Camp F.R.E.E.’s First Session a Smashing Success

Four weeks of exciting activities and trips were climaxed with the first-session Grand Trip to Six Flags – Hurricane Harbor! The campers had a great time with the water rides and slides while also making a great Kiddush Hashem by wearing their Yarmulkes and Tzitzis throughout the water park rides.

The campers then headed to the Timberland Lake camping grounds and gathered around a cozy bonfire for a BBQ and some sleep. Rabbi Mendel Okunov, the Executive Director of Camp F.R.E.E., farbrenged with them until the wee hours of the morning. Upon returning home a camper was asked what he liked most about the trip, to which he replied, “The stories told around the bonfire by Rabbi Okunov.”

Camp Gan Israel, NY – “The Gan Israel World”

For the second visiting day of this summer Camp Gan Israel of Parksville New York held a unique program for its 50th “Golden Jubilee” anniversary since its first summer, so in honor of this special year bunk’s undertook the task of creating “model Gan Israel’s” located around the world, and were all places on display on the front lawn for all to admire!

Following was a concert on the soccer field featuring Benny Friedman and the Camp Choir, who preformed for the visiting parents and campers. The weather was phenomenal which enabled this event to go on with out any problems!

To view an extensive gallery (99 Pictures!) click the Extended Article!

Chabad Educators Convene In New Jersey

Newark, NJ — More than 100 Chabad Rabbis, varied practitioners in the field of education, convened at the Robert Treat Hotel in Newark, NJ. from Sunday night August 5th through Tuesday afternoon Aug. 7th. They heard lectures and panel discussions, participated in workshops and in strategy sessions, they shared meals renewed friendships, as they retooled professionally and were rejuvenated spiritually.

Concurrent lectures were presented throughout the conference, geared to primary and secondary education respectively. Dr. Judah Weller director of P’TACH and a disciple of the famed pediatrician Dr. Mel Levine, presented a series of lectures on the theme of “Schools Attuned”. His lectures featured Dr. Levine’s developmental philosophy which outlines the complex constructs which constitutes cognition. It focuses on a study of eight neurodevelopment constructs that affect learning: attention, language, memory, neuromotor functions, temporal-sequential ordering, spatial ordering, social cognition, and higher order cognition.

More in the Extended Article!

Yeshiva Gedolah of Melbourne’s Group Photo

This year the Yeshiva Gedolah of Melbourne celebrates its 40th anniversary. The yeshiva of Melbourne is the only yeshiva which the Rebbe considered as if his personal property and the Rebbe included it on his annual chometz sale contract.

This year’s picture of the Yeshiva and its faculty. From right to left: Members of hanahala: R. Rueven Tartarka, R. Mendel Serabraynski and R. Yechezkiyahu Herzog. The Director- R. Yosef Yitzchok Gutnik. Member of hanhala- R. Sholom Gutnik. Rosh Yeshiva- R. Binyamin Cohen. Administrator- R. Avraham Procel, Magid Shiur- R. Mordechai Shmerling. Mashpia- R. Yaakov Winner. Mashgiach- R. Sholom Ber Engel. Magid Shiur- R. Shmuel Lesches. Due to health reasons, the Morah D’asra and member of hanahala, Rabbi Yitzchok Groner is not present.

Click on the photo to enlarge it!

Siyum HaRambam in YSP!

Morristown, NJ — One hundred and sixty five talmidim eagerly gathered outside the Beis Medrash of the Rabbinical College, waiting to enter the lavishly decorated Zal for the Siyum HaRambam, marking the simultaneous siyum of both the 3 Prokim and 1 Perek cycles of Rambam. The doors opened, and the wave of excited Talmidim rushed into heavily advertised and anticipated event.

As the Talmidim sat to enjoy the first part of the 3 course meal, Rabbi Chaim Dovid Janowski, who gives a daily Shiur in Perek Echad in YSP made a Siyum on the Rambam. He then held a grand raffle for the 80 daily participants of the Rambam Shiur. A Palm PDA loaded with Rambam and other goodies as well as a set of Rambam was raffled off. Then Talmid Chanoch Weinberg of Johannesburg South Africa started the 25th Cycle of the Rambam.

More in the Extended Article!

Attempted Mugging Gone Awry

At around 1:30am Shomrim received a distressed call from a Bochur who was approached by a black male on the corner of Kingston and Carroll who said to him “this is going to be a stickup or a homicide”. The Bochur who was walking and talking on his cell phone when he was approached by the perp told his friend on the other end of the line “there is this Black guy trying to mug me”, upon hearing this, the would-be-mugger hit the Bochur in the head knocking his phone out of his hand and ran.

The call to Shomrim prompted an immediate canvass of the area by numerous members, who spotted a group of bystanders holding a black male who matched the description of the perp on Carroll between Troy and Schenectady, apparently the bystanders saw the perp running and a canvass going on they thought it was related and grabbed him and notified Shomrim.

Israel File: Living in the Moment . . .

On Sunday afternoon, the entire country felt the tragedy. 12 of Israel’s reserve soldiers were killed, in a direct hit by Hizbullah mortar in Kfar Giladi.

Today, as the dead are yet being buried, attention has moved to new exigencies. While the images of the scene—the raw horror and agony of the soldiers who saw their comrades killed—were hard to look at, harder still to forget, Israeli reticence is beginning to make more sense to me. The daily news here is made of tragedies and sacrifices—monumental and rare events in other countries—successive and constant ones here. Where others have time to heal their wounds, in Israel, it’s a luxury no one really can afford. So instead, the heartaches, like the heroes, are buried.

Westlake Village approves line of demarcation for Jews

In the coming months, people in Westlake Village, Agoura Hills and Oak Park may notice a construction project that involves securing fishing line to area streetlights.

This unique construction is for an eruv — a religious demarcation of an area that allows Jews to carry items within that perimeter on the Sabbath, said Rabbi Moshe Bryski of Chabad of the Conejo.

The Westlake Village City Council approved it by a 5-0 vote July 25. City Engineer John Knipe called it the “most interesting” encroachment permit the city has “ever seen.”