YWN regrets to inform you of the petirah of R’ Yedidya Langsam Z”L of Flatbush, a pioneering Hatzolah paramedic whose decades of selfless dedication helped save countless lives throughout New York City.

Yedidya was a longtime Flatbush Hatzolah volunteer, known to generations of members by his radio designation, “F-60.” He served with Flatbush Hatzolah for approximately 25 years and also spent many years as a coordinator for Catskills Hatzolah.

One of Hatzolah’s original paramedics, Yedidya responded to an astounding estimated 25,000 emergency calls during his years of service. In Hatzolah’s early days, when there were relatively few paramedics, it was not uncommon for him to spend an entire day responding from one emergency call directly to the next.

Perhaps his most famous “save” when Mirrer Rosh Yeshiva Hagaon HaRav Shmuel Berenbaum Z”L suffered a sudden cardiac arrest while being Menachem Avel someone in a private home. Yedidya’s swift actions saved the Rosh Yeshiva’s life, allowing him to continue leading the Mir Yeshiva and being marbitz Torah for approximately another ten years. Rav Shmuel always expressed tremendous hakaras hatov to Yedidya for saving his life. Yedidya himself davened in the Mir Yeshiva on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur for many years.

Way before Hatzolah had large garages to house their ambulances, Yedidya graciously parked an ambulance “F-4” in his own driveway for many, many years. Prior to becoming a Paramedic and responding in his own car, he would drive the ambulance on most of the calls in his area.

Even after retiring from active Hatzolah service, Yedidya continued serving the EMS community as Secretary of the Board of Directors of the Regional Emergency Medical Services Council of New York City (REMSCO), where he remained a strong advocate for Hatzolah for many years.

In 2000, he was honored by the Regional Emergency Medical Services Council as New York City’s Paramedic of the Year.

Outside of EMS, Yedidya enjoyed a distinguished academic career. He was a longtime professor at Brooklyn College, where he taught and mentored thousands of students. He also served as Chair of the Computer and Information Science Department and was a faculty member of the Computer Science Department at the CUNY Graduate Center.

In recent years, Yedidya battled kidney disease, undergoing dialysis and other treatments with remarkable strength and resilience.

He was transported to the hospital by Flatbush Hatzolah on Tuesday night, where he was niftar.

He is survived by his wife, children, grandchildren, and many family members.

The levayah is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Wednesday at Shomrei Hadas Chapels, 3803 14th Avenue in Boro Park.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)