Community Happenings

Campers at Machaneh Hakayitz had a ball in camp this week

Five Towns Friendly

The Three Weeks is a period of introspection, a time when we focus on mending broken relationships. It’s a time when we increase our love towards our fellow Jew, hoping to engender more love, respect, and admiration for our brothers and sisters so we can help to rebuild the Beis HaMikdash that was destroyed due to animosity and hatred. During these three weeks, we connect with one another and become closer to each other.

But why should that love and respect towards others end with the fast of Tisha B’Av? Why can’t we carry those warm feelings and relationships into the next few weeks – or even months?

Living in the Five Towns, we are fortunate to enjoy “small town” living on a large scale. The pace of life here is more relaxed than in other large frum communities. We share closer relationships with our neighbors than people living in other areas. We know our mailmen; we wave to those who pick up our garbage; the UPS deliveryman greets us when we see him on the street.

This month, the JWLC (Jewish Women’s Leadership Council of the Five Towns) presents a community-wide program called “Five Towns Friendly.” The idea behind the initiative is to maintain the attitude of achdus and connection that we focus on during the Three Weeks.

In this program, community members are reminded to go out of their way to be “Five Towns Friendly.”

The program is simple yet profound. With small acts of connection towards others, we are creating closer and closer bonds with our neighbors and community members. These connections can be made with those you know well, those you may recognize from seeing on the street, or with community members whom you’ve never met. Either way, the goal is the same: bring an unexpected smile and joy to someone you meet!

To make this program more exciting, JWLC is encouraging community members to share their “Five Towns Friendly” moments. Send in a photo of you and the “new friend” you’ve just met or share your “Five Towns Friendly” experience with us. Email photos and/or experiences to fivetownsfriendly@gmail.com. (They may be featured in TJH or on our website, so stay tuned!) All submissions will be entered into a raffle for $100 at your favorite local store.

Here are some ideas of how to be “Five Towns Friendly” (although we’re sure you will come up with so many on your own!): • Have an extra bag after you checked out at the supermarket? Give it to the person behind you! • See someone you know at a bus stop? Ask if you can give them a ride along your way. • Thank your waitress – and ask her for her name! • Let the car waiting to merge or turn go in front of you. • Invite a new neighbor for a Shabbos meal. • Neighbor going on vacation? Ask them if you can bring in their packages. • Introduce yourself to a new person in shul. • Tell your neighbors you’re going shopping. Can you pick something up for them? • Text someone whom you haven’t spoken with in a while. • Buy lemonade from the neighborhood stand. • Stop and say hello to an elderly person sitting on the park bench.

The list is endless, and it all starts with you!

Become part of the “Five Towns Friendly” program, and remember to share your experiences with us! Fivetownsfriendly@ gmail.com. Look for our table at the Sidewalk Sale and receive a free “Five Towns Friendly” bumper sticker. To learn more about JWLC, visit www. JWLC5T.org.

Fun and friends at Camp Matov

HAFTR’s Class of 1997 25th Year Reunion

HAFTR High School’s Class of 1997 celebrated their 25th anniversary reunion on Sunday, June 26 at the HAFTR High School gym. Alumni and spouses enjoyed an evening of reconnecting, great food, laughs, and a montage of pictures from both their middle and high school years. Videos from the grade’s graduation and senior dinner were enjoyed by all. Thank you to the cochairs and the event committee Steve Weinrib, Beth Kupferman Swedarsky, Candice Weiler Feiler, Jeremy Frenkel, Evan Shusterman, Shira Pelikow Hoschander, Arel Golombeck, and Dena Preminger Pilevsky, as well as all of those who traveled from as far as Israel, Arizona, Florida, Minnesota, Philadelphia, and those who attended from areas a bit closer. Regardless of geographic location and the number of years that passed, this group of HAFTR alumni felt incredibly comfortable and at home reconnecting with their classmates.

Tel: 516-239-1000 Fax: 516-239-5515 Email: agelfivetown@gmail.com

5 TOWN TIRE CO.

RETAIL - WHOLESALE - EXPORT

Scenes of the summer at Nikolsburg in Woodbourne, NY

The Jewish Home | AUGUST 4, 2022 11 Rabbanim and 14 Singers to Appear Live at Tu B’Av Together, Yad L’Achim’s Global Events of Music and Tefillah for Shidduchim

Night and Morning Online Events Scheduled for Tu B’Av, Thursday 8/11 and Friday 8/12

By Nosson Gold

One day. Two live online events. Half a million Jews united in tefillah for all of klal Yisrael’s singles. It’s called Tu B’Av Together, and it is an opportunity not to be missed.

