This summer, Rabbi Naftali Besser, dean of students at the Yeshivah of Flatbush High School, led the first Flatbush alumni hesed mission to Israel. Everyone who joined the mission agreed it was a unique experience; even those who have been to Israel many times have never experienced the country in this way. We were all touched and moved by this phenomenal vacation.

Rabbi Besser has been running a hesed mission to Israel with YOF students during winter break for the past eight years. The idea of an alumni hesed mission came about casually at Rabbi Besser’s weekly ladies’ parashah class. With his immense passion for hesed, Rabbi Besser was ready to run with the idea. Of course, leaving our family and children at home, as well as missing work for a week was challenging. However, we realized, what better example could we set for our children, family, and friends than to take a special trip to Israel to help others? After many emails and phone calls we were 20 people committed to going: six couples including Rabbi Besser and his lovely wife Safreda, and eight college-age singles.

The first Monday night of August was definitely one for the books. If you were able to hear the blasting Hebrew music and smell the succulent, mouth-watering aroma of Chinese food in Long Branch, it was coming from the 1st Annual Jesse Dweck Learning Center Summer Party, held at Yaakov Shwekey’s house.

It was definitely a night to remember, as we had the pleasure of dancing to music from world-renowned Yaakov Shwekey, as well as hearing Divre Torah and words of mussar from our community rabbis: Rabbi Shlomo Diamond, Rabbi Eli Mansour and Rabbi Meyer Yedid.

Guests

Recently, Congregation Magen David of Union Square (also known as MDUS) held a brunch at the home of David and Julienne Dweck in honor of its generous donors and sponsors. Although MDUS was founded in 2001 to serve an ever-growing contingent of community members residing in downtown Manhattan, many community members in attendance were introduced to MDUS for the first time.

On a recent Sunday morning, the day started out sunny and hot, but the weather forecast predicted possible severe thunderstorms for the late afternoon. With the 4th annual SEAD Gridiron Tournament scheduled to run from 10 am to 6 pm that day, event organizer Elliot Maleh and staff anxiously hoped the weather would hold. Once again, the event was being held at the field on Ocean and Park Avenues in Long Branch.

Sixteen teams registered to play, and the competitive spirit ran hotter than the summer sun. Screaming voices and flying bodies were part of virtually every play. Off the field, players indulged in cold drinks, sandwiches, cakes, cookies and ice cream prepared by Sarah Maleh and Richard Serure’s ice cream truck.

The proud graduates

The Reach for the Stars Learning Center recently celebrated a major milestone with the graduation of four students. The hard work and tremendous progress of these children, was a true reason to celebrate.

In 2005, Barbara Matalon and Nancy Levy, while working with autistic children in a Sunday program, saw the community’s need for a school for children with autism.

Sammy Saka, Morris Franco and Isaac Massry work together as a team to ensure our children’s bright and successful futures

As a community, we are pretty predictable. While we work, travel and play plenty, culture seems to have taken a back seat for many of us. This year, for the Hillel Yeshiva fundraiser, Sally and Ralph Tawil did their part to change that, at least for a few days. From the start it was clear that this event was going to be spectacular.

Accompanying the hand-delivered invitation was a beautiful coffee table book on art and artists. This was the perfect way to warm up their intended audience for the lesson to come. Then, turning their home on Elberon Avenue into a virtual museum, the Tawils ensured that the most exquisite and rare works of art, both painted and sculpted, made their way here to our little summer enclave and drew a crowd that was both amazed and generous.

Mark Chalme, Richie Chalme, Hy Chalme, Robin Chalme, Ray Chalme and Nemo Chalme

Over 1,400 community members turned out, recently, to unite and fight against lung cancer. “Kites for a Cure 2009” had a unique and simple concept: it was a fun, uplifting afternoon benefiting Elliot’s Legacy, an organization that was founded in the memory of Elliot Chalme A”H, by his family and friends.

