Chanukah issue of Lubavitch International

‫ב’’ה‬

Volume 2, Issue 5

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W W W. LU BAV I TC H . C O M

LUBAVITCHINTERNATIONAL NEWS FROM THE CHABAD–LUBAVITCH GLOBAL NETWORK | DEC. 2011/JAN. 2012

Photo credit: Yossi Percia

WALKING THE WALK OF THE CHABAD EMISSARY

NEW TORAH o

nly a stone’s throw from Zuccotti Park where protestors clashed with police before being evacuated in November, scores of Wall street businesspeople and residents took to dancing in the rain on November 16, at the museum of Jewish Heritage on Battery Place.

The occasion was the dedication of a newly completed Torah scroll by Chabad of Wall street. Area residents, businesspeople and professionals turned out in the pouring rain to participate as the

“Chabad is a global safe haven. And Chabad of Wall Street is a safe haven for the many troubles of Wall Street.”

scribe filled in the final letters in with a quill. Rabbi shmaya Katz, director of Chabad of Wall street, led a lively procession outside as revelers danced with the new Torah, escorted under a canopy on an elaborately decorated truck that drove slowly down Battery Place.

At an elegant, intimate dinner that followed, guests honored the memory of mrs. Charlotte (sarah) Rohr, matriarch of the distinguished Rohr family, in whose memory the Torah was commissioned.

The funds for the two-and-a-half year long project were raised by Chabad of Wall street. “We wanted to reciprocate and show our gratitude to mr. George Rohr for the support and dedication to Jewish causes that he, his father mr. sami Rohr, and the Rohr Family Foundation have demonstrated over many years,” mrs. Rachel Katz said.

The admiration was mutual, as mr.

Rohr, visibly moved by the event, described Rachel Katz as “an irresistible force” in leading Chabad community projects.

Guests echoed these sentiments, speaking emotionally of the progress that Chabad of Wall street has achieved in the ten years since september 11, 2001.

“Chabad is a global safe haven and Chabad of Wall street is a safe haven for the many troubles of Wall street,” said elian Abramov, a member of Chabad of Wall street. continued on page 13

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UK Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks addressing the banquet session of the 28th International Conference of Chabad Emissaries.

Editorial page 2

FRENCH BANK BECOMES FIRST CLASS CHABAD SCHOOL European financial woes have the international community calling for reform, but one French bank underwent a most dramatic transformation: its building was gutted and turned into a six-story Chabad school. very morning, 250 children from the tender age of ten weeks through fifth grade stream through the mirrored doors of Chabad of montrouge’s Pardess Channa school in the new Haya mouchka complex. The older children are driven in on two full buses from distant arrondissements, so powerful is the allure of a school whose facilities outclass nearby public schools. montrouge is a middle-class community that is part Paris suburb, part 14th arrondissement. It’s about a 75-minute drive from the Jewish sections of Paris, meaning that prior

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CAmPus Penn State Jewish Students Find Healing Through Shabbat

INTeRNATIoNAl

PRoFIle

YouNG PRoFessIoNAls

Third Chabad Center Opens in Shanghai

Reaching Souls, Empowering Women: Rabbi Manis Friedman

MATCHMAKER, MATCHMAKER:

PG 8

PG 9

PG 4

PG 5

JMontreal Expands To Three U.S. Cities

LUBAVITCHINTERNATIONAL

EDITORIAL

LUBAVITCHINTERNATIONAL

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‫ב”ה‬

Chanukah recalls the collision of two worlds. The Jewish world of faith, Torah and a particular way of life that imbues even the mundane with sanctity, as opposed to a polytheistic, materialistic world view.

The Menorah, kindled with pure oil, was representative of Jewish life. In defiling the oil, the Greeks sought to corrupt the Menorah’s lights with a Hellenistic influence.

But by Divine Providence, a small flask of uncontaminated oil was found, allowing the Menorah to be kindled with the light of Jewish inspiration.

This is symbolic of the Jewish soul, which at its core, remains pure, open to the light of Torah, and capable of illuminating with its own spiritual integrity.

NEWS FROM THE CHABAD–LUBAVITCH GLOBAL NETWORK WWW.LUBAVITCH.COM December 2011/January 2012. Volume 2, Issue 5.

Lubavitch International is published 5 times a year, February, June, April, September, and December by Machne Israel, 770 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, NY 11213.

Postage paid at Brooklyn, NY post offices.

– From the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of blessed memory

WALKING THE WALK OF THE CHABAD EMISSARY

Chairman Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky Editor-in-Chief Baila olidort

Executive Editor Rabbi Yosef B. Friedman Managing Editor Zalman Feldman Media Relations Yaacov Behrman

Research mordechai lightstone Staff Writers R. C. Berman s. Fridman mendy Rimler Contributing Writers Jeremy davis Chaviva Galatz Yedida Wolfe Design R. Pinson Published by

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770 eastern Parkway Brooklyn, NY 11213 email: editor@lubavitch.com 718-774-4000 WWW.luBAVITCH.Com

Baila Olidort

I

t’s that distinct gait of Chabad shluchim that makes it easy to pick them out in a crowd, even in a crowd of black hats. A chipper confidence and a can-do spirit tempered by humble awe for the largerthan-life vision of the lubavitcher Rebbe, and the role the shluchim play in its fulfillment.

Es geht ah Chossid . . . Hard to translate from the Yiddish, but that, in fact, was the theme of this year’s International Conference of Chabad shluchim. making the guest list of the banquet session were some well-known Jewish leaders who joined Chabad representatives.

In his keynote, uK Chief Rabbi lord Jonathan sacks talked about the lessons he took from the lubavitcher Rebbe, “one of the greatest Jewish leaders, not just of our time, but of all time,” in cultivating his own sense of Jewish responsibility and leadership.

In 1967, then a 22 year old Cambridge sophomore, sacks had come for an appointment with the Rebbe, hoping to get his responses to “intellectual and philosophical questions,” then on his mind.

The young scholar hadn’t bargained for a challenge.

“The Rebbe gave me intellectual, philosophical responses to my questions. And then he began asking me questions. ‘How many Jewish students are there at Cambridge? What are you doing to reach out to them?’”

Caught unawares, sacks tried squirming his way out of the challenge as any good englishman would. “The english can construct more complex excuses for doing nothing than anyone else on earth,” he admitted, garnering laughter.

“In the situation in which I find myself . . .” he began. But the Rebbe interrupted him midsentence: “No one finds themselves in a situation.

You put yourself in a situation, and if you put yourself in that situation, you can put yourself in another situation.”

The Rebbe’s challenge, not to accept the situation, but to change it, “was a moment,” the Chief Rabbi said, “that changed my life.” It was his lesson number 1 in Jewish leadership.

Rabbi sacks’s 30-minute keynote address, packed with pithy lines and weighty ideas, was both an ode to the Rebbe and a powerful primer on Jewish leadership. He sought the Rebbe’s guidance at critical junctures in his educational and professional career, and gave up various ambitions to follow the Rebbe’s advice, to become a congregational rabbi and train rabbis because Anglo Jewry, said the Rebbe, was short of rabbis.

In the course of his career, the Chief Rabbi, who now holds three professorships, found all of his other ambitions fulfilled. lesson number 2: “You never lose anything by putting Yiddishkeit first.” using his platform at the BBC, the Chief Rabbi took up the Rebbe's campaign and began reaching out to non-Jews, teaching the seven Noahide laws. The experience, he said, taught him “not only the wisdom, the vast foresight of the Rebbe in understanding that the world was ready to hear a Jewish message, but it taught me— and I want you never to forget these words, that: lesson number 3: “Non-Jews respect Jews who respect Judaism. Non-Jews are embarrassed by Jews who are embarrassed

by Judaism.”

