deaf group turned the cafe that was on Hillel Yaffe Street at the corner of Nordau Street, and the cafe that was at Ben Gurion Street at the corner of Sderot Megamines into their club spring. The owners of the cafes allowed them to meet in these places, but the number of friends who came to the meetings on Tuesdays and Saturdays kept increasing and it was necessary to think of a creative solution to the problem.

This is how the deaf club in Haifa was established, and Yehuda was appointed the club's first chairman. The growing number of members caused Yehuda to turn to the Haifa municipality with a request to provide them with a meeting place, and it was decided to give this purpose a certain place inside a school on Hillel Street (opposite the Mizrahi train station).

A ball was held in honor of the launch of the opening of the club

In addition to the deaf from Haifa, the deaf from Tel Aviv were also invited. The school principal was outraged by the noise, even though the activities only took place in the afternoon. He demanded from Yehuda to find a new club. Yehuda tried to speak to his heart, but he refused to listen and claimed that even if Ben-Gurion in his own right had approached to speak with him, he would have refused.

Therefore, Yehuda turned to the Haifa municipality and asked to be given a place for a deaf club in another location. He was invited to a meeting, where he requested that the club be close to public transportation and that access to it be convenient. A meeting was arranged between him and the director of the education department (who turned out to be Yehuda's neighbor). A room was offered in the "Vine House" which in those days was run as a school. The school principal agreed on the condition that they keep the property and clean the place.

Yehuda took care of the activities at the place and even began to receive payment for his work as chairman of the club, but the members did not see this in a good light and did not agree that he would receive payment.

Changing the name of the association

At the same time, in the Tel Aviv club it was decided to establish a national center and that the clubs in the other cities would serve as branches and the name of the central club was changed from "Deaf and Dumb Association in Tel Aviv" to "Deaf and Dumb Association in Israel". The cities where deaf clubs were established were Haifa, Beer Sheva and Jerusalem.

Over the years Yehuda frequented the club as a full member, and would offer his help to the deaf. Although he did not have a certificate, he served as an attorney. There was a case in which four deaf people were fired from the port of Haifa, for absolutely no reason, and they turned to the help of Yehuda, who knew and mastered fluent Hebrew.

Yehuda went out to fight their war and demanded that they be put back to work, in response they answered that there are cranes and cranes in the port and this is dangerous for the deaf and that there are many other jobs for the deaf, such as a cobbler, a tailor and there are even other large factories such as Soll Bona and the refineries.

He turned to the Histadrut for help to return the fired to their workplace, and finally after much persuasion and explanations that there are many deaf people working at the port in Tel Aviv, it was agreed to return the fired deaf to their workplace. To this very day, the wife of one of them thanks Yehuda for working tirelessly for her husband to return to his workplace.
Later Yehuda also served as a guide for youth and adults.

Construction of the Beit Borla Club

Yehuda was a member of the AHA center in Tel Aviv and asked to see to the establishment of an independent club for the members in Haifa that would not depend on a school and the wishes of each school principal.

At the time, the secretary of the center, Haim After, suggested that he find a plot of land to build a club on. Yehuda turned to the Haifa Municipality, which explained that it does not have lots in its possession, since they are all under the supervision of the "Israel Land Administration" division. As a stickler for the cause he did turn to them. At first he was offered a lot in the area near Bnei Zion Hospital and the Baha'i Gardens, but the lot was so small that Yehuda dared to refuse. Then he was offered another lot in Stella Maris, but public transportation did not reach the area and again Yehuda refused the offer.

The third lot offered was on Zion Street. The land manager indicated that this was the last offer. Yehuda coveted the field, which was quite large and suitable for the club's needs. The payments for the construction of the club began immediately, which after negotiations cost 7000 pounds instead of 12000 pounds. Although the plans began to be implemented, suddenly the municipality of Haifa, led by Abba Khushi, refused to build the club, claiming that the area was intended for residences.

Yehuda did not give up and looked for influential people to come to his aid. He turned to a number of people who would talk about Father Khushi's heart, but none of that helped.

Meanwhile, in Tel Aviv, a public committee was convened, headed by Avraham Herzfeld (he was a pioneer of the Second Aliyah, a Zionist activist, one of the founders of the "Ahadot Ha'Avoda" party. Herzfeld was known for his activity for the settlement of the Land of Israel and his dedication to the establishment of settlement points, mainly of the working settlement, all over the country) .

This committee supported the Association of the Deaf. Herzfeld had a strong influence and came to the aid of the deaf in every request. Haim After contacted him and told him about the case of the club in Haifa, Herzfeld listened and intended to hold a big meeting. At the public committee meeting, Yehuda was helped by lip reading only, without a sign language interpreter, while next to him sat the secretary of the club, a hearing woman who occasionally relayed to him the brevity of the yeshiva's words.

An argument arose instead

The members of the Histadrut refused to establish a club in Haifa because there is already a club in Haifa. Herzfeld stopped the loud arguments that broke out in the yeshiva and asked Yehuda one question:

"Do you want to start a club in Haifa?".

The shocked Yehuda answered with one word "yes".

"And that's it," said Herzfeld, and thus plans were made to build the clubhouse for the deaf. Herzfeld wrote a letter directly to the mayor, Abba Khushi, who had nothing left to do but agree.

"Beit Borla" club

On the opening day of the club called "Beit Borla", named after the rich family that lived in Greece and gave a large contribution to the building of the club. The writer Yehuda Borla, a member of this family, and many other personalities came to honor the status, including the disgruntled mayor and Herzfeld, thanks to whom the building was built.

Yehuda continued to be active in the club for two years and then retired. His wife Dina founded the women's circle and died at a very young age, being thirty-nine years old. In his old age, the rebellious Herzfeld moved to a nursing home and was left alone when none of his friends bothered to visit him, the only one who remembered him kindly was Yehuda who was very careful to visit him.
Yehuda died in Shiva Tova at the age of 97 and left behind two sons.

Helen Keller

As you know, Helen Keller was known worldwide for her struggle with blindness and deafness together. She became a social activist, began to promote awareness of the issue and became involved in the equal integration of people with disabilities in society. It is said that during her visit to Israel, Keller also met with Golda Meir, who served at the time as Minister of Labor.

With the help of a special interpreter for the language of the blind and the deaf (in hand to hand contact), Meir asked Keller a very difficult question: "If I were a good fairy, who could only leave you with one disability. What would I prefer: to be deaf or blind?"

Think for a moment... most people will choose... but Keller chose what was on her heart, she said and even justified her answer with a message:
"Blindness is a lack of contact with objects, but deafness is essentially a lack of contact with people" (after all, most of society in the world: hearing people). The people of "Beit Borla Haifa Association of the Deaf" do not need financial donations, but are eager to connect with the hearing world.

Those of you who can contribute an interesting lecture, a different and different life story or an interesting tour in a unique place and are interested in entering the pool of volunteers for the above, are invited to offer and contribute of your own accord.
For coordination, you can contact - Urbach Rahli, email: [email protected]

Or directly to Etty Schwartzberg who is currently the chairman of the Association of the Deaf in Israel, and liaison officer of the Haifa and El Said branches.