Shluchim Gather in Picturesque British Countryside

81 Chabad-Lubavitch Shluchim gathered this week in the magnificent setting of Bosworth Hall Hotel in the picturesque country village of Market Bosworth, Leicestershire, UK for this year’s regional Kinus Hashluchim.

The theme of this year’s conference was ‘Strengthening the Shliach and his Family’ and featured a variety of educational workshops, presentations and discussions aimed at further equipping the Chabad Lubavitch emissaries, educators, community and campus Rabbis to fulfill their Shlichus.

Professional presenters included Phaivish Pink, Director of the Torah Teachers Training Scheme, who ran a series of workshops for Mechanchim; and James Marlowe, a Dale Carnegie Coach. Other workshops included Rabbi Mendel Kalmenson on ‘How to give Shiurim that will have your Baalei Batim coming back for more,’ and Rabbi Aryeh Sufrin MBE on ‘From L’chaim to Oblivion’ – recognizing the signs of alcohol addiction and how to deal with them. Rabbi Bentzi Sudak provided a report on UK developments from the past year. A panel of young Shluchim examined ways of working with Young Professionals. Rabbi Reuven Leigh led a round table session on Home Schooling, Dayan Raskin examined practical halachic issues relating to Kashrus, and Rabbi Pesach Efune led a session on Sholom Bayis.

Making the most of the historic setting of the conference, Rabbi Mendy Korer led a group of shluchim on a bike tour of the area.

Spread across two days, the first evening featured the gala dinner where the MC, Rabbi Yitzchok Sufrin, kept the evening flowing with his inimitable sense of humor. He introduced Rabbi Mendy Lent of Chabad of Nottingham and Rabbi Mendel Plotke of Chabad of Hendon, who shared some anecdotes from their Shlichus, before Rabbi Avremi Kievman of Liverpool delivered an inspiring keynote address. Following the banquet Rabbi Nissan Dovid Dubov led a vibrant and uplifting Farbrengen that saw many Shluchim singing, dancing and talking until the early hours of the morning. It was particularly inspiring to see a large group of chassidim, some of whom had only finished farbrenging a couple of hours earlier, sitting down for a shiur chassidus given by Rabbi Yoinasson Golomb before Shachris.

The Shluchim returned home reinvigorated and ready to redouble their work in their respective areas of Shlichus.

The Conference Chairman, Rabbi Yehuda Pink, commented that this was the biggest Kinus Hashluchim ever in the UK. He thanked all the members of the Vaad Hakinus for their help in making the Kinus such a big success, and said he looked forward to an even bigger and better Kinus next year.