The banquet, at Pier 12 in the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, drew people of different backgrounds, among them non-traditional, non observant. But concerns about antisemitism is universal. Indeed, there are, said Rabbi sacks, “hundreds of organizations fighting anti-semitism.” But they fall short, he said.

“The Rebbe offered the most radical response to the Holocaust ever conceived and I don’t know if the Jewish world still understands it.

lesson number 4: “If you want to fight hatred of Jews, you must practice love of Jews.”

The banquet dinner for 4,600 came at the end of a 5-day conference that brought Chabad emissaries from the far-flung parts of the globe together at lubavitch Headquarters. A rare opportunity for them to draw more energy and inspiration for their life’s work, they spend a good part of the Conference sharing heart-to-heart conversations. For many, especially those in distant places where Jewish life is thin, loneliness is a constant. Fundraising pressures are another constant. And the Jewish education of their own children is still another hurdle.

That others take them for granted is a sign of their great success. But shluchim, ever mindful of the privilege they have to be a part of this larger-than-life mission, persevere, and despite the difficulties, move ahead with a spring in their step.

Rabbi sacks spoke to the conference theme: Es geht ah Chossid. difficult to translate from the Yiddish, the idea is that one can identify a Chabad emissary not only by their remarkable achievements, but by the ordinary activities as well—as mundane as their walk.

It’s that carriage that exudes confidence and purposefulness, and a perpetual awareness that there’s yet more, so much more still to do. For those who remember, it’s a walk not unlike the steady, quick clip of the Rebbe’s gait.

“We will never manage to do it fully, but we will do our best to walk as he walked,” said Rabbi sacks in his closing comments, exhorting his audience to embrace leadership as the Rebbe did, creating not followers but leaders, and recognizing that despite Chabad’s great achievements in transforming Jewish life, the work is far from completed.

“In the silence of our souls we can hear what the Rebbe would be saying to us now: 'You think you’ve done enough? There is always more of the mountain to climb.'”

DECEMBER 2011 / JANUARY 2012 | WWW. LUBAVITCH . COM

COMMUNITY BUILDING

CHABAD OF HOLLYWOOD LAKES, FL PURCHaSES FORMER CHURCH CHABAD OF PALO ALTO SHOWCASES $6 MILLION EXPANSION habad-lubavitch of the Greater south Bay area kicked off a $6 million building project with a celebration concert in November honoring the saal Family for their contributions to the broader Jewish community in Palo Alto.

The event, at the oshman Family Jewish Community Center in Palo Alto, attracted 250 people who came to express their support for Chabad representatives Rabbi Yosef and dena levin. Piano prodigy ethan Bortnick headlined the concert.

“We chose to honor the saal Family because of their long-time support of Chabad and their support of many organizations in the community. Carol saal, the honorary lifetime director at the oshman Family JCC, recently led a successful $140 million capital campaign to build the oshman Family JCC.” Harry saal lauded Chabad for their innovative work and cohesive intercommunity relations with other Jewish organizations.

The levins, serving the Greater south Bay Jewish community since 1980, have developed a wide range of social, educational and religious activities, and have recruited more Chabad representatives to open additional centers in the area. With seven Chabad families serving at five Chabad centers in the area, among them Chabad of stanford university, Chabad of sunnyvale and Chabad of los Altos, the levins show no signs of slowing down.

“The new building will allow for the expansion of our programs and further cement the vibrant Jewish community in Palo Alto,” said levin. The 10,000 square

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n an interesting reversal of a century-old trend that saw synagogues converted to churches, a former church building later outfitted as a private residence will now become the “shul of the lakes” for the Hollywood lakes community.

The imposing mediterranean Revival was built in the 1920s and served as a methodist church. In 1926, the miami Hurricane dealt the building a devastating blow, but it retained much of its detail and character, even on the exterior.

The $1.5 million project, which will transform the building into a synagogue is timely and appropriate, said Rabbi mendy Tennenhaus, director of Chabad of N.e.

Hollywood & dania.

“In the last thirty-odd years, we have seen a migration of Jewish people from west Florida back to the eastern coast,” Rabbi Tennenhaus said. Attracted by the beachfront homes, ample shopping and family-oriented living, young people have come in droves to settle in this neighborhood.

Today 1,500 Jewish families live in N.e.

Hollywood, numbers that were significantly smaller in the 1920s, when churchgoers filled this heritage building.

To accommodate this community’s needs, Rabbi Tennenhaus and his wife, endi, have developed a broad range of relevant activities for young families, with an emphasis on cultivating a base of youth by teaching Jewish values in an exciting and fun environment.

“Parents place their children first when looking for programs and community. They want their children to be happy at the events they attend,” said Rabbi Tennenhaus.

“If kids feel comfortable at Chabad, their parents will join them at our programs and enjoy bringing the entire family.”

Tammy Wagner, a self-employed mother of three, agrees.

“ The building is important for this community because it is historical, and it is also located smack in the center of the community, between the north and south lake areas.”

“I never wanted to go to shul [synagogue] when I was growing up. I dreaded services at shul,” she says. “Now my children beg me to take them to shul every saturday.”

Joseph Kaller, an architect who is working with Rabbi Tennenhaus on the remodeling plans for the interior, says that the central location of the synagogue is significant.

“The building is important for this community because it is historical, and it is also located smack in the center of the community, between the north and south lake areas.”

The 25,000 square foot property will allow for expansion of the building and lush, green spaces for children to play.

When the necessary funds are raised—initial support has been provided by the Tabacinic Family Foundation and the sam Goldberg Trust—Tennenhaus hopes to restore the building to its former, pre-1926 appearance.

Wagner anticipates that this new home “will take on a life of its own when the people make it a place for Jewish services.”

Photos by Alex Axelrod Photography

foot building on a 27,000 square foot property will feature a beautifully designed outreach center and synagogue, a social hall, offices, preschool, classrooms and a commercial kitchen. The existing mikvah will be updated and incorporated into the new structure.

The idea is to create a beautiful space “where anyone will feel safe and comfortable to explore their Jewish heritage by taking advantage of the many possibilities for studying and socializing in a warm, inviting environment,” Rabbi levin told lubavitch.com.

With $2 million already secured, Chabad hopes to break ground on the new building project in early 2013 and expects it to be completed by 2014.

Techies, engineers, scientists, and entrepreneurs joined artists, wage-earners and stay-at-home-parents to celebrate the rich Jewish life experience that Chabad has brought to the area.

“People appreciate that Chabad is an inclusive organization that works to reach out to every Jew, irrespective of affiliation or background,” said levin at the conclusion of a successful, joyful concert.

The idea is to create a beautiful space “where anyone will feel safe and comfortable to explore their Jewish heritage by taking advantage of the many possibilities for studying and socializing in a warm, inviting environment.”

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LUBAVITCHINTERNATIONAL 4

PROFILES

REACHING SOULS, EMPOWERING WOMEN:

RABBI MANIS FRIEDMAN

The soft-spoken rabbi with the deadpan humor is the quiet inspiration behind the revolution that has empowered Jewish women to take control of their lives.

“He understood me.”

“He listened to me.”

“Teach a woman, “He opened the door to my soul you teach a world. and I made the decision to change Women not only start and my life.” guide families, they shape generations and have the GAIN ANd AGAIN, these are the words women use to describe power to compel men to be the impact Rabbi manis Friedman has their best selves.”

a

Rabbi Friedman leading a class for young women

had on their lives. since the 1970s, women seeking spiritual meaning and direction have been turning to Friedman whose gift for listening is matched by his gift for teaching in clear, simple, blessedly platitude-free terms.

When he co-founded Bais Chana Institute in minnesota over 40 years ago, Rabbi Friedman turned his attention to a neglected demographic: women with little or no tethers to traditional Judaism who either had no substantive Jewish education, or had been turned off by what they did learn.

