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CI Chabad Served Thanksgiving Dinner to Over 1,000

1,041 local area seniors – most of whom are low-income and frail – were served traditional Thanksgiving meals with all the trimmings this year by the Jewish Community Council of Greater Coney Island, it was announced by Rabbi Moshe Wiener, JCCGCI’s Executive Director.

The meals were provided at four of JCCGCI’s senior center sites: Haber House Senior Center, Surf Solomon Senior Center, Jay-Harama Senior Center and Ocean Parkway Senior Center. Some of the meals were home-delivered to homebound clients.

In addition to the festive meals, a full program of entertainment was featured as part of the program at each of these JCCGCI senior center sites. Public officials who visited these Thanksgiving celebrations and offered greetings included Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, Assemblyman Alec Brook-Krasny, Councilman Domenic M. Recchia, Jr., Councilman Lewis A. Fidler and NYC Comptroller John C. Liu.

Thirty one JCCGCI staff members and fifty nine outside volunteers sacrificed part of their own Thanksgiving holiday so that those less fortunate could enjoy Thanksgiving.

In a letter to these dedicated staff, Rabbi Wiener wrote:

“When the staff of an organization not only perform their required duties well, but also demonstrate sincere caring for its client population and unique dedication to the organization’s mission — such performance is remarkable and is deserving of special recognition and praise. The fact that you sacrificed part of your own Thanksgiving holiday to enable our elderly clients to enjoy the holiday is very sincerely appreciated by the management and Board of Directors of Jewish Community Council of Greater Coney Island. The positive impact of the Thanksgiving celebration that you enable will fondly remain with our clients throughout the year and will be eagerly anticipated by them in years to come. May the knowledge that your personal sacrifice made so many seniors so happy in such a significant manner continue to brighten your life and that of your dear family for the year and years to come.”

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25 Comments

  • Rabbi Wiener fan:

    Rabbi Wiener is truly an amazing tzadik!!! If only there were more people in the world like him…

  • Totally Nutz!

    What is this new Meshuga’as?! We celebrate thanksgiving?
    Doesn’t mean that because they are Shluchim they can celebrate whatever they want!
    Maybe they will start giving gifts with rain-dear on X-maz!

    Why don’t we celebrate Israel’s independance day? Why don’t we celebrate Labor day? same reason!

    it’s unfortunate…

  • baruch

    Rabbi Weiner heads the Jewish Community of Coney Island. There are mostly seniors there, he had an opportunity to serve Yidden Kosher food.

  • shalom

    Wouldn’t it be better if Rabbi Wiener would of used this money (spent on thanksgiving dinners) to serve Chanukah dinners to Jewish Senior Citizens or to poor jewish families who can’t afford a nice chanukah dinner

  • get real 2 and 3

    first, the early settlers in america took their ideas