The Beggars of Lakewood

the coat room
(Peter van Agtmael/Magnum, for The NY Times)
no copyright infringement intended

Once a year, he travels to Lakewood, N.J., with a cash box and a wireless credit-card machine, as a full time beggar; his strategy is one part humor, one part not taking no for an answer; often he raises money for friends back home who have to pay for a child’s wedding (and takes a cut for himself).

It's Lakewood, a town in New Jersey where giving charity is as natural as dawn and sunset, as rain and good weather. It's populated abundantly with Orthodox Jews, who take literally the sacred teachings about charity. Kudos for them!

Here is an article from NY Times, full of empathetic humor and plain empathy, about Lakewood, NJ:

The Beggars of Lakewood

I remember a story a very old family friend told us once. When he had left his parents to go into world and start building his future, his father said to him, I have only two advices for you: be always good; be never too good.


(New Jersey)