Four decades later, the number of Bais Chana alumnae reaches into the thousands. The soft-spoken rabbi with the deadpan humor is the quiet inspiration behind the revolution that has empowered Jewish women to take control of their lives.

Though there are life-transforming gurus a gogo, Rabbi Friedman’s influence remains unimpeachable. Hinda leah sharfstein, a one-time student now executive director of Bais Chana, said Rabbi Friedman’s strength is knowing how to help a “generation fed spiritual and cultural junk food,” whether it was the post-hippie of the early seventies, the disenchanted yuppie of the Reagan era or the over-texted,

iPathetic teen of today.

Rabbi Friedman’s gifts for encapsulating Jewish thought and compelling delivery were recognized early. He was on his first lecture tour for the lubavitch Youth organization as a shy 16 year-old. With his knack for slicing and dicing a Chasidic concept right down to its core, Friedman’s choice to devote his career to teaching women was thought by some to be a soft option.

He disagrees. “Teach a woman, you teach a world.” Women not only start and guide families, they shape generations and have the power to compel men to be their best selves, he explains. on the subject of relationships, he looks to the simple and obvious, often overlooked in favor of complicated, fancy solutions: “If women expect respect and commitment, then men will give it to them. most men will do anything to make women happy.” on family, Friedman, the father of 14, observes a complete breakdown in the parent-child dynamic and insists on the tried and true of basic parenting: “Behave like a mother, assert your role as a moral guide in the life of your child, and your children will respect you, and grow up to be morally responsible adults.”

When as a newlywed, Rabbi Friedman moved to minnesota to begin his work with Chabad’s senior representative of the upper midwest, Rabbi moshe Feller, the prospects for success of a program like Bais Chana were uncertain at best.

Four decades ago, America was a country transitioning from imagining all the people living in harmony to “I am woman hear me roar.” donna

Reed’s cookies and milk as the feminine ideal were dumped in favor of power suits. Girls who reached womanhood in the ‘70s were the first raised with the Pill as a viable option, and in the world before AIds, women were the guinea pigs living in the fallout from new sexual mores. Against a backdrop of casual relationships, Rabbi Friedman promoted traditional Jewish values and spoke up for preserving intimacy, creating boundaries.

Critics sniffed the heady scent of the times and sneered. “Americans will never respond to traditional Judaism,” Rabbi Friedman recalls being told.

He persevered. A first season summer retreat to give college women the opportunity to catch up on Jewish learning before moving on to study programs in Israel grew. Women flocked to this rabbi whose wise, unassailably sensible answers to their fraught questions were culled directly from Chasidic teachings impeccably translated into modern syntax. A typical night at Bais Chana had Rabbi Friedman answering questions from women until the sun glinted off of minnesota’s ever-present snow.

Recently ranked one of the top nonprofits empowering women by GreatNonprofits and Guidestar, Bais Chana Institute now draws 800 women a year.

The Bais Chana experience has diversified, offering teen programs, retreats for single moms, and now couple retreats.

In classic Friedman understatement, he puts his devotion to his life’s work this way. “How can you not want to help people when you know there is no need to suffer?”

CHANUKAH: A BRIEF HISTORY Around 168 B.C. the Jewish people living in Israel came under the control of Antiochus IV, King of Syria, who outlawed the practice of the Jewish faith, massacred thousands of Jews, and defiled the city’s Holy Temple by erecting an altar to Zeus and sacrificing pigs within its sacred walls.

The Jewish priest Mattityahu and his five sons led a revolt against Antiochus. After Mattityahu’s death, his son, Judah Maccabee took over, and within two years succeeded in driving the Syrians out of Jerusalem. Judah called on his people to restore the Temple, rebuild its altar and light its menorah—a gold candelabrum that was kept illuminated every night.

DECEMBER 2011 / JANUARY 2012 | WWW. LUBAVITCH . COM

YOUNG PROFESSIONALS

MATCHMAKER, MATCHMAKER: JMOnTREal EXPANDS TO THREE U.S. CITIES

M

ontreal is no Anatevka, but a local matchmaking site is bringing the matchmaker back to town.

The city’s locally based Jewish matchmaking network, Jmontreal.com, has garnered over one thousand sign-ups. An algorithm identifies similar personalities, and matchmakers review the suggestions from the system, and then extensively interview each individual before passing contact information on to the each party.

“It started with a growing local base of young professionals,” Rabbi Yisroel Bernath, director of Chabad of NdG and loyola Campus, told lubavitch.com. After he made twenty matches with people in his network, he took it online with Jmontreal.com, which has facilitated over 250 introductions.

It didn’t take long for Bernath to identify a large group of natural partners in his matchmaking efforts: In recent years, Chabad representatives have cultivated communities of young, Jewish professionals—the same audience and demographic that Bernath is targeting with Jmontreal.com “It’s an extraordinarily efficient way for Chabad representatives to tap into their networks of young professionals and make Jewish marriages happen,” said Bernath.

But it took two and a half years of work

on the back-end of the site before he was ready for expansion. Working closely with Woodmere Asset management, the parent company of the popular Jewish matchmaking site sawYouAtsinai.com, Bernath developed a powerful database behind a secure user interface that records the necessary information for each profile. users cannot browse or access other profiles on Jmontreal.com.

Then Bernath took everything he learned at Jmontreal.com and partnered with Chabad centers in the us who cater to young professionals. With the help of a grant by the machne Israel development Fund, three sites launched in the last two months, Jdallas.org, JBoston.org, and Jmiami.org, in each respective city. Ten more sites are set to launch over the next year. Also part of the network is JJunction.org.au in sydney, Australia, run by Rabbi mendel Kastel. All the administrative work on the back-end is streamlined between all sites, and the new sites are using the same database system.

Already, Jdallas.org has drawn over 70 sign-ups on the site, according to Aida drizin, co-director of The Intown Chabad in uptown dallas for young professionals. “so far, people have been very receptive,” she said. “They’re happy to know that someone they can trust is looking out for

them. And for us, it’s important that we help the young adults that we come in contact with to marry Jewish.” like all the other sites, Jdallas.org is limited to residents of dallas. While online matchmaking sites generally create global or national networks, the location-specific element at Jdallas.org is a big draw for young adults. “many people aren’t ready to commit to a long distance relationship,” drizin explained.

Yet for the segment of members who would consider dating a Jewish person out of state, Bernath is well prepared. over the next ten years, he plans to roll out 50 sites in locations around the world. eventually, users will be able to choose to stay local or be matched with a member in the country, or abroad. ultimately, one international website will connect the dots for Jewish singles involved in networks of young professionals at Chabad centers, globally.

“With the network we have in place in the Chabad movement, we can launch this locally and on a global scale,” explained Bernath.

“We think this will change the way Jewish people think about dating.”

It will also change the intermarriage rates. “Technology can definitely help con-

“It’s an extraordinarily efficient way for Chabad representatives to tap into their networks of young professionals and make Jewish marriages happen.”

nect Jewish singles,” said doron Kornbluth, author of Why Marry Jewish? and a sought-after international speaker on intermarriage.

“As long as they have veto power over who they meet, people are open to this, and once they meet they take it from there,” said Kornbluth. In addition, the matchmakers offer members guidance throughout the dating process when members enlist their help. more than 100 years since matchmakers plied their service, “matchmaking is back,” said Bernath, “but with a modern twist.”

HAMBURG INSTALLS NEW CHIEF RABBI he city state of Hamburg installed its newly elected Chief Rabbi, Chabad’s Rabbi shlomo Bistritsky, on december 1.

