We all put money into the pushke. But have you ever dreamed of starting a program that would generate tens of thousands, even millions, of dollars for tzedakah?

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Have you ever thought of a great idea for self-improvement? How about an idea other people would want to try too?

Some people come up with great ideas that end up snowballing… turning into a movement that affects other people in their community, their city, even their country. You may have learned about some of these movements in school; others you may have participated in personally. How did they start? Some of the facts will surprise you!

The Brachos Contest

We all try to say brachos, right? Sometimes we have more kavanah than other times, sometimes less. Wouldn’t you feel more motivated to say your brachos out loud if you knew you’d get an immediate reward for it? That’s the idea behind the Brachos Contest, launched in Lakewood, New Jersey.

Starting Small

The contest is the brainchild of Mrs. Sori Berkowitz, whose father-in-law was very ill one summer. “I wanted to do something as a zechus for him,” Mrs. Berkowitz recalls. “I created a chart to encourage children to make brachos, photocopied it, and gave it out to all the neighbors. After my father-in-law was niftar, we got such positive feedback that we decided to go public. We advertised the contest in the local paper, and since then it’s really mushroomed.”

As a graphic artist, Mrs. Berkowitz had no problem designing a chart with boxes to check off for each brachah recited out loud. Once a child fills in a chart (with the number of spaces according to his age), he drops it off at Mrs. Berkowitz’s home or at another drop-off spot across town, and gets a can of soda. Every few months, a raffle is held of all the completed charts, and the winner gets a bike.

Still Going Strong

Not only is the contest still going strong today, but it’s also spread to many different cities, as people hear about it and ask Mrs. Berkowitz for permission to bring it to their own communities. Mrs. Berkowitz’s sister-in-law, Mrs. Tzippy Fishbane, for example, has been running the contest in Cleveland for over five years. In Cleveland, about 50 to 100 charts, sometimes more, are entered in each raffle, and there are three different drop-off spots where kids can leave their charts and claim their sodas. The lucky winners get a choice of a scooter, a bike, or a RipStik as their prize, and their names are announced in the next contest ad.

“Even adults have entered the contest,” says Mrs. Fishbane, “but they tell me that if they win, I shouldn’t announce their name!”

Once families start entering the brachos contest, they often get hooked! “Because of the contest, we’re all better about making brachos out loud,” says Mrs. Berkowitz. “I have some families who started 13 years ago, and they’re still going strong.”

Brachos Contest Stats

Years in existence: 13

Participating communities: Hard to know for sure, but probably 12-15

Number of charts filled out to date (in Lakewood alone!): 7,000

Team Lifeline

We all put money into the pushke. But have you ever dreamed of starting a program that would generate tens of thousands, even millions, of dollars for tzedakah? That’s what Ari Weinberger of Scarsdale, New York did when he decided to challenge people to run a marathon for Chai Lifeline.