Hit-and-Run Survivor Distributes 3,000 Safety Vests to Shuls for Shavuot

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Erin Ben-Moche

June 7, 2019

Ziff proudly holding one of the many safety vests before distributing them around the community. Photo courtesy of Sherri Ziff.

Los Angeles life coach Sherri Ziff never imagined she would spend her time advocating for road and pedestrian safety, but after living through a hit-and-run accident in March of 2018, it’s all she wants to do.

“I feel strongly about this. I lived. Not many people survive what happened to me,” Ziff told the Journal. “HaShem gave me a second chance and I need to make my life worthy of the second chance.”

Now she is trying to save the lives of others in her community through her advocacy group “You’ve Been Hit and Run” and eBook, “You’ve Been Hit and Run: What You Must Do Now.” Ziff is working closely with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to help them get the search software they need to solve hit and run cases as well as provide support to the victims of hit and runs.

She also just completed handing out 3,000 safety vests for people to wear out of synagogue in time for Shavuot.

Ziff said the idea came to her on Tuesday when she figured many around the community would be walking home late at night, even walking in the streets, following Shavuot learning sessions. She called a few friends and her rabbi to see if she could collect donations to buy enough vests and in a matter of hours she had the money and was running to every 99 cent store in the area.

3,000 yellow and orange safety vests making their way into Ziff’s car. Courtesy of Sherri Ziff.

“Following the accident I had been going to 99 Cent stores to buy vests for people so I knew where to get them,” Ziff said. “It happened really fast… I haven’t even gotten ready for Shabbat yet. I just got done passing them out.”

Ziff and a few people in the L.A. Jewish community gathered to organize and sort them into bags to be distributed to various synagogues around the Pico-Robertson area. She will also be walking around during Shavuot delivering vests to smaller shuls as well.

Ziff hopes people wear them home and continue to wear them as long as they are easily available. Her main goal is to prevent future hit and run accidents from happening.

“I’m alive on the wings of the prayers I received from hundreds of people in the Jewish community,” Ziff said. “This is really nothing compared to what this community has done for me.”