The 15th day of Av, Tu B’Av, has been synonymous with shidduchim since the times of Chazal. The Jewish people have always connected through tefillah in times of happiness and sorrow, and Tu B’Av Together taps into our powerful desire to help each other. For the past five years, Tu B’Av Together has steadily grown in scope and momentum. Now it’s bigger than ever.

This year, Yad L’Achim is once again spearheading Tu B’Av Together as over 500,000 Jews across the world unite in davening for shidduchim. At the same time, a minyan of talmidei chachamim will spend the day in Amuka davening for each name submitted through Yad L’Achim. As the resting place of the tanna Yonasan Ben Uziel, Amuka is an auspicious place to daven for a shidduch. In previous years, members of klal Yisrael submitted thousands of names for tefillah for shidduchim on Tu B’Av. Thanks to the policy instituted by Director R’ Nesanel Gantz, names can be submitted for tefillah even without a donation.

Until now, Tu B’Av Together was one event of music and tefillah, but because Tu B’Av is on a Friday this year, Yad L’Achim will host two live events. Both are free to the public.

Join on Thursday, August 11 at 7:30 p.m. EST for an evening of musical inspiration with many of today’s leading superstars. The program will include words of inspiration by Rabbi YY Jacobson and a lineup of top performers:

Uri Davidi, Levy Falkowitz, Eitan Katz, Eli Marcus, Joey Newcomb, Lipa Schmeltzer, Moshe Tischler, Akiva (Turgeman), Yitzy Waldner, Beri Weber and Surprise guests.

Tune in again on Friday, August 12 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. EST for the much-anticipated live tefillah event broadcasted online to hundreds of thousands. Opening remarks will be delivered by Rav Yisroel Reisman, shlita. Afterward, eight chapters of Tehillim will be led by the following rabbanim shlita:

Rav Eytan Feiner, Rav Eliezer Ginsberg, Rav Dovid Goldwasser, Rav Paysach Krohn, Rav Berel Lazar, Rav David Ozeri, Rav Yisroel Reisman and Rav Meyer Yedid.

The following 8 kapitlach will be recited: ח”כק ,ז”כק ,ד”כק ,א”כק ,ב”פ ,’ע ,ח”ל ,ב”ל (Psalms 32, 38, 70, 82, 121, 124, 127, 128). The rabbanim will also inspire us with chizzuk and powerful stories about shidduchim. Rav Ari Bensoussan and Rav Eli Stefansky will deliver additional words of inspiration. Both events will be hosted

by Nesanel Gantz.

How Tu B’Av Together Came to Be

Yad L’Achim was founded over 60 years ago by Rav Sholom Dov Lifshitz, zt”l, to aid new immigrants in Eretz Yisrael. It has been a major source of support for Russian and French immigrants, placing thousands of boys and girls in yeshivahs and schools throughout Eretz Yisrael. When the organization began receiving calls about Jewish women trapped in Arab villages, it established a division dedicated to prevention as well as the rescue of trapped women and children. These women are often rescued with nothing more than the clothes they are wearing at the time, and Yad L’Achim helps them secure basic necessities as they begin rebuilding their lives. With Hashem’s help, many of these rescued women have gone on to marry bnei Torah and establish Jewish homes.

For many years, Yad L’Achim arranged for talmidei chachamim to daven that these women would merit finding their basherts. As time went on, Yad L’Achim began accepting tefillah requests from Jews throughout the world. These tefillah requests grew into the Tu B’Av Together programs.

Tu B’Av Together unites Yidden from across the world. Last year, Yad L’Achim received messages from participants in places as far-flung as Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Alaska, Hong Kong, Cyprus, Greece, Argentina, and even Iran.

To register for the free events, submit names for tefillah for free, or download the chapters of Tehillim in advance, visit www.TuBavTogether.com or call Yad L’Achim at 1-866-923-5224.

The Jewish Home | AUGUST 4, 2022 Experience The “Unexpected”: Project Inspire’s Tisha B’Av Video

When life presents us with challenges and unexpected difficulties arise, we often succumb to overwhelming anxiety and grief.

But there are heroes among us who rise to the occasion even in times of adversity. They overcome their challenges with positivity and a sense of purpose. Thus, do they become our greatest inspiration.

Join Project Inspire for their thirteenth annual Tisha B’av video on Sunday, August 7 by viewing an outstanding 55-minute documentary film called “Unexpected.” The film is about individuals who could have easily fallen into the abyss of doubt and uncertainty in their times of challenge. But instead, they rose to the occasion and discovered Divine intervention when everything seemed lost.

