By MATTHEW WAGNER
Shula Swerdlov, the three-year-old daughter of Chabad representatives Rabbi Yossi and Hindel Swerdlov, was buried Tuesday at the Chabad section of Har Hamenuchot Cemetery in Jerusalem.
The burial was delayed until the return from the US of Shula's father, head and director of Chabad's Children of Chernobyl, an organization run by Tze'irei Agudath Chabad that helps Jewish children still living near the radioactive region in Ukraine.
"Normally, Jerusalem's custom is not to delay burials overnight," said a Chabad spokesman. "But in this case an exception was made."
The three-year-old was run over by the same bus that had transported her and other school children to their homes after school. According to news reports, the driver had received NIS 120 to fill in for a friend. Â The little girl was rushed in critical condition to Hadassah University Hospital in Ein Kerem, where she died.
The spokesman said that at the time of the accident, the girl's father was raising money to save Jewish children still living near Chernobyl. He said that the organization had brought to Israel about 2,400 Jewish children, many of them orphans. Over half have ended up remaining in Israel.
"Next Monday, for instance, Chabad is organizing the wedding of a former Chernobyl child. While the groom's parents' names are on the invitation, only Chabad is mentioned for the bride's family because she was orphaned at the age of five."
Shula was killed in a hit-and-run accident in Jerusalem's Rehavia neighborhood on Monday afternoon.
Yossi Swerdlov grew up in Crown Heights, Brooklyn and his wife Hindel grew up in Los Angeles. The couple immigrated to Israel shortly after marrying. Shula was the youngest of four children. Sources in Chabad said that the Swerdlov family is known for its hospitality, hosting newly arrived families and visitors from English-speaking countries.Â
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