At just 10 years old, Beeri Avrutsky, who was born with cerebral palsy, recently played basketball at the Jewish Community Center of St. Louis—a milestone once thought impossible. Five years ago, Beeri and his family traveled from Israel to St. Louis for life-changing neurosurgery and months of intensive rehab. Before the procedure, he could barely stand for more than a few seconds. His transformation, made possible by the world-class medical care at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and the support of the local Jewish community, is a testament to resilience and generosity.
When the Avrutskys arrived here in 2019, they were strangers in a strange land. America represented an unknown culture. The family was thousands of miles from friends and the familiarity of daily life at Kibbutz Yahad in Misgav, Galilee. A lengthy hospitalization and post-op care for their son ramped up the stress level.
The exceptional medical care Beeri received at St. Louis Children’s Hospital was responsible for his vastly improved mobility. The Avrutskys have come out of the journey stronger thanks in large part to a support system designed for Jewish families like them. The focal point of that support is a two-story brick home in University City known as the Ohel Rina and Michael Bikur Cholim House.
The Hebrew phrase bikur cholim means “visiting the sick.” It is a mitzvah and an important Jewish value to attend to the needs of anyone suffering from an illness. A network of bikur cholim organizations exists around the world to offer support for families like the Avrutskys, said Rabbi Zvi Zuravin, executive director of the Vaad Hoeir of St. Louis.
Ohel Rina and Michael Bikur Cholim House
“In every city that has major, world-class medical facilities, the Jewish community in that city maintains an operation,” Zuravin said. “For people, especially if they keep kosher and they want to be near a synagogue, or just be near a Jewish community, they know to call us. They’ll call one of the synagogues, and automatically the call will come to us, and we’ll take care of them.”
A place to stay and support community can be a blessing for a family unfamiliar with the city they’ll be calling home for weeks or months, Zuravin said.
“When you’re traveling for a month and a half, you don’t want to be stuck in a hotel room,” he said. “You want to be able to cook, to have a house with a living room and dining room. We have a nice den, kitchen, and living room. A lot of people come as families. And even if the insurance company will pay for accommodations, they will often pay for one person, not a family. So that was a tremendous help where we charged them absolutely nothing.”
A family’s journey for life-changing surgery
Beeri Avrutsky was born with cerebral palsy, and his family came from Israel to receive medical care in St. Louis.
One year before they came to America, Harel and Raya Avrutsky began planning for the trip to St. Louis for Beeri’s SDR (selective dorsal rhizotomy) surgery. There is a lack of experienced SDR surgeons in Israel. St. Louis, home to Washington University Medical Center, offers a beacon of hope to families and a wide range of sophisticated medical procedures.
Well before they arrived, the Avrutsky family learned of the Bikur Cholim Society of St. Louis, a group of dedicated volunteers who visit the sick in area hospitals. The society also provides resources for out-of-towners who come here for medical treatment, and it operates the Ohel Rina & Michael Bikur Cholim House. The house was funded by and named for local philanthropists Carol Staenberg and Michael Staenberg.
The house is a project of the Staenberg Family Foundation and the Vaad Hoeir of St. Louis. It is a bit like an Airbnb, but free of charge. Everything from towels to sheets is included. When a family checks in—usually for a one- to two-month stay—they can settle in and focus on the health of their child.
A home away from home
“It was so great to have a place to feel at home,” said Harel Avrutsky. “They told us, you don’t even have to bring a towel. Anything you need is waiting for you. It was amazing. The refrigerator was full. It gave us the ability to be focused just on our son and his surgery, then starting the rehabilitation journey.”
The Ohel Rina and Michael Bikur Cholim House sits in the heart of the University City Jewish community and within walking distance of several houses of worship. That was a significant feature, said philanthropist Michael Staenberg.
“It’s a really important asset because there was no place for Orthodox Jewish families who needed a place to stay. It’s like a Ronald McDonald House for Orthodox Jews,” Staenberg said.
The house has hosted more than 100 families since it opened in summer 2016. The Staenberg Foundation purchased the house at the time and leased it to the Vaad Hoeir for $1 per month. In December 2023, the foundation donated the property to the Vaad.
Continuing a legacy of support
“It’s now time to have them own the house,” Staenberg said. “They proved after seven years of leasing it that they could run it successfully.”
Many of the families who have stayed at the Ohel Rina and Michael Bikur Cholim House came for SDR surgery. Others have come for cancer treatment, transplants, and cochlear implants for hearing loss. Zuravin said the need for the facility continues.
The Avrutsky family had planned to return to Israel to continue Beeri’s rehab, but since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack, they have remained in the U.S. and been guests at the house on multiple occasions. Harel Avrutsky said the support from the St. Louis Jewish community has meant a great deal to his family.
“It’s beautiful, because it’s so much beyond just a house,” he said. “For Shabbat, we had everything we needed—candles, a kippah, a siddur. People from the community came to visit in the house. They invited us for Shabbat or Rosh Hashanah.
“The house is just the center, and there are so many things going on around it. We cannot really express in words what it gave us. It reduced so much of the pressure we had. It gave us so much energy. It’s a physical house, but it’s more than that. It’s an emotional place, a spiritual place where we feel secure.”