Close to 100,000 viewers watched the Project Inspire Tisha B’Av videos in the past and even more are expected to tune in this year. The film, which was produced by Mint Media, begins with an introduction by HaRav Reuven Feinstein and is riveting. The stories are extraordinary, and the messaging is clear. At times of great devastation, if someone reaches out with compassion and care, the loss and the loneliness are transformed into a springboard for holiness and hope. Suddenly everything changes. And that someone could be anyone, even you.

The “Unexpected” trailer can be viewed by logging on to projectinspire. com/tisha. Follow the prompts for instructions on viewing the entire film on Tisha B’av itself. And remember to watch the Project Inspire talk show featuring Rabbi Yossie Friedman and Charlie Harary during the last two hours of Tisha B’Av when they will discuss the stories of “Unexpected” and the lessons to be learned. It’s the unexpected events that can change the trajectory of people’s lives. For more information about “Unexpected,” Project Inspire’s Tisha B’av video, visit projectinspire.org/tisha. We learned all about Shavuot as we celebrated with so many fun activities at Hillel Day Camp last week. We got to get all bubbly during the bubble show by Jeff Boyer as we saw bubbles of all shapes, colors and sizes. In art, we made Shavuot flowers, ate yummy blintzes, made special cookies, and even had a surprise chocolate-making activity with Morah Wonka, where we learned to make chocolate pizza! Flat Stanley followed us on all our activities and even he got down and dirty and was completely covered in chocolate. Crazy hair and hat day brought amazing, creative designs, colors, and hats – from pink, green, purple, and blue hair to wacky, funny, and silly hats. We culminated the week in style with pajama day. Oh, what fun with all of our footsy pajamas, character pjs, dolls, bears and, of course, our PJ parade was not to be missed.

Kayaking with our older division was super fun. Playing on the beach and rowing together under the sun. Flying our way through Adventure Park and overcoming our fears definitely left its mark.

Our amazing third graders were lucky to go to Adventureland. Rides and games with our friends and counselors lending a hand. Between roller skating and Casa de Spin, there were wheels all around. Our second graders got to tie on some aprons and become real chefs at Apron Masters.

Constant fun and action in a camp that never sleeps. Hillel Day Camp never stops. It’s where memories are found.

We’re looking forward to our next action-packed week!

How Estate Planning Can Reduce the High Cost of Dying – Part I

By Monet Binder, Esq.

Despite the fact that it happens to every single one of us, very few among us are properly prepared for death—whether our own death or the death of a loved one. Yet the pandemic might be changing this.

According to Census figures, the pandemic caused the U.S. death rate to spike by nearly 20% between 2019 and 2020, the largest increase in American mortality in 100 years. More than 1 million deaths later, it’s clear that death is inevitable part of our lives. However, in what may be one of its few positive outcomes, some in the end-of-life industry believe that the pandemic’s massive loss of life has created an opportunity to transform the way we face death, grief, and all of the other issues that arise when we lose someone we love dearly.

As anyone who has personally dealt with loss knows, when a loved one dies, those left behind face major challenges, not only emotional and logistical but financial as well.

The Financial Cost

To further shed light on just how vastly unprepared most of us are when dealing with death, in March 2022, Goldman Sachs, with a company known as Empathy, released a Cost of Dying Report. The report surveyed more than 2,000 Americans—each of whom had lost a loved one in the last five years—to get a clearer picture of dying’s true cost to families.

Following a loved one’s death, the total bill—including the funeral and hiring all of the other professional support— cost families an average of $16,800. This included realtors, accountants, lawyers, therapists/social workers, and court fees. Without planning in advance, you are forcing your family into court.

Our proactive planning is designed to make it as easy as possible for families, legally. The right planning helps families avoid the time, expense, and emotional burden associated with probate court when a loved one passes. For instance, by placing assets in a properly created and maintained revocable living trust, trust assets will pass to your loved ones without the need for probate or any court intervention following your death or incapacity.

But that’s not the only way proactive planning can help your loved ones following your death. You can achieve a variety of other goals, including asset protection, avoiding family conflict, protecting young children, funding longterm care and Medicaid eligibility planning, estate tax mitigation, to name just a few. We help you create the most effective and affordable planning solutions for you and your family based on your family dynamics, assets, as well as your overall goals and desires.

Paying the Final Bill

So how did families pay for all of these expenses? More than 50% of families had to deal with estates that included debt. To foot the bill for these expenses, respondents used their own savings or investments, checking accounts or credit cards. It doesn’t have to be this way.