“This is a historic moment for Hamburg. For more than three years we’ve been without a chief rabbi,” said Roy Naor, a member of the Board of directors of the city’s Jewish community in a conversation with lubavitch.com shortly after the election results were announced. “Today constitutes a new beginning for the Jews of this city.”

T

In his role as Chabad representative, the 34 year-old Rabbi Bistritsky, originally from Israel, has been serving Hamburg’s Jewish population of about 8000 for the last eight years. But the new position will help him enrich Jewish life there immeasurably, he said. speaking by phone with lubavitch.com from his home as wellwishers poured in to congratulate him, Rabbi Bistritsky, whose grandfather grew up in

Hamburg, said the election “confirms that the Jewish community recognizes and appreciates the work and dedication of Chabad.”

The position has been vacant for the past three years.

Hamburg, the second largest city in Germany with densely populated urban areas, is one of only three city states in Germany. The other two are Berlin and Bremen.

From the 17th century until the Holocaust, Hamburg together with Altona and Wandsbek,

formed an important Jewish religious and cultural center.

Among the great rabbis who served there were the famed 18th century talmudist, Rabbi Yacov emden, and his rival Rabbi Yonasan eybschutz.

In 1933, Hamburg had a Jewish population of about 20,000. About half perished during the Holocaust.

The rest were dispersed, and by 1947 the city counted only 1,268 Jews.

Rabbi Shlomo Bistritsky

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LUBAVITCHINTERNATIONAL 6

GENERATION TO GENERATION

FORGING FRIENDSHIPS, PRESERVING MEMORY THE SUNSHINE CIRCLE BRINGS TEENAGERS AND HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS TOGETHER

H

olocaust survivors are a fast dwindling population. But buried with many a survivor who dies is a story of untold suffering and loss, and also, lessons of an extraordinary will for life. survivors have good reason to be concerned about what will happen with their stories after none are left to give first-hand testimony. even with them still here to speak out, obnoxious voices deny the Holocaust, and a young generation grows further removed and ignorant of the darkest chapter of Jewish history. shaindy Friedman, a young Chabad representative with a robust enthusiasm for history, has decided to bridge the generational and cultural divide that separates teenagers and Holocaust survivors, and do many great mitzvahs along the way for both.

Born and raised in Palm springs, Friedman grew up surrounded by a significant number of Holocaust survivors—some local, some visiting, and all praying at her father’s synagogue.

“Year after year we’d hear about which survivors would not be returning for their annual winter visits,” she said, “the survivors we’d lost.”

When she returned as a newlywed to California with her husband, Rabbi mendy Friedman, they founded The sunshine Circle, pairing Jewish teenagers with local Holocaust survivors. “many survivors have expressed concern that as time passes, interest wanes,” she said.

“It bolsters them to become an active part in transferring vital knowledge and experience to students.” operating for a little more than a year in Palm desert, The sunshine Circle

Shaindy Friedman, pictured here with Holocaust survivor Nathan Hoffman

“[The] Sunshine Circle is a fresh, sensible, admirable project. Bringing teenagers together with survivors passes on the torch of Jewish historical memory hand to hand, from those who know most to those who need it.”

— Herman Wouk counts 52 teen participants, a majority of whom joined without prompting.

The sunshine Circle gave teenager Howie Berkowitz “the chance to be engaged in living history, to have the opportunity to connect personally with the remaining survivors of a waning generation.”

Teen participants visit with survivors in their homes, attend weekly or bimonthly meetings and general group sessions where they are addressed by a survivor or speaker, and will be involved in community-wide projects that advance the message of The sunshine Circle, including an upcoming art exhibit featuring photographs of local

THE MENORAH The Temple menorah was a seven branch menorah. The Chanukah Menorah, also called the Chanukiah is different.

It has eight branches (the ninth is set apart and used only to light the others) corresponding to the eight nights of Chanukah that commemorate the miracle of the oil. Each night of Chanukah, one additional light is kindled, so that by the end of the Chanukah, all eight lights are illuminated.

survivors.

The program imbues teens with a strong sense of their history and identity, and helps build leadership skills as they bring joy and solace to the lives of local Holocaust survivors. one of those survivors, Frances Nassau, was imprisoned in the Terezin camp before being sent with her family to Auschwitz and later to Bergen-Belsen, where she was liberated. she lost her entire family in the Holocaust.

“Frances’s story must live on after her, and I am proud to be the one to carry it to the next generation,” teen participant Ally levine said.

Ally plans to meet with Frances regularly and is working to develop “a personal relationship with her that goes above and beyond the past. The Holocaust is more than just the facts taught in history books; it is the stories and feelings of survivors. each year there are fewer survivors. I can now share the truths of the Holocaust with the world even after the last survivor is gone.” encountering teenagers who take a real interest in their story allows survivors to share painful memories buried deep within their souls, sometimes for the first time since emerging from those nightmare years.

“These are memories I have never shared before,” mauthausen survivor Nathan Hoffman said. “No one has ever asked me about them.”

The organization has earned the admiration of many in the Jewish community, most notably Herman Wouk, a longtime congregant of Chabad of Palm springs, and a friend and mentor of Friedman. “[The] sunshine Circle is a fresh, sensible, admirable project,” said the Pulitzer Prize author. “Bringing teenagers together with survivors passes on the torch of Jewish historical memory hand to hand, from those who know most to those who need it.”

For teen ethan mezrahi, the “sunshine Circle transforms our history into a personal reality by being able to connect with this last generation of survivors.” matthew levine, another teenager, agrees. “It isn’t a club, it’s an experience, learning from a lost generation to find out more about ourselves.”

In 1975, Chabad began a tradition promoting the holiday of Chanukah and its lessons of Jewish faith and Jewish pride by erecting large outdoor menorahs in public spaces.

The first one went up that year in San Francisco’s Union Square. Erected by the late Rolling Stones promoter and Holocaust survivor Bill Graham, it was known as the “mama” menorah because of the thousands of others it inspired globally. 25 feet tall by 15 feet wide—the Menorah was surrounded by evergreens, and drew 1,000 people on the first night of Chanukah.

DECEMBER 2011 / JANUARY 2012 | WWW. LUBAVITCH . COM 7

LUBAVITCHINTERNATIONAL 8

CAMPUS

PENN STATE JEWISH STUDENTS FIND HEALING THROUGH SHABBAT enn state Chabad Rabbi Nosson meretsky sent an email out to Jewish students one Friday in November.

“This has been a very crazy week here at Penn state, there are lots of emotions, there are lots of tears, questions, shock.

People are wondering, what now? Where do we go from here? Happy Valley has been turned upside down.”

With Penn state in the throes of a scandal that erupted in November over allegations of child molestation by the school’s former assistant coach, and the failure of two Penn state officials to act on the allegations, students “need time to process,” and shabbat, meretsky wrote in his email, is as good a time as any to begin.

A much needed reprieve came again sunday, November 13th, as the school’s Jewish student body celebrated the 10year anniversary of Chabad of Penn state.

Alumni, students, parents and friends turned out to celebrate with Rabbi Nosson and sarah at Chabad of the Plaza district in New York City, where most of the guests live.

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Photography by Bentzion Elisha

Rabbi and Mrs. Meretsky with honorees

Penn State students celebrate with Chabad

marvin and sandra Kohll of omaha, Nebraska, were honored with the Heart of excellence award for their support of the meretskys’ efforts.

Thomas and Heather Baumgarten of state College, PA were honored with the Community Pillar award. Part of the local community, they’ve been partnering with the meretskys to increase and enhance Jewish life at Penn state and the state College community since their humble beginnings.

