‘JLI Teens’ Stops Suicide Attempt

On December 6, 2009, Allie Vaccaro had an opportunity most will never have: the chance to save a life. As a woman stood on the edge of the railing in a parking garage in Los Angeles, California, prepared to jump to her death, Allie pulled her to safety.

Her motivation? The JLI Teens class she had taken earlier that day.

Rabbi Mentz had discussed with Allie and her classmates the concept of not standing idly by the blood of another person. Allie was personally inspired by the idea that Jewish law doesn’t allow suicide because the human body is considered holy and therefore cannot be destroyed.

At the National Jewish Retreat in Reston, Virginia, Allie received a reward from the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute for her act of bravery. As she spoke to a packed crowd, telling the story of this unbelievable event, listeners were left awestruck by her act of courage. Allie expressed strong conviction in the power of education to motivate positive action. “I was amazed and inspired to see that the day-to-day work that goes on behind a computer screen translates into real-life miracles,” said Gani Domber, administrator of JLI Teens. “It gives a whole new level of meaning to the work that I do at JLI Teens.”

JLI Teens was not the final stop for Allie in her Torah learning. This past summer she committed 5 weeks to being immersed in Torah study at the Ivy League Torah Study Program in upstate New York. Allie is excited to continue her studies this fall when she begins as a freshman at University of California in Irvine.

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