When Your Reading About the Holocaust and Your Mothers Mother Is Jewish

The following story was published by RARA, Chabad of Rural & Regional Australia, after two bochurim completed a five week trip visiting Jews across the Australian countryside.

4,230 kilometres later, Effi and Chaim have concluded their RARA trip. They spent 5 weeks visiting towns across Victoria and New South Wales, connecting with locals and creating new connections.

A quick story: the rabbis had visited Orange NSW, and were headed to Katoomba, in the heart of the Blue Mountains. Along the way, they made a brief stop in Bathurst. Unfortunately the few contacts they had there were not available for a visit. Before they headed out of town, Effi and Chaim made a quick stop at the post office to find out if anyone there knows of any Jewish locals.

Well, they didn’t have much luck in the post office, but as Chaim was heading back to the RARA van, he sees a woman looking intently at the signage on the sides of it.

Chaim goes over and says hello. Rachel says hi back. It turns out, her mums mum is Jewish, and just last night she had been reading about the Holocaust. This had sparked something in her soul – but she wasn’t expecting to bump into two rabbis the very next day! The two exchanged details, and Rachel is very much looking forward to hearing about anyone else that may be Jewish in the region.

You never know where you might meet someone!

Thank you Effi and Chaim for your great assistance! We wish you much success going forward.