Samantha Kolb, Edith Mussry and Rosie Zagha

It all started when Samantha Kolb, an eighth grade student at Hillel Yeshiva, wanted to give her principal, Dr. Ruth Katz, a special homemade mezuzah. One night, she spent hours taking tiny pieces of glass that she found at a store, and gluing them to a plastic mezuzah case.

Dr Katz was so impressed with the mezuzah that she recommended the production of the mezuzah be considered a fundraiser for the 8th grade senior yearbook. Then, in the process of making the mezuzot, something magical happened. The camaraderie of the eight grade girls, as they worked together in making the mezuzot, drew them close to each other, truly exemplifying veahavta lerayacha kamoacha (you should love your neighbor as your love yourself).

Eitan Raebani, Yosef Dweck, Shlomo Teherani, Ram Mizrahi and Yehiel Nahari

Hillel Yeshiva was fortunate to be treated to a wonderful assembly, recently, when five world-renowned hazzanim, including West Deal Synagogue’s Shlomo Teherani, visited the school. The hazzanim joined the middle school minyan for Selihot and then joined the high school at the end of their Tefillah. Yehiel Nahari, who gives concerts around the world, “wowed” our high school students with his tremendous vocal range.  Charles Saka, a freshman, was awed by the hazzanim. “Their voices were unbelievably great and they inspired me to have more concentration in my prayers,” he commented.

Barkai Yeshivah strives for excellence by fostering a love of learning in their children. Thus they have implemented an annual Literacy Day to instill that love of reading in their children. It is delightful to watch the children eagerly listening to stories, their bright eyes demonstrating that reading is fun.

There is an old saying: “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” When it comes to tzedaka—real tzedaka—never before has this been as valid as it is today. And this is the raison d’etre of the Sephardic Food Fund and its current emergency efforts.

Trillions of dollars in assets and equity have evaporated during the past few months. Part of the fallout from this monetary meltdown is a significant increase in the number of proud, respected families in our community—in Brooklyn and Deal— that suddenly find themselves literally unable to put food on their tables.

Sephardic High School may have closed its doors many years ago, but it is alive and kicking in the hearts and minds of the graduating class of 1988. The class held its 20 year reunion, recently, at Café Venezia on Coney Island Avenue.

The class of 1988

While reminiscing at a party this summer, Michele (Yedid) Bernstein and Ruthy (Abed) Mann could not believe it had been 20 years since graduation! They realized the huge milestone had to be celebrated and decided that they would take on the task of putting this reunion together. They soon became inseparable, texting and calling each other at all hours. What began as a simple sentence—“Let’s plan a reunion”—soon became a huge undertaking as lists were made, email addresses were gathered and cell phone numbers collected. But these girls didn’t just “talk the talk”—they “walked the walk.” They were organized and methodical and before long, all the graduates were informed of this reunion.

Danielle Ammar, Susie Levy, Brenda Tawil, Marilyn Salem and Joyce Mishan practicing the darbouka

As part of the unit on community, the third grade girls, led by Morah Sharon Esses, focused on cultures around the world. The class discussed the many special features of the Jewish/Sephardic culture, including music, food, language, holidays, religion and clothing.

On a recent Sunday, Nachas Health and Family Network, Inc. hosted their Inaugural   Legislative Breakfast.

Hundreds of religious leaders, community philanthropists and politicians came together to pay tribute to a number of elected officials and community leaders whose leadership is instrumental in allowing  Nachas to fulfill its mission: to ensure that every child, family and senior access quality health care and social services through direct services, referral entitlement navigation and advocacy.

Hosts Arlette and Jeffrey Franco

Magen David Yeshivah’s PTA has held three exciting events this year that were both uplifting and enjoyable.

First, the PTA hosted its annual book fair, held over three days. Jeannie Zalta and Karen Heffez chaired the event with ease, and were pleased to have an incredible group of volunteers to lend a hand. With full selections of books to choose from, it was a major success!

Alan Maleh, Isaac Sutton, David Greenfield, Councilman Domenic Recchia, Councilman Lew Fidler, SCF President Sam Sutton and Councilman Mike Nelson

As Jewish communities throughout the world celebrated the festive holiday of Sukkot with family and friends, the Sephardic community in Brooklyn had the opportunity to celebrate with a very special and important friend. Mayor Michael Bloomberg attended the Sephardic Community Federation’s (SCF) annual Sukkot leadership gathering. He joined over 100 Sephardic community leaders for this annual event, which was hosted in the Sukkah of renowned community leaders Mr. Jack and Mrs. Sari Avital.

Recently, a sensational singles event was held at Café Hadar, called, simply, The Event. Under the guidance of Rabbi Abraham Ben Hamu, this new, innovative singles event attracted about 80 singles, who thoroughly enjoyed themselves in a relaxing atmosphere.

Convenitonal wisdom says, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Assuming this is true, the fact still remains that even if it’s not broken, you’d better maintain it properly otherwise it will undoubtedly break. Our yeshivah system, the backbone of education in our community for nearly three generations, is in a crisis. The current economic woes are not the cause of the crisis, but may very well be the blow that could shatter the camel’s back if we don’t take it seriously and act now.

Reading this, you’re probably unlikely to be moved by the seemingly exaggerated use of the word ‘crisis’ to describe what many believe to be an age-old complaint; unfortunately, it is by no means an overstatement of the severity of the situation. In the current school year, with tuition assistance growing, nearly all of the mainstream yeshivahs, that cumulatively serve more than 6,000 children in our community, have suffered from a payroll emergency of one kind or another. To fully appreciate the depth of the problem, you need to first understand some popular myths about our day schools.

Rabbi Ronald Schwarzberg

With Jewish communities emerging throughout the US and across the globe, the need for qualified rabbis and educators has grown. Often, searching for a suitable rabbi can be a daunting task.

Serving as the community arm of Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS), Yeshiva University’s (YU) Center for the Jewish Future (CJF) assists congregations, schools, organizations and communities in their search for rabbis. For over a century, RIETS, the Western Hemisphere’s leading center for Torah learning, has trained over 2,700 of the world’s most distinguished Orthodox rabbis, scholars and teachers.

When the event was planned, no one on the organizing committee knew what to expect. It was a first for the Shaare Zion Torah Center.

Rebecca Harary met with a small group of Torah Center supporters to decide what would be an appropriate fund raising event for the foremost Torah Learning Center in our community.

Chief Rabbi Shaul J. Kassin fills in a letter to complete the Sefer Torah

Classes are held seven days a week—morning, afternoon and night at Shaare Zion. Participants are mainstream men, women and children from all areas of Brooklyn. They come together and fill every available classroom, learning at all levels from beginner to advanced.

First place winners: Poopa Dweck and family

Some of our community’s best chefs went all out to claim the honor of “Top Bun” at an innovative and refreshing cook off. On Tuesday November 11th, Barkai Yeshivah held its 2nd annual “Top Bun” contest. Judging by its successful turnout, this evening offered an unparalleled and delectable time for all involved.

First introduced last year by Barkai Yeshivah’s board member Albert Dweck, the concept quickly grew throughout the close-knit Barkai family, with the result producing a sensational and entirely different concept. Last year’s event was extremely successful and this year’s contest reached an even higher level of excitement. Each group of cooks presented a mazza dish, a dish to be served over rice, a main course and a dessert. Expert judges from within the community went around taste testing. Prizes were awarded per category and were awarded to 1st, 2nd and 3rd place overall winners.