Nicole (Nikki) Hetchcop who began the Jewish Heritage group on campus with the meretskys—creating huge Jewish-themed parties at fraternities—was awarded with the young leadership award. seven student leaders were honored at the dinner: Chabad Jewish student organization presidents, maura Klonder and Bree Feibishkoff, past president, Jackie Kelly, board members Jason Cohen and Josh Frisch, as well as the new Jewish Heritage group chairs, danielle Assour and melisa Reizner.

In her remarks, Heather Baumgarten

reflected sadly at the recent fall of some of Penn state’s pillars, but took comfort in the strength of the meretskys as pillars who continue to enrich the experience of Jewish students with Torah study and Jewish values.

Rabbi meretsky told lubavitch.com: “I have lived here now for 10 years. spanier and Jopa have been a part of my life since I came here. In my experience with them, they always seemed deeply concerned for the well-being of this great university and of every student here.” mertesky said that he is struggling, together with the students “to come to terms with the the scandal, and how it ripped through our university and our town so quickly and so fiercely.”

If there is a silver lining here, say the meretskys, it has made students appreciate the opportunities for unity and for the healing, spiritual space of shabbat, when they disconnect from the endless barrage of media reports, and are free to focus on the joy of sharing friendship and Torah at Penn state’s Chabad shabbat table.

THE STICKER COLLECTION In 1980, when Alpern was a an elementary school student, his dad, Rabbi shabsi Alpern, tapped into the sticker craze so popular with young kids at the time. Alpern’s fond memory of this activity, shared by many of his former classmates thirty years later, now inspired him to create a new sticker album for Jewish school students.

BRAZIL CHABAD INTRODUCES HIGH TECH SCHOOL

Instead of trading in stickers produced by disney or other entertainment companies, students will trade stickers with Jewish content and compete to complete their albums.

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With a supply of 312,000 stickers created by a team of designers led by Vitor elman, a local Brazilian designer, each page of the 28-page album will have 10 stickers with messages about Jewish values or topics such as “Torah,” “moses,” “love Your Fellow,” and “make the World A Better Place.”

ith more than 1000 new cars on the road every day, s. Paulo ranks among the worst traffic cities in the world. It’s so bad, many will do whatever they can to avoid spinning their wheels on its congested roads.

According to Rabbi Yossi Alpern, director of Beit Chabad do Brasil, that’s partly to blame for why many Jewish families in some of sao Paulo’s rural areas won’t send their children to Jewish schools. “The traffic here is unbearable,” said Alpern. “People are looking for alternatives to get what they need without driving.”

Alpern is planning to unveil an alternative day school that he believes will radically alter the Jewish education experience for Brazilian Jews. Now in the process of developing an online Hebrew school that will bring Jewish studies into their homes,

he expects to reach Jewish students who live outside of the Brazil’s major Jewish population centers in sao Paulo or Rio de Janeiro.

The Jewish online school of Beit Chabad will reach out to Jewish families in 223 cities and towns in Brazil that have no Jewish schools. Alpern hopes to sign up at least 50 Portuguese-speaking students between ages 10 to 12 for the initial digital course, scheduled to launch in march 2012. The multimedia experience will, he expects, ultimately attract a large portion of Brazil’s 120,000 Jews.

The initial course, an intensive 12-week digital and multimedia experience, will teach students about the Jewish calendar and holidays using an imaginative mix of videos, multimedia games, and interactive activities, as well as online reading materials. students will explore a new topic every

week with video, audio, and reading components produced specifically for this course.

The Jewish online school will also allow students the opportunity to earn awards for completing each activity, through a method similar to the “badges” earned on the popular location-based social networking website Foursquare.

The curriculum for this program was developed by Carlos seabra and michel metzger, two Brazilian innovators of educational software. seabra is editorial coordinator at TV Cultura and metzger is president of the council of Cidade escola Aprendiz and coordinator of pedagogic computer science at Iavne school.

They worked together previously while developing the multimedia educational program at sao Paulo university’s escola do Futuro, the “school of the Future.”

The stickers will be distributed to Jewish schools and community organizations that will then use them as prizes or incentives.

It’s another way, said Alpern, who enjoys using his creative flair to promote Jewish education, of reaching kids through their own games and activities with meaningful content and good Jewish information.

DECEMBER 2011 / JANUARY 2012 | WWW. LUBAVITCH . COM

NEW CHABAD CENTER

THIRD CHABAD CENTER OPENS IN SHANGHAI

Interior of the new Chabad Center

hanghai’s Jewish community recently celebrated the formal opening of a new Chabad center in the heart of the city’s downtown area.

It is the third Jewish center to open in shanghai under the direction of Chabad’s chief representatives, Rabbi shalom and dinie Greenberg.

“The necessity for a third location is a wonderful reflection of Jewish pride here in shanghai, and evidence of the lively growth of the Jewish community,” Rabbi Greenberg said.

Rabbi shlomo and Anael Aouizerat, Chabad representatives to the new center, have been serving the French Jews of “Asia’s Paris,” as the area is known, since arriving to shanghai four years ago.

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The new Chabad Center and Kosher Market

At first, the Aouizerats shared space with the Greenberg’s shanghai Jewish Center, hosting activities for French speaking members, with Rabbi shlomo officiating as the Center’s sephardic Rabbi. during the shanghai expo 2010, Rabbi shlomo officiated at the historic ohel Rachel synagogue which Chinese authorities allowed the community to use for shabbat services and dinner. ohel Rachel is located in the center of downtown shanghai.

The area’s numbers of young Jewish professionals swelled over that period, and when the synagogue was closed again at the end of the expo, Chabad continued to host activities and services in a nearby location, eventually drawing nearly 100 peo-

Shangai Jews celebrate opening of new Center

ple to Friday evening shabbat services.

“As the community simply kept growing, it became obvious that a new Jewish Center was in the making,” said Rabbi Greenberg.

A rented facility renovated to comfortably accommodate all of Chabad’s local programs and services, the new center includes a synagogue, Beit midrash study hall and Koshermart, where Jewish residents and visitors can purchase kosher products. The synagogue was sponsored by the Benchetrit and Taieb families. The Teboul family underwrote the Beit midrash. located near the ohel Rachel synagogue, the new center “offers us the opportunity to be more integrated with the

“The necessity for a third location is a wonderful reflection of Jewish pride here in Shanghai, and evidence of the lively growth of the Jewish community.” historic landmark that we have worked so hard, over so many years, to keep functional,” said Rabbi Greenberg. “We still wait for the day, hopefully soon, that ohel Rachel will once again be used regularly by our community.”

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LUBAVITCHINTERNATIONAL 10

ASIA

AT CHINA’S LARGEST EXPORT FAIR, CHABAD PROVIDES OASIS omen count on la-Tweez products to pluck arches to perfection, but at Guangzhou’s mega-China Import and export Canton Fair, it was la Tweez’s Ceo eran Israel who raised his eyebrows as he saw hundreds drawn to Chabad’s services there.

If you’re holding a made in China item (and these days who’s not?) chances are the deal that brought it from Asia to your local big box store or boutique was negotiated at the Canton Fair. Held twice a year since the 1950s, the China Import and export Fair spans 37 exhibition halls filled with over 55,000 booths and attracts 200,000 buyers from more than 200 countries.

Among the madness an oasis beckons. Chabad of Guangzhou hosts daily services every weekday of the Fair.

Hundreds of Jews show up, dignifying a pass-through between halls four and five in exhibition Building A with prayer.

Before and after services, a babel of languages—Portuguese, Russian, Panamanian-accented spanish, Yiddish— compete with Hebrew and english. many minyan-goers fish their kippahs from their pockets or take one prof-

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fered them by Chabad of Guangzhou’s representative.

Attending a minyan in the middle of the workday back home, say a good number of the businessmen, is not a priority; at Canton, the 1 p.m. break for prayer is programmed into their Blackberries. Before the frenzy begins each morning of the fair, Chabad of Guangzhou opens the day at its fourstory headquarters, located 20 minutes away from the halls, with three morning prayer services and, later, closes with four back-to-back evening prayer sessions.

