NEW YORK, NY — In a city of markdowns, where bargains are prized, New York officials have been offering sharply reduced fines on parking tickets for almost three years and, remarkably, the deep discounts have gone largely unnoticed.
Any driver who challenges a parking ticket — in person, in writing or online — is offered a substantial, guaranteed reduction for most fines, under a program the city quietly introduced in 2005.
CROWN HEIGHTS [CHI] — A dazzling display of illusions highlighted Nightlife’s Chanukah event on the third night of Chanukah where Marc’s side-splitting performance included mind reading, bending silverware and controlling time on a watch. For many young ladies living in, or visiting Crown Heights, Nightlife is an oasis in time where all the pressures, struggles and even boredom are checked at the door. Forget about schoolwork or dealing with problems. Nightlife is the place to relax. Or learn. Or talk. Or play games. Or dance. Or get inspired. Or sing. Or meet people.
ODENSE, Denmark [CHI] — Rabbi Yitzi Lowenthal Shliach to Denmark, visited the two Israelis wounded in Wednesdays shooting in a mall in Odense, about 160 km from Copenhagen. Despite shooting 5 or more shots fired, the two Israelis were only wounded in the leg and arm. The one wounded in the arm, had surgery, and will require surgery again soon. He managed to throw a chair at the shooter, thereby confusing his aim. The shooter has been apprehended by Danish police
Continued in the Extended Article
CROWN HEIGHTS [CHI] — Bais Shmuel held a Farbrengen in honor of Hei Teves, with Rabbi Dovid Dubov Shliach to Princeton. He farbrenged with the assembled and inspired them regarding pertinent issues. When Rabbi Dubov left, Rabbi Yossi Jacobson, Rov of the Shul took over the Farbrengen and they Farbrengened with mispalalim and other Yungerlite until late in the night.
More pictures in the Extended Article!
The Rebbe says:
1. Towards the end of this week’s Torah portion the Torah tells us that Yakov Avinu (Jacob our forefather) traveled down to Egypt to see his son Yoseph Hatzadik (Joseph the righteous one).
The Torah tells us that before Yakov Avinu went down to Egypt he sent his son Yehuda ahead of him to set up a Yeshiva (a Jewish institution for Torah study) there first because Yakov Avinu did not want to go to a land that did not have a Yeshiva ready.
2. The Rebbe now stresses how important it was for Yakov Avinu to have a Yeshiva ready for him in Egypt:
The fact that Yakov Avinu did not want to go down to Egypt unless there was a Yeshiva there ready for him is especially significant because Hashem (G-d) had already promised Yakov Avinu that He would go down to Egypt with him. In other words, even though Hashem had told Yakov Avinu that He would be with him in Egypt, Yakov Avinu did not rely on this alone and he still needed to set up a Yeshiva there before he even got there.
LOS ANGELES, CA [CHI] — Tuesday, December 30th, 8:00pm, over one hundred young Lubavitchers throughout Southern California came together at the Loews S. Monica Hotel to commemorate the 30th day following the untimely deaths of Rabbi Gabrielle and Rivka Holtzberg; the Chabad emissaries who were killed during the Mumbai terror attacks.
The following is a Yechidus of the Rebbe, with Shmuel Avidor, a writer for Israeli newspaper Yediot Achronot, Regarding the Six Day War. It’s an excerpt from the new book on the Rebbe www.inspiringageneration.org
What should I write in the newspapers about the spiritual arousal, as an outcome of the Six Day War, which many Jews are experiencing?
We would like to wish Mazal Tov to Sruly and Rivka (nee Grossman) Bryski (Crown Heights) on the birth of their daughter.
May the newborn be a source of Nachas to her parents, grandparents and Klal Yisroel.
Much is being said about the state of book buying and learning. But if we are going to discuss seforim, we should really look back to Hei Teves—the victory of the seforim. Put simply, the message the Rebbe conveyed at that time was that we should do more:
“In recent years great and wonderful things in the area of spreading Yiddishkeit have been accomplished … If so, the question is raised, why was it necessary that in this era and in this area there should be a problem?”
For more than 40 hours, we held our breaths. Who could breathe, who could function, with our very own ‒ Jews, Lubavitchers, shluchim ‒ hostage?
Sifrei kodesh bullet ridden; a Chabad House full of blood and bodies. We all davened, pleading with Hashem, each in our own way . . . and then we heard the terrible fatal news.
The shock, the pain, the tears we cried, the denials we threw up to Hashem. But it’s easy to forget, distracted by the very normalcy of our lives.
HALLANDALE, FL [CHI] — A record breaking crowd of 12,0000 men, women and children participated in the 29th annual South Florida Chassidic Chanukah Festival, at Gulfstream Park and Casino in Hallandale Beach.
The evening was dedicated to Rabbi and Mrs Gavriel Holzberg and the victims of the Mumbai Massacre. Star performances were put on by child prodigy Ethan Bortnick and Avraham Fried. Greetings to the Festival were sent by President Bush and Governor Crist. Proclamations were issued by Broward County, and the cities of Hollywood and Hallandale.The Proclamations called for 107 days to increase in goodness and kindness, from December 20th till 11 Nissan.
More pictures in the Extended Article!
We would like to wish Mazal Tov to Mayer and Zehavit (nee Vaknin) Rosenbloom (Montreal, Canada) on the birth of their daughter, Mazal Dina.
May the newborn be a source of Nachas to her parents, grandparents and Klal Yisroel.
Email your Simcha or Mazal Tov to MazalTov@CrownHeights.info !!
POSTVILLE, IA [VIN] — The general director and one of the owners of Zoglobek company, Eli Zoglobek, is presently negotiating to purchase the Agriprocessors meat plant owned by the Rubashkin family, which supplies 60% of the American kosher meat market, and has a $400 million annual turnover. This is according to Israeli Hebrew Newspaper Sha’ah Tovah.
MANCHESTER, UK [CHI] — A ‘Car Menorah’ on the brand new Bentley of the known philanthropist Mr Zalman Klyne, who participated in this years ‘Chanukah Menorah Parade’ in Manchester, England.
A couple more pictures in the Extended Article
This weeks Living Torah, titled “L’Chaim” (Volume 57, Episode 225)
Living Torah is a member supported project Become a member today at LivingTorah.org
Also available with Hebrew, French, Russian and Spanish subtitles in the Extended Article.
We would like to wish Mazal Tov to Yisroel and Chanie (nee Levine) Bongart (Crown Heights) on the birth of their daughter.
May the newborn be a source of Nachas to her parents, grandparents and Klal Yisroel.
JERUSALEM, Israel — Lindenwood University senior Ben Joseph Woods landed in Israel two weeks ago expecting, in his words, “to bop around the country and visit friends.” What he didn’t expect was to be caught in the middle of renewed violence between the Israeli Defense Forces and Hamas militants in Gaza.
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