If you are ready to create or update your estate plan, call today 718-514-7575. We do not just draft documents; we ensure you make informed and empowered decisions about life and death, for yourself and the people who matter most. Monet Binder, ESQ., has her practice in Queens and Brooklyn, New York, dedicated to protecting families, their legacies and values. All halachic documents are approved by the Bais Havaad Halacha Center in Lakewood, under the direction of Rabbi Dovid Grossman and the guidance of Harav Shmuel Kaminetsky, shlita, as well as other leading halachic authorities.

What a Wonderful Week at Hillel Day Camp

The Jewish Home | AUGUST 4, 2022 Summer Growth at Mercaz Academy

Summer offers no vacation from growth at Mercaz Academy. More than thirty volunteers—students, parents, teachers, administrators, board members, and community members alike—joined on July 27 with the GrowTorah team to build and plant the new GrowTorah garden at the Plainview, Long Island, school. The garden now forms an outdoor platform for learning about Torah and the natural world – and how they interact harmoniously.

“Hands-on” learning began with “hands-in” learning. The group filled the seven garden beds—one of which will remain a bed for shmitta (the agricultural sabbatical year) through the end of this Jewish year—and surrounded the beds with mulch. In the beds, the students planted flowers, herbs, and vegetables for study during the school year. More planting, including adding a fruit tree, is scheduled for the school year, along with initiating a composting program.

Classes from preschool through sixth grade will learn a variety of subjects in this outdoor space. The garden will be a focal point not only to illuminate the Torah portion read each week as well as lessons of faith and communal responsibility but will serve as a laboratory for studies in earth science and our environment, as well as many other academic pursuits.

“We are proud to partner with GrowTorah,” commented Mercaz Principal Rabbi Fogel, who dug in to assist with the building project. “This adds a new, vibrant dimension to our learning, one which teaches our students explicitly and implicitly how the Torah understands and guides us through all aspects of our lives. We look forward to years of growth in the garden and with our students.”

Did you know? Only female mosquitoes bite Yeshiva of Belle Harbor Ends a Successful Zman in Camp

Rep. Meng Makes Queens Safer

Rosh Yeshiva giving Shiur Bochurim relaxing at the lake

As the summer approached, the ruach of learning in Yeshiva Merkaz Hatorah of Belle Harbor was very strong. The rabbeim and bochurim looked forward to ending the zman on campgrounds without lessening the hislahavus for learning that was felt in yeshiva, and they were not disappointed. From the start, the summer in camp in West Virginia was infused with great fervor for learning by the rabbeim and talmidim. There was a great ruach of ruchniyus during the learning sessions, and the hasmadah that the bochurim displayed was commendable.

A Program Director was hired to ensure that the activities and trips ran smoothly. There was a strong first seder of learning throughout each morning, followed by sports and trips that the bochurim enjoyed, continuing the feeling of geshmak that was started in the morning. The feeling of camaraderie was palpable, as everyone felt the words, Hinei ma tov u’ma na’im sheves achim gam yachad in the forefront of their minds. As the zman came to a close, it was no surprise that no one wanted to leave the elevated atmosphere of camp.

We look forward to returning to yeshiva in Elul with the same enthusiasm for learning that was experienced on our campgrounds.

U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-Queens) announced last week that she is pleased to have partnered with Community Board 9 and Councilwoman Lynn Schulman in working to help Bais Yaakov Academy of Queens secure two new stop signs outside of its building in Kew Gardens.

Previously, there were two stop signs on corners of 125th Street which runs in front of the school. Now, with the addition of two stop signs on the adjacent 85th Avenue, the intersection at the school has become a four-way stop.

“Hundreds of students attend this school and they, school staff and local pedestrians should not be put in harm’s way when crossing,” said Congresswoman Meng. “These stop signs will help make the area safer, and I thank the Bais Yaakov Academy of Queens for working to improve safety outside its facility.”

“Bais Yaakov Academy of Queens is very grateful to Congresswoman Grace Meng, her community liaison Rabbi Daniel Pollack, Councilwoman Lynn Schulman, Community Board 9 and Captain Jeremy Kivlin of the 102nd Precinct for all of their efforts on behalf of our school,” said Rabbi Mordechai Ginsparg, the school’s principal. “I enjoyed working together with them and I can truly see the care and concern they have for the safety of our students, parents and faculty.”

Bais Yaakov Academy of Queens serves the borough’s Jewish community. It is a school for girls in kindergarten through eighth grade, and approximately 800 students are enrolled. Bais Yaakov Academy Principal Rabbi Mordechai Ginsparg, Meng Community Liaison Rabbi Daniel Pollack, and new Commanding Officer of the 102nd Precinct Captain Jeremy Kivlin