“You see every kind of Jew here. All kinds of Chasidim—Bobov, satmar— all the litvaks, Israelis, religious, not religious, everyone comes together,” mr. Israel said. “outside of Israel, everyone seeks a place to find their Jewish family, they look for their brothers and sisters.”

Chabad provides a sense of family year round. There’s a restaurant on the bottom floor of Chabad’s center that serves business people each week, offering breakfast, dinner and boxed lunches for the deal maker on the go. on shabbat the crowd swells to 200, and during the fair the overflow crowd reaches up

to the 400 mark. deals sealed at the fair are shipped out from nearby ports, which mr. Israel speculates drives the numbers at the prayer services.

“When your livelihood is loaded in a container on a ship sailing from China, it makes you want to pray.”

For buyers, a quick three-week trip to China twice a year is sufficient. manufacturers required on-site at their Guangzhou factories set up homes, bring their families, and drive the growth of Guangzhou’s year-round Jewish community.

A twelve-hour flight from Israel, and a longer one from the u.s., Guangzhou’s remote location virtually assures that Chabad’s focus will remain on helping the business traveler stay Jewishly rooted while pursuing a living.

They’ve been called into help wheeler dealers who injure themselves in Guangzhou make their way through a hospitalization in China or recuperate from the aftereffects of drinking tap water. daniela Herz, who traveled from Israel to her first Canton Fair this year, is grateful. “You have no idea—there is nothing like Chabad when you are far away from home.”

“When your livelihood is loaded in a container on a ship sailing from China, it makes you want to pray.”

DECEMBER 2011 / JANUARY 2012 | WWW. LUBAVITCH . COM

INTERNATIONAL

CHABAD OF CANNES AT G20 SUMMIT ill Greece abandon the euro? Will it leave the eu? Will China invest more in the eurozone bailout? did sarkozy appreciate obama’s joke?

Was history in fact, being written in Cannes this year as posters plastered over the city emblazoned with the words, l’Histoire s’écrit à Cannes, claim?

These were some of the questions on the minds of participants at the G20 summit in early November, on the French Riviera. As heads of state and finance ministers from the world’s largest nations converged on Cannes, the city became a tight security zone, with more than 12,000 police and security personnel securing the area, including the Cannes Chabad Center,

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centrally located and visible to all summit-goers.

“We’re in the heart of the area, and with the summit going on, greater numbers of visitors came to our center,

“The summit offered us good opportunities to meet Jews and let them know that Chabad is here for them.” so we were under very tight security,” Rabbi mendel matusof said.

Rabbi matusof and his colleague, Rabbi Youdi lewin, accessed summit

events to reach out to Jewish participants and welcome them to Cannes. some 3500 journalists and 5000 guests from around the world attended. Chabad’s kosher restaurant delivered meals to kosher-observant guests staying in the area’s hotels.

Rabbi matusof was among a group of guests invited to a meeting with French President sarkozy. later, the Chabad rabbis met with distinguished Jewish businessmen.

“The summit offered us good opportunities to meet Jews and let them know that Chabad is here for them,” said matusof, the son of Chabad senior representatives to Cannes, Rabbi Yehuda leib and Tsherna matusof.

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LUBAVITCHINTERNATIONAL

BOOKS

CHANUKAH COMES TO LIFE WITH “TOUCH AND FEEL” BOOK BOOkS in REviEW

STUDIES IN RASHI NEW VOLUME BRINGS LUBAVITCHER REBBE’S RASHI SERIES TO THE PUBLIC

tudies in Rashi, the first volume in a new series focusing on the lubavitcher Rebbe’s ground-breaking exposition of Rashi’s commentary on the Torah, was recently published by Kehot Publication society. The new volume contains 12 essays on the book of Bereishit, Genesis, many of them translated into english for the first time.

The bilingual text is presented with each page of english translation set across from the Hebrew original. An introduction offers a summary of 17 principles identified by the Rebbe that Rashi employs in his commentary, and a bibliography rounds out the volume. Though designed with ease of use in mind, the clean layout and handsome binding make the volume an attractive addition to any bookshelf.

At the heart of the volume is its revolutionary presentation and elucidation of the Rebbe’s unique approach to the study of Rashi, the “father” of Biblical commentaries. Culled from what are collectively known as Rashi sichos, or talks on Rashi, the Rebbe’s methodology is considered one of his most novel contributions to the field of Jewish scholarship.

Beginning with the passing of his mother, Rebbetzin Chana, in 1964, the Rebbe would dedicate a segment of his weekly shabbat public gatherings to Rashi’s commentary on the weekly Torah portion. For the next 25 years, the Rebbe would expound upon Rashi’s nuanced writings, analyzing its implications in the kaleidoscope of classical biblical commentary, Halachic discourse and Kabbalistic thought.

“The twelve essays in the book were selected because they represent a sample variety of the Rebbe’s work on Rashi and his treatment of Rashi’s commentary. students will get a good sense of the technique the Rebbe applied to his analysis of Rashi,” explained Rabbi david olidort, a noted Chabad scholar and senior member of

Kehot’s editorial board.

According to Rabbi Y. eliezer danzinger, the principle translator, it was the allure of the broad scope of the Rebbe’s talks on Rashi that initially attracted him to the project.

“I was always enamored with the contributions the Rebbe made to the study of Rashi,” danzinger says. “The methodology he employed always fascinated me. It’s so elegant.”

...the Rebbe’s methodology is considered one of his most novel contributions to the field of Jewish scholarship.

danzinger views the work in the new volume as one of important pedagogical value. While much has been written in Hebrew about the Rebbe’s Rashi talks, they have remained heretofore largely untranslated into english. By overcoming the “tension between retaining fidelity to the original text” and “interpretive language that [better] facilitates understanding,” danzinger hopes that the resulting translation will be a valuable tool, both “in the classroom setting as well as for personal study.”

Studies in Rashi can be purchased from Kehot.com.

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hanukah enlivens all of the senses with its oil, light, and sweet treats.

Now, award-winning author sylvia Rouss brings the holiday experience alive for children in her new book, A Touch of Chanukah.

Rouss, an early childhood educator known for creating the popular Sammy the Spider and The Littlest Books, helps children explore the eight-day festival of lights with a rhyming rendition of the Jews’ triumph over darkness. The book has “touch and feel” elements, including the waxy feel of the Chanukiah’s candles and sticky sensation of the jelly of sufganiot (jelly donuts), which Rouss said her grandchildren especially love.

“I have always used rhymes in my work as a teacher, so adding the tactile component made it an even more rewarding concept,” Rouss said. “The story is inspired by the symbols that a young child identifies with the holiday of Chanukah.”

Rouss has taught Jewish preschool for more than 30 years and has had 33 books in print or slated for publication since 1992. she has lectured throughout the united states, europe, and Israel, and even

THE DREIDEL

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Years of teaching has shown rouss that some parents struggle with cultivating their child’s Jewish identity, and her books are her way of meeting that challenge.

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with her success as an author, she has not given up what she loves most: teaching.

The greatest inspiration for her books, Rouss said, is her students. “my classroom of 4-year-old children keeps me on my toes and is a constant source of entertainment and inspiration,” she said.

Years of teaching has shown Rouss that some parents struggle with cultivating their child’s Jewish identity, and her books are her way of meeting that challenge.

“I think my books can be helpful to a parent if they match an action with reading the story,” she said. “For instance, if you’re going to read about Chanukah, you want to be lighting candles in your own home. my books are important tools that families can use to strengthen their Jewish identity, but they are complements to Jewish celebrations, not the end-all to celebrations.”

