North Shore Hebrew Academy Students Go The Distance for Shalva

by Rachel Sales

Jerusalem’s hills are breathtaking, which eighteen North Shore Hebrew Academy High School students now know better than most after experiencing them during Jerusalem’s annual marathon.

This March, NSHAHS sent their eighth group of runners to Israel as part of a fundraiser for Shalva, an Israeli organization for children with special needs.

“This is an incredible organization, and supporting it presents a wonderful opportunity to come to Israel with the students,” said Debra Gold, NSHAHS’s former Director of Student Life, who has organized the trip for NSHAHS each year. “Shalva touches the hearts of so many.”

More than 1,500 purple-shirted runners from around the world support Shalva in the Jerusalem race each year, turning the streets of the capital into a sea of purple joggers. The day of the race, participants joined Shalva children for an 800-meter community fun run to celebrate the weekend. They then proceeded to the “start” line of the marathon.

“I always tell the students, this race isn’t about beating a certain time,” said Ms. Gold. “It’s about being a part of something — feeling your endorphins pumping as you round a corner in the Old City, seeing NSHA alumni cheering us on, running the streets of Jerusalem alongside thousands of people who came from all over Israel and the world, and, of course, supporting a fantastic organization.”

Shalva’s marathon weekend extravaganza is one of their major fundraisers. Each runner commits to raising at least $3,400 for the organization, though some NSHA students have raised over $10,000 in the past.

Eight years ago, NSHAHS was among the first schools to bring students on an organized trip to Jerusalem for the race weekend, and now it is a tradition among many of the yeshivot in the New York area. Students fly in on Thursday morning, spend a day getting to know Shalva kids, run their race on Friday morning, enjoy a meaningful Shabbat and melaveh malka with Shalva, and head home on

Sunday night.

“You don’t even have time for jet lag,” said Ms. Gold, who worked at NSHA for eighteen years. Prior to joining the administration team, Ms. Gold was a physical education teacher, and she continues to be a lifelong runner.

NSHAHS’s long-standing commitment to Shalva means they feel like “mishpacha,” or family, said Fran Cohen, the Shalva coordinator for race participants. “This experience reinforces the importance of empathy, understanding, and inclusiveness towards people with disabilities,” she said.

She praised the “unwavering commitment” of NSHAHS students, alumni, and chaperones who have made a long-term commitment to take part in the race each year.

“The children at Shalva have already started their countdown to March 8th, 2024, when they will once again reunite with Team NSHAHS,” she said.

1000 Amudim of Gemara?

YOSS 6th Grade Reaches Herculean Goal!

Can a class of twenty-four sixth graders review over 1,000 amudim of gemara over six Shabbosim?

Rabbi Gershon Greenberg, sixth grade rebbe at YOSS, wasn’t sure. In fact, he didn’t think that the boys could do it.

But the challenge was born at a Shabbos kiddush, where he met a rebbi from a Sephardic yeshiva. Rabbi Greenberg asked him to share something interesting that he does with his class. The rebbe described the “Torascha B’phinu” program, which incentives young boys to review what they learned many times. He listened and decided to adapt a similar program for his class at YOSS.

They started by learning a “retzufos seder” – non-stop learning. As a class, the boys reached 20 minutes of non-stop chazarah! Rabbi Greenberg was so impressed that he called the menahel, Rabbi Davidowitz, in the middle of the learning to see what was happening. Rabbi David- owitz, too, was truly impressed!

Now that the boys proved that they could review their Gemara – and enjoy every (non-stop) minute, they moved on to step two – the Shabbos chazarah program. Over Shabbos, every talmid committed to dedicating at least twenty minutes to reviewing several amudim of Gemara. After the first Shabbos, the class reviewed “only” “101” amudim. Rabbi Greenberg was worried. Would they be able to hit 1,000? It didn’t look good.

However, the talmidim came through, and after six Shabbasos the class reviewed a cumulative whopping 1,091 amudim of Gemara! What an accomplishment! The singing and dancing back in yeshiva when they reached beyond their goal was extremely special!

To recognize and give chizuk for their incredible accomplishments, our Rabbi Greenberg took his class to Brooklyn to visit Harav Binyomin Cohen, shlit”a, Rav of Khal Talmidei Hayeshivos in Flatbush and Rosh Kollel in Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin. The visit was inspirational and invigorating. He shared with the boys how the true path to Torah growth is only through hard work, and of course – chazarah! He told them that the deeper one delves into Torah, the closer he becomes to Hashem.

He also showed the boys how the number system in the Torah begins with the letter “Aleph” (which equals 1) and ends with “Eleph” (1,000) which is really the letter “Aleph.” This teaches us that when you reach a goal, you must start again!

Chazarah, chazarah, and more chazarah!

The entire YOSS hanhalah, along with their rebbe, Rabbi Greenberg, are looking forward to reaching even higher goals in the near future!