About Us
Kanfei Yona’s Leadership

Reb Yitzchok Treisman made Aliyah from England with his family as a child in 1983.
After learning in yeshivos in Bnei Brak and Yerushalayim,
he settled in Beit Shemesh. Today, a father of eight and a grandfather to many, ken ayin horah, he divides his days between learning in kollel and working.
How Kanfei Yona Got Its Wings
In 2020, a tefillin battim macher I know from Beit Shemesh approached me:
“Reb Ploni (who I knew well) needs money for tefillin. Can you help me with this tzedokoh opportunity?”
My initial reaction: But Reb Olini passed away?!
But the tefillin macher continued to stress the need: “His widow ordered tefillin battim for her bar mitzvah-aged son, but she simply can’t pay…”
Two weeks later, the scenario repeated itself, only this time with another bar mitzvah orphan.
It was then that I noticed just how great the need was; after all, tefillin is a major expense many widowed and orphaned families simply cannot afford, even though it's so crucial to the boy’s spiritual future.
The result: the pre-bar mitzvah period becomes exceptionally stressful, making it difficult for widows to be the cheery, supportive Imas their bar mitzvah bochurim need, especially without their Abbas’ presence.
Understanding the Need
Usually, the problem arises when the father passed away several years before. Friends and acquaintances already helped out at the time, and several chessed organizations assist in marrying off orphans. But tefillin is a bulky expense that often goes unnoticed.
Once this problem became clear, I knew something had to be done. With time, community rabbis, uncles, guardians, and even widowed mothers began reaching out for help, and it became apparent that the need was far greater than one person could handle.
Driven by a strong desire not to turn any orphan away, I stepped out of my comfort zone to raise tzedakah for orphans' tefillin. Despite not being the outgoing, charismatic type, the urgency of ensuring every bar mitzvah bochur received tefillin motivated me to push through and seek the necessary support.
Kanfei Yona Today
Kanfei Yona Today
Boruch Hashem, in 2024, Kanfei Yona has transformed from a dream into an official organization. Be’ezras Hashem, may the need for Kanfei Yona disappear forever, with the coming of Moshiach and techiyas hameisim.
Pairs of Tefillin, Kanfei Yonah provided to orphans.
53

Our Process
We help lighten widows’ loads
Sometimes, the widow explicitly asks us to handle ordering the tefillin to alleviate her burden. In such cases, we:
- Order the parshiyos from an experienced, yerei shomayim sofer, according to the family’s custom (whether Sefardi, Ashkenazi, or Chassidic).
- Have them inserted into mehudar battim.
- Present the family with a ready-to-use set of mehudar tefillin tailored to their custom.
We ensure no orphan
"feels "charitied
“Where did you get your tefillin, Yossi?”
No classmate needs to know he received them from a tzedokoh organization. That’s why he goes to the local sofer, just like everyone else.
- We give the rabbi, guardian, or uncle the money, and they order the tefillin from the sofer of their choice, as per the family’s custom. This way the bar mitzvah bochur can remain unaware of the assistance.
- We ensure that the funds are used exclusively for the tefillin, not for any other expenses.
We check out
each and every request
Tefillin requests come in from widows, uncles, rabbis, and guardians from all over Eretz Yisroel. With each request, we ensure that:
- The bochur is truly an orphan.
- The family cannot afford to buy tefillin.
- The tefillin will be used daily and not left on a shelf. (This is particularly important when we’re contacted about a bar mitzvah bochur who is reconnecting with Yiddishkeit).
Frequently Asked Questions
We approach this with much thought and sensitivity to avoid causing any hurt or shame to the family. We ask focused questions to the party who reaches out to us, allowing us to get a detailed picture of the family's situation.
We only order Tefillin on a Mehudar level. This is because:
-It is preferable to be Mehudar in all Mitzvos.
-In a few years he will check his Tefillin, and then he will see that he received simple Tefillin.
What will he think? that because he was an orphan, he received simple Tefillin.
That would defeat the purpose, which is to make him happy, not the opposite.
-If the orphan will replace his Tefillin later in life, due to their mediocre level of Kashrus, all the effort, funds and Zechuyos that we invested by funding the Tefillin will be wasted. This way, he’ll use them all his life.
If this is their custom, for example those who go with large Tefillin like the Ba'al HaTanya method, or if the father Z”l was Makpid with the older brother’s Tefillin on a higher Hidur than standard, we provide them It.
Although the main activity of the organization is to get tefillin for orphans, if there is a donor who wants to give for other expenses, we will be happy to help them with that.