Rouss said she hopes to do more touch and feel books, but most of all, she hopes that children’s Chanukah memories are reinforced by reading the story.

“I was pleased with the project,” she said. “It’s so much fun for children.”

The dreidel is a four sided spinning top traditionally played on Chanukah. According to some sources, dreidel games were a convenient disguise used by Jewish children during the persecution by the Assyrians. Forbidden to study Torah, they did so anyhow, pulling out their dreidels and playing whenever the authorities came near.

The dreidel bears one of four Hebrew letters one each of its sides—nun, gimmel, hey and shin, which together are an acronym for the Hebrew statement: Nes Gadol Haya Sham—a great miracle happened there. In Israel, dreidels bear the letter pey instead of shin—an acronym for a great miracle happened here.

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NEW TORAH OCCUPIES WALL STREET Continued from cover story

FIRST EVER ANIMATED SIDDUR Rabbi Shmaya and Rachel Katz with their children and the new Torah scroll

ome say that the hardest thing about chanted.” being Jewish is getting a good handle For now, the animated digital edition on Hebrew, which, in its liturgical form, is includes only the Shema, Modeh Ani necessary for prayer, and in its modern (prayer upon waking), and the Torah form is a gateway to global dialogue. blessings, but Rabbi Alevsky is raising Thanks to one rabbi, the former has be- funds to make the entire project come come more accessialive online. A mobile ble, not to mention app also is in the works. animated.

“We’re estimating a The first digital, few new prayers on the animated Chabad site every week,” he said. siddur comes on the “More will be posted as heels of an expanthey’re animated, hot sion of the original off the press.”

“My Siddur,” the Emily Levy, an adult only transliterated Hebrew learner, was Chabad siddur that “ This is the ultimate E-siddur. happy to see the aniIt’s multimedia in its truest will include Shabmated version of the sense: paper, audio, digital bat and festival prayers on the Tools for image and animation.” services.

Torah website.

“We are expand“This is super helpful ing the printed version and leaping ahead. to me,” she said. “I appreciate the pace. It’s We’re going digital,” Rabbi Chayim not unrealistically slow, but it’s not imposBoruch Alevsky, creator of Tools for Torah sible to follow.” and the youth director of Chabad of the The siddur project began in 2008 and West Side with his wife Sarah, said. is the brainchild of Rabbi Alevsky. A “This is the ultimate E-siddur. It’s mul- Sephardic edition also is available, and timedia in its truest sense: paper, audio, Rabbi Alevsky will be recording updated digital image and animation.” prayers that will be on the website soon.

The siddur, he says, “is a real tool to For more information on the siddur learn how to daven [pray]. You can see project, the CDs, and the animated, digital each syllable come to life as you hear it prayers, visit www.ToolsForTorah.com.

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Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky and Mr. George Rohr at the Torah celebration

“We wanted to reciprocate and show our gratitude to Mr. George Rohr for the support and dedication to Jewish causes that he, his father Mr. Sami Rohr, and the Rohr Family Foundation have demonstrated over many years.”

During the Occupy Wall Street protests, Chabad welcomed an influx of visitors, including Zuccotti Park protestors, police officers and Wall Street professionals. Rabbi Katz visited Zuccotti Park during the hiholidays, blew shofar for protestors, shared the lulav and etrog, and spoke to many of the protestors who quickly gravitated to him.

Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky, Chairman of the worldwide Chabad-Lubavitch educational and social services divisions, joined in the celebration and lauded the contribution of Chabad of Wall Street and Rabbi and Mrs. Katz, to the area’s Jewish life.

Rabbi Krinsky shared his memories of a meeting some 40 years ago, between the Lubavitcher Rebbe and a small group of major philanthropists. Among them, he recalled, were Jack and Helen Nash, parents of Mrs. Pamela Rohr, who joined her husband at the Torah celebration. At that memorable meeting so many years ago,

Rabbi Krinsky said, the Rebbe spoke emphatically about the great role Jewish philanthropy must play in advancing Jewish education, the key to Jewish continuity.

Rabbi Krinsky pointed to Mr. Rohr as an outstanding role model to young entrepreneurs.

“Mr. Rohr is in great measure responsible for the worldwide educational and outreach activities of Chabad-Lubavitch, which he so generously supports,” he said.

The Rohr family has supported several major philanthropic projects, including an initiative to place Chabad Houses on college campuses nationwide. In the early 1990s the family launched plans to support Chabad institutions in the Russian Federation and Eastern Europe. The Rohr Family Foundation provides critical funding to open and expand Chabad centers worldwide, and has sponsored the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute, an adult-educational program which has grown to 325 chapters worldwide.

At a time when Wall Street was drawing unhappy media attention, Mrs. Baila Olidort, editor of Lubavitch News Service, offered an alternative, positive perspective.

The new addition to Chabad of Wall Street bearing the name of a noble Jewish matriarch, she said, celebrates the fact that “3300 years after Mt. Sinai,” even on Wall Street, where material gain is the driving force— so far removed from the spiritual life of biblical times—“the Jewish people yet continue to live by the Torah and its values.”

WHY EIGHT DAYS? The Temple menorah lights were fueled by pure olive oil, of which only a small flask—one day’s supply—with its tamperproof seal still intact, was found. Miraculously, the oil kept the menorah’s lights burning for eight days, giving the Jews time to secure a fresh supply. This is one of the great miracles that the Chanukah festival commemorates.

LUBAVITCHINTERNATIONAL

EDUCATION

FREnCH Bank BECOMES SCHOOl Continued from cover story

to the opening of the school, most Jewish parents in montrouge elected to send their children to public school rather than a Jewish one, if only because of the commute hassle. deborah Attia is pleased that her eight-year-old daughter can go to a local school, but the atmosphere of the school and its emphasis on academics matters to her even more.

“The school is like a family,” she said. “The teachers know what the children need. I am very proud of the scholastic level of the school.”

A short saunter down the hallways reveals just what an $8 million investment in renovations can buy: a sports facility, teaching kitchen, theater and proscenium stage. some classes are still waiting for finishing touches, but the potential is evident. mrs. Attia’s daughter especially likes her very pink, girls-only class- “ THE SCHOOl iS likE a FaMily, THE room, which is near the royal-blue boys class.

TEaCHERS knOW “The opening of the building created quite a storm. No WHaT THE CHildREn one thought a Jewish school would have such beautiful nEEd. i aM vERy amenities,” said Rabbi david mimoun, director of Chabad PROUd OF THE of montrouge.

SCHOlaSTiC lEvEl Building school enrollment and convincing parents that OF THE SCHOOl.” a Jewish education is worth paying tuition to obtain, took a persistent effort. Rabbinical students at Chabad of montrouge’s yeshiva added a Jewish education pitch to their usual Friday afternoon tefillin rounds among local business owners. Chabad sent out mailings to 2000 Jewish families in the area. Private meetings between parents and the administration were often the linchpin to turn a maybe to a yes.

“Behind every child in the school there is a special story,” said Rabbi levi mimoun, program director. Knocking on doors, cajoling, giving innumerable tours of the building, and any effort was well worth it. otherwise “most children in the school would not be receiving a Jewish education.”

The sellem children, Arnaude, age 6, and lenore, age 4, started Pardess Channa this year. “The children love their teacher, and if they have affection for the school, then they will love to learn,” said their mother.

several parents remain on the fence. The mimouns have not given up on these Jewish children. They run a special kosher lunch program for 20 of these students, bringing them each day from public school during their lunch break for a kosher meal and Jewish activity.

The school’s professionally equipped kitchen has turned Haya mouchka into a nutrition resource for montrouge’s disadvantaged. several families in the community who have fallen on hard times now receive hot meals from the school kitchen on a regular basis. on Friday afternoons, students from Chabad’s yeshiva bring shabbat packages with fresh challahs to a number of elderly Jews living in nursing homes in the area.