Elliot’s warmhearted and congenial personality allowed him to cherish every moment of his life. He was a kite enthusiast, an avid cyclist, and a man who lived every moment to its fullest. Elliot’s smile radiated like the sun and he inspired young and old alike not to sweat the small stuff, as life is too precious. After a final bout with lung cancer, Elliot was taken from us at the early age of 56.

Sol Betesh and Stanley Chera

SAFE has made our community aware of a growing problem, which we won’t succeed in halting unless we change the culture behind it—starting with the parents.

One of the many staunch supporters the SAFE organization has garnered over the years, Mr. Morris Bailey, delivered a dose of common sense. In an impromptu speech at the ever gracious home of Cookie and Stanley Chera, he went on to make clear that everyone is aware of the club scene out there, and that celebrities impact our youth—often to an ill effect. “There is a line we don’t cross,” said Mr. Bailey. “Many of our youth know it, but some just don’t.”

Top Gun, the hallmark of summer, was rolling with success in its 17th annual year. With throngs of participants and volunteers ages 16-40, the tournament lived up to its name as “the summer’s signature event.” More than just a fun-filled day of tournaments and thousands of community members, it is a meaningful fundraising event whose proceeds finance our community’s children to attend many different summer camps. As Ezra Bibi and Eddie D. Sitt explained, “Top Gun is a great experience for the youth of our community to do what they love and contribute to the community at the same time.”

The setting was perfection. The gorgeous land of the Jerome’s, the delicacies of Zami Catering, a beautiful Chinese Auction and most importantly, our community’s up-beat attitude were all in attendance.

Someone’s luggage inevitably comes off the conveyor belt first. The odds (compared to, say, winning the state lottery) are not really that heavily stacked against you, especially on a local flight. Yet after years of watching other people’s luggage pass me by as I vainly waited for my non-descript suitcases, the one time mine came out first, I was in a state of disbelief. In my wildest dreams I never thought that I would be the lucky one!

I quickly filed the experience away in my “happiness” dossier and let its sappy sweetness soak my inner discontent. The problem, of course, is that within 20 minutes I was back into my just-off-the-plane-and-I’m-hot, irritable, impatient state that is as familiar and comfortable as an old shoe. Genuine happiness had eluded me once again.

Rosh Hashanah
Saturday, September 19 and Sunday, September 20
It is customary to sound the shofar and blow trumpets at the coronation of a king. Similarly, on Rosh Hashanah, we crown G-d as king over the universe at large and over each of us in particular.

The sound of the shofar is to awaken people to repent and return to G-d. The shofar represents a simple outcry of a person who recognized his spiritual “poverty” and whose feelings cannot be contained in words. It is compared to a forlorn child in a distant country who has forgotten the language of his people and his father, the king. When he returns to his father his only means of communication is his simple cry, which his father recognizes. He lifts the child up to be close to him. Similarly, when Rosh Hashanah comes we realize we have lost our common language with our Father in Heaven, so from the bottom of our soul we cry out, “Father, Father,” to which G-d responds. This then turns us toward Him to lead our lives in accordance with His will. He accepts our prayers and is willing to be Master of the Universe and grant us a good and sweet year.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg

Leadership is a difficult quality to quantify. There are many immeasurable characteristics that comprise what we consider to be the quintessential leader. We want someone who is unflappable under pressure, who possesses a keen understanding of the problems at hand, the ability to create and execute a plan to improve the status quo and a record of successful performance. Our community has high standards for our leaders and an expectation that they will constantly deliver results.

With a mayoral race looming on the horizon, we closely examined the individuals vying to be mayor of the City of New York. We studied their public service records and considered who would be the best person to lead this city for the next four years. We concluded that only one of the candidates possesses the leadership qualities necessary to guide New York into the future. That person is Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Our shlicheem help people all over the world through the unique strength of prayers uttered at the Western Wall, while at the same time raising money for Torah institutions as well as families and individuals involved in Torah learning in Jerusalem.