Posted on 11/10/25
Baltimore, MD - Nov. 10, 2025 - About 6 years ago, when Rabbi and Mrs. Mordechai Ginsberg, of London, England, had to be with their daughter who was being treated at Johns Hopkins Hospital for a few months, it meant moving with their entire family to Baltimore.
“All Bikur Cholims are wonderful organizations, but the Bikur Cholim of Baltimore had something which was outstanding,” shares Rabbi Ginsberg. “When a family member is in the hospital, the whole family gets turned around for that choleh, but the family usually goes on, and the problems we face - and the things we must do daily - goes on. It’s not like everything stops because a member of the family is hospitalized, so, it makes life very hard. Usually, there are a lot of askanim in a community who are involved with a choleh, but I found in Bikur Cholim of Baltimore that everything you want can be found by calling one central number.”
The Ginsbergs discovered this from the very beginning, when they needed an apartment for their family as soon as they arrived in Baltimore. “I called Rabbi Pinchos Rabinowitz and he was the one-stop askan,” recalls Rabbi Ginsberg. “He was like a real estate agent in finding us a house and a maintenance manager in arranging for workers to come if something wasn’t working properly. He was the askan who arranged to put our children into local Baltimore schools. He found us the best pediatric dentist and babysitters, when needed. And, when I called Rav Pinchos and told him I needed a chavrusa to learn with, he himself became my chavrusa -- for months. He took on our whole case. All I needed to do was call one number, and everything I needed to take care of got done. Of course, he also took care of everything in the way of facilitating communication with the doctors and nurses regarding things like Shabbos and Yom Tov. It made being with our daughter in the hospital so much easier; this Bikur Cholim was not only there for the choleh’s needs, but the needs of our entire family.”
To illustrate the breadth of Bikur Cholim’s services down to the last detail, Rabbi Ginsberg relates that when they first arrived in Baltimore, he did not have a cell phone charger for his old British cell phone. He looked for one, unsuccessfully, in seven stores, before he thought of calling Rabbi Rabinowitz. Maybe he would know where to buy one? Somehow, Rav Pinchos obtained one for him.
“We felt the whole time we were at Hopkins that Bikur Cholim of Baltimore was not doing us a favor, but we were doing them a favor by accepting what they gave and did for us. It’s fascinating how devoted this Bikur Cholim is to fulfilling ruchnius and gashmius needs. Even today, six years later, I still have a connection with Rav Pinchos and speak to him monthly. Bikur Cholim of Baltimore should have a lot of hatzlacha and take care of cholim only for good reasons, for simchas, for babies.”
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About 17 months ago, Yankel Kohn was hospitalized with a blood infection for more than a week in Johns Hopkins. “It happened in one second,” recalls Yankel. “I was in shul and, suddenly, in the middle of davening, I couldn’t stand any more. It took a few days for the doctors to figure out what it was -- an infection that came from my gums that went into my blood that went into my back and knocked me out.”
Yankel was hospitalized for a bit over a week and benefited from Bikur Cholim of Baltimore’s services, even after he was released when he needed a wheelchair and walker from its medical equipment gemach, because he couldn’t walk.
“Family is not always available to come when you’re in the hospital, so laying there by myself and having Pinchos come visit me, in addition to his son, Rabbi Naftoli Rabinowitz, a Johns Hopkins chaplain, was wonderful. They got the right medical experts involved in my case and got my questions answered quickly. They made sure I was taken care of, spoke to the doctors for me, and checked out what was going on. It was an amazing thing.”
Yankel, who is the manager of the Seven Mile Market deli department, notes, “I am impressed by all the food sent by Bikur Cholim and their Shabbos package which includes everything you need down to the last detail. That same year, for a week, I was in Hopkins with my son who had his appendix removed. Again, Bikur Cholim was always there, making sure we had food every night and that we were taken care of. The pantry is a place where you can get a hot cocoa, and daven, and meet other people. It’s a place where you can get away a little bit and get what you need.
“I’ve experienced the Bikur Cholim pantry at Sinai Hospital, too, when my wife gave birth. They have seforim, magazines, and everything is fully stocked beautifully, daily. It makes it very easy and it’s a place you can take a break, whether you are there for a simcha or are in a hard situation.
“Pinchos is always accessible, always available – which is amazing,” concludes Yankel. “You can call him or message him 24 hours a day. He goes above and beyond any hour of the day to get you what you need as fast as he can.”
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