We live in a community where charity and acts of kindness are the norm. Organizations abound that raise money to benefit the needy. Ordinary individuals routinely donate their time and efforts to help others, offering volunteer ambulance service, food package delivery, transportation to hospitals and doctors, and even emergency roadside assistance.

In this environment of selfless generosity, Chaya Lipschutz has managed to stand out by literally giving of herself. Three years ago, she decided to respond to an ad in a local paper and donate a kidney to help save the life of a total stranger. She underwent extensive testing, both physical and psychological, and was disappointed when she was turned down by the hospital. Chaya was determined, however, and answered several more newspaper ads, submitting to repeated testing, until she found a patient for whom she was a good match. The surgery was successful, and both donor and recipient are doing well.

Chaya did not stop there. Asking herself, "What more can I do?" she embarked on a campaign to recruit others to donate a kidney, thus saving more lives. She hit upon the idea of using the Jewish Marketplace Expo, which was scheduled last December at the Javits Center, to get her message out and educate people about kidney donation. With the blessing of her rabbi and the encouragement of Assemblyman Hikind, who arranged for a local printer to print 3,500 fliers free of charge, she succeeded within days in setting up a booth and talking to thousands of people. She hopes that the seeds she planted will help lives be saved.

There is a new jury duty scam that is being perpetrated in several states. The victim receives a phone call from someone claiming to work for the local court system. He informs the victim that he has failed to report for jury duty and that a warrant has been issued for his arrest. The victim will rightly claim that he never received a jury duty notification. The caller will concede that perhaps a mistake has been made and will then ask for confidential information for "verification" purposes, specifically Social Security number, date of birth, and possibly other private information - exactly what he needs to commit identity theft.

This scam works because the victim is caught off guard and upset at the prospect of an arrest warrant being issued in his name. In reality, "no-show" summonses are almost always delivered by mail. In the rare cases where court officials do call, they never ask for personal information. If you do receive a phone call about jury duty, report it to the state attorney general’s office.

Protect yourself: Never give out your social security number, credit card numbers or other personal information when you receive a phone call.

The compromise measure that was ultimately signed into law, the Empire State Child Tax Credit, is not limited to educational expenses and provides a maximum benefit of $330 for each child between the ages of 4 and 17. It will allow families to apply their tax savings to any costs that come with raising children, including food, clothing and child care.