Man Plans, God Guides: Planning with Faith

The Yiddish proverb of "Man plans and G-d laughs" has become one of the most ubiquitous phrases over the past 7 months. Whether it be in major world events, the stock on the grocery store shelves, our health and our family's milestone events, we've all been reminded of the directing hand of Hashem more frequently than ever before. As Torah Jews, we know this to be true even in the less obvious times — but we know that we're still required to give our best efforts. We balance that seeming dichotomy with emunah that Hashem will recognize our hishtadlus and provide us with our needs.

We tend to ascribe G-d's "laughing" to the futility of our attempts to dictate plans to the one true planner, but perhaps the absurdity is in the way that we expect our plans to guarantee an outcome. Instead, we must recognize the importance of planning for the sake of preparing ourselves for the challenges and curveballs that we'll inevitably encounter. We never truly expect things to turn out 100% as planned, but our commitment to planning (with Hashem's blessings) has been integral to our ability to face challenges ranging from COVID-19 to the far less significant.

Nearly two years ago, we drafted a budget and a roadmap for the 2019-20 school year — and this past spring, we found out how off-base that plan was. But despite G-d "laughing" at our plans, we didn't stop making them. Within a few weeks, we had drafted and redrafted multiple plans for the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years. As events continued to unfold over the summer, our plans underwent daily revisions to reflect every ebb and flow along the way.

Throughout most stages of our planning, so many critical variables were completely out of our hands — when could we return to campus? What class size restrictions would there be? What would our enrollment look like? Would all of our staff be able to return? What types of technology and equipment would be needed to reopen, and would those items even be available to us when needed? Rather than wait for the answers to those questions before planning, we simply planned for many different contingencies. This made it possible for us to refocus, adapt to the circumstances, and allocate our resources accordingly.

As stakeholders of KHDS, you should take comfort in the knowledge that our recent and future survival have been made possible by our dedication to our planning, our ongoing commitment to seek best-practices, and our fiscal responsibility across all operations. Our hishtadlus has been greatly bolstered by having a dedicated board of trustees, a supportive local and Federal government, the generosity of friends like you, and the support and friendship of school leaders across the country with whom we regularly share ideas and resources. Above all else, however, we have boundless gratitude to the Ribbono Shel Olam for showering us with blessings so that we can continue providing our children with the excellence in Torah and general studies education that they deserve.

We don't take for granted that our incredibly talented staff and precious students have entrusted us to maintain their safety, and are eagerly looking forward to the day when we can all be together without restrictions. We know that our families have undergone various financial, health, and lifestyle challenges and are humbled to be the recipients of their continued support, even at a time like this. May Hashem grant us all the means to continue our cherished partnership so that we can watch your children grow to new heights together, in good health.