The New Shluchim Center Inaugurated

Crown Heights, Brooklyn — After an extensive building and renovation project that took place in stages over several years, the final two floors of The Shluchim Office, 816 Eastern Parkway, were completed just in time for the 13th anniversary of Gimmel Tammuz.

More pictures in the Extended Article!

The completely revamped building features a brand new Shluchim Center, equipped with everything a Shliach on the go in Crown Heights could want – from coffee to computers; the Shluchim Center has it all in an elegantly-designed and relaxing setting.

At 4 PM on Gimmel Tammuz, Tuesday, June 19th, Shluchim and Anash who had made the dream into reality – those who had stood behind The Shluchim Office as dedicated partners and supporters of the renovations – gathered for a deluxe reception in the comforts of the Shluchim Lounge and were treated to a taste and tour of the building’s new facilities. Joining them were several esteemed guests, most notable among them Rabbi Metzger, the Chief Rabbi of Israel, and Rabbi Y. Y. Gutnick of Melbourne, Australia.

At the conclusion of the reception, Shluchim and Anash gathered to watch the Chief Rabbi and the central supporters cut the ribbon and officially open the new Shluchim Center to the public.

Immediately following the official opening, the supporters joined over three hundred others from among Shluchim and Anash at the Jewish Children’s Museum for the official celebration and Farbrengen in honor of the dedication.

Interspersed with music from Yehuda Piamenta and performances by renowned Chazzan Shneur Zalman Baumgarten, several of the honorees were called upon to speak. Rabbi Y. Y. Gutnick, a central supporter of the building project, spent several minutes speaking about the wonderful projects and services that The Shluchim Office provided to Shluchim around the world. Both he and renowned Shliach Rabbi Sholom Ber Lipskar spoke strongly about the potential and power of one newly-launched project of The Shluchim Office that had begun to make an incredible impact – the Shluchim Online School, which had just begun the second phase of its pilot program as it expanded to after-school enrichment and Hebrew/Yiddish classes.

Rabbi Gedalya Shemtov took the podium to present unique gifts to the special supporters of The Shluchim Office and the building project. The honorees included: Rabbi Y. Y. Gutnick, Mr. and Mrs. Jim Haber, Dr. and Mrs. Joseph Walder, Reb Mordechai Skolnik, Mr. and Mrs Dovid Smetana, Mr. and Mrs. Zev Rudolph, Mr. and Mrs. Ami Spector, Mr. and Mrs. Shmuel Goodman, Mr. and Mrs. Mayer Parshan, Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Zakon, Mr. and Mrs. Shmuel Gniwisch, Rabbi and Mrs. Don Yoel Levy, and Mr. and Mrs. Kasriel Shemtov.

Six of the central supporters received a specially-commissioned artwork of one of their personal meetings with the Rebbe. All supporters and partners of the Shluchim Center received an artistic rendition of the new Shluchim Center, 3-D laser-engraved into large crystals.

The crowd was then treated to a special performance by singing star sensation Benny Friedman, who wowed the audience with a rendition of Tzama Lecha Nafshi.

Rabbi Shemtov then thanked the dedicated and hard-working staff of The Shluchim Office who had made the completion of the building project and dedication ceremony a reality, singling out Rabbi Moshe Pinson, Rabbi Avraham Green, Mrs. Chana Piekarski, Yaron Levy, and Adam Brooker as key people behind the success of the event.