The opening of the Haya mouchka is the culmination of a long campaign. The mimouns opened their Chabad center in montrouge in 1993. Their first foray into education began with the opening of a creche, a day care for babies and toddlers. Their synagogue attracts a crowd of 150 each shabbat. A new mikvah, women’s circle, and men’s classes make this a full service Jewish community.

Now the mimouns are setting their sights on the next stage—opening a high school for Pardess Channa graduates.

Photo Credit: Mendel BENHAMOU

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A NEW MIKVAH IN GOTHENBURG, SWEDEN

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n 1940, the sixth lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak schneersohn arrived in Gothenburg, sweden for what would be the last stop on his harrowing rescue from war-torn europe. several years later, in 1948, he recalled the small Jewish community in Gothenburg in a letter addressed to a rabbi living in sweden.

“You must build a mikvah in this city,” he wrote from his office in his new headquarters in New York. With europe still reeling from the Holocaust, that would be easier said than done.

Fast forward to 1987, when his successor, Rabbi menachem mendel schneerson requested of Rabbi Avraham Glick, a businessman living in london to travel to Gothenburg and see to it that a mikvah is built.

But three years ago the mikvah, which was maintained since 1991 by Chabad representatives to sweden, Rabbi Alexandar and leah Namdar, faced imminent closure when the owners of the building decided to sell.

With the directives of the Rebbes ringing in their ears, the Namdars launched a $270,000 building campaign for a new

mikvah located in the Gothenburg Chabad center. They are now putting the finishing touches on a beautifully designed state-ofthe-art mikvah.

“We wanted to build a spa for the body and soul, a timeless space that links past, present and future,” explains leah Namdar, who will run the mikvah. Inside, the walls are tiled with golden-hued Jerusalem stone; the constantly changing colors of led lights that line the waterline of the pool add a modern twist. suspended from the ceiling are two “peace doves” fashioned from a type of porcelain that lets through a soft, warm light when the bulb inside is illuminated. olga Popyrina, a designer who has created products for IKeA, designed the doves.

“The doves symbolize purity, which is what the mikvah is all about,” she says. For her, light is more than a tool; it needs “to have meaning. These doves also symbolize love and peace.”

The water cascades down a waterfall into the spacious pool. A luxurious Jacuzzi sits adjacent to the pool, and a separate room features showers and other amenities.

As the only mikvah in Gothenburg, a city with a Jewish population of 3500, mrs.

“We wanted to build a spa for the body and soul ... a timeless space that links past, present and future.”

Namdar expects that it will draw new visitors from the community.

In addition, while the old mikvah was below ground in a basement, this mikvah is on the ground floor of the Chabad house.

Its wide windows create a breezy, daylightfilled interior.

“People who will visit the mikvah won’t be coming because they have to, but because it is a very enjoyable experience, physically and spiritually,” explains sara lejderman, a freelance writer and longtime participant at Chabad in Gothenburg.

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KINUS HASHLUCHIM 5772-2011 Photos by Boruch Ezagui

THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF CHABAD EMISSARIES ONCE A YEAR,

Chabad representatives arrive at Lubavitch World Headquarters for the Annual Conference of Chabad Shluchim. Here are some facts about the Conference and Chabad Shluchim.

THE FIRST CONFERENCE WAS HELD IN 1984.

ABOUT 65 CHABAD EMISSARIES ATTENDED.

AT THE BANQUET DINNER OF THE 2011 CONFERENCE,

A THREE-COURSE DINNER FOR 4600 WAS SERVED. IT IS THE LARGEST SIT-DOWN DINNER IN NEW YORK CITY. Guests dancing at the banquet session of the Conference

THERE ARE MORE THAN

3900 COUPLES Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky of Lubavitch World Headquarters greeting the guests

SERVING AS EMISSARIES AROUND THE WORLD. THE SMALLEST COUNTRY WITH CHABAD EMISSARIES IS THE KINGDOM OF LUXEMBOURG. THE ONLY CONTINENT WITHOUT A CHABAD PRESENCE IS ANTARCTICA.

CHABAD EMISSARY SARAH GOLDSTEIN IN NEW ZEALAND IS THE FIRST EMISSARY IN THE WORLD TO LIGHT

SHABBAT CANDLES

Partial view of the banquet hall as Rabbi Sacks delivers the keynote

EACH WEEK; PEARL KRASNJANSKY IN HAWAII IS THE LAST. “WHEREVER THERE’S

COCA COLA, THERE’S CHABAD,” GOES THE SAYING. IN FACT THERE ARE COUNTRIES THAT HAVE CHABAD BUT DON’T HAVE COCA COLA.

RIGHT VS. MIGHT Chanukah also celebrates the miraculous victory of a small number of untrained Jews—the Maccabbees over the vast, highly trained and well equipped army of the Syrian-Greeks empire. The holiday underscores the virtue of the Jews, who though small in number, vanquished on the merit of their piety and high morality.

Did You Know?

Chabad representatives and lay leaders at the banquet

The war of the Maccabees was the first openly declared ideological war. Many think the Maccabees were warriors by training. They were not. They were scholars and men of piety, stirred to action by their beliefs.

This was the first war fought on the roads and not on organized battlefields. The Maccabees introduced the innovation of stealth warfare, attacking the enemy legions from caves and hilltops on the side of the road.

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rabbi nechemia Wilhelm, Chabad-Lubavitch representative to Bangkok, distributes food, water and basic necessities to thai flood victims.

CHABAD DRAWS BI-PARTISAN SUPPORT IN DC

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artisan fighting, political gridlock, and a congressional popularity rating of only 9% have become the norm in Washington. But in a rare show of bi-partisanship, Republican speaker of the House John Boehner and democratic Whip steny Hoyer took the stage together at a recent benefit event honoring American Friends of lubavitch.

A virtual “who’s who” of the dC Jewish scene, the annual banquet drew the wider interest of politicians, lobbyists and philanthropists alike. even beverage conglomerate Coca-Cola took part by sponsoring the evening.

Among those honored were ProFunds mutual funds president, louis and wife manette mayberg. The couple was honored for their philanthropic work in dC and the greater Jewish communities. The leadership Award, introduced by Whip Hoyer and bestowed on speaker Boehner was perhaps the highlight of the evening.

The rapport between the two congressmen and their willingness to come together for a common cause was not lost on guests. Noah Pollak, executive director for the emergency Committee for Israel, posted on Twitter, that there was “a real love-in going on between steny Hoyer and John Boehner” at the dinner, noting that it was a “nice moment.”

Addressing the crowd, speaker Boehner affirmed his continued support of Israel.

“We do not support Israel for the Jewish people,” speaker Boehner noted. “Rather [we support it] for all people in the world who seek peace and freedom.”

Also honored at the event was Ambassador stuart e. eizenstat, former us Ambassador to the european union and member

Please credit: Ron Sachs/CNP

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Rabbi Levi Shemtov, Executive Vice President of American Friends of Lubavitch, Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner and Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer

of the Board of Advisers of the Global Panel Foundation. eizenstat recalled that while serving as White House domestic Policy Advisor to President Carter, he helped Rabbi Abraham shemtov, Chairman of Agudas Chassidei Chabad, put up a large menorah across from the White House back in 1979. President Carter, then occupied with the ongoing Iran Hostage Crisis, made his first public appearance since the start

of crisis at the public lighting of the menorah.

According to Rabbi levi shemtov, executive Vice President of American Friends of lubavitch in Washington, dC and chair of the benefit, beyond the bipartisan participation on the banquet dais, the “diverse range of backgrounds and beliefs” of banquet attendees was “a testament to Chabad’s work in America.”