02/19/2020
"Who calls ORA for help? Who is the typical ORA caller?"
We sat down with Rabbi Jonathan Hefter, LMSW, the Program Director of ORA's Jewish Divorce helpline, One Step Forward: The Jewish Divorce Resource Line to get some answers to these frequently asked questions.
Q: What is One Step Forward (OSF)?
A: One Step Forward is ORA’s Jewish divorce helpline which offers support, guidance, and referrals to anyone going through the Jewish divorce process.
Q: What is your role at OSF?
A: As director of One Step Forward, I manage the helpline and utilize my rabbinic background as well as my social work experience to provide callers with guidance and support that is most helpful to them. Aside from answering our toll-free line, I am always working on expanding our referral database to include more resources and up-to-date information.
Q: How did OSF get started?
A: Over the years, we began to see a trend of people calling ORA for help in the early stages of separation and divorce. In cases where we provided critical information to the caller, we found that they were sometimes able to avoid a contentious situation of get-refusal. As a result, we sought to establish a helpline dedicated to early intervention and developing a support system for those at any stage of the divorce process. OSF was officially launched in the fall of 2015.
Q: Who can call OSF?
A: Anyone can call OSF. Women and men, parents and children, family and friends call OSF for support and help in understanding different parts of getting divorced such as the beit din process and the get ceremony. We also provide guidance to professionals, including rabbis, attorneys, mental health professionals and others who have questions about how best to help their clients navigate this process.
Q: Who’s the typical OSF caller?
A: There is no “typical caller” - we receive calls from individuals throughout the Jewish community, both women and men, from all denominations and backgrounds.
Q: Why should someone reach out to OSF if they're going through the Jewish divorce process?
A: Navigating the Jewish divorce process entails dealing with all of the usual divorce issues - finances, child custody, etc. - as well as the religious elements - beit din, and the get. At OSF, we have a lot of experience helping individuals understand these processes and empowering them to make well-informed decisions.
Q: What are callers generally looking for when they call?
A: Most callers are looking for help understanding the Jewish divorce process and specifically the role of the beit din in obtaining a get. In addition, OSF receives many requests for information and referrals to legal services.
Q: What kind of services does OSF provide?
A: OSF provides three types of support: (1) information about the Jewish divorce process and beit din; (2) referrals to helpful resources, and (3) emotional support - “a listening ear.”
Q: Have you seen success through OSF?
A: We have seen great success through OSF! In our first three years, we saw a 200% increase in the annual number of callers, with approximately 1 to 2 new calls every day. We are also encouraged by the number of OSF callers - more than 60 - who report that they received their get without needing ORA’s agunah advocacy and applying communal pressure. These numbers reflect both women and men who called to ask for help navigating the divorce process.
Through OSF, we are spreading the message that the Jewish divorce process, with all of its challenges, pain, and hurt, can be a process that respects both parties and embodies the Torah values of “de’racheha darchei noam - its ways are ways of pleasantness.”
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Read more about what we do at https://getora.org/onestepforward.
If you are seeking guidance about the divorce process on behalf of yourself or someone else, please call us at 1-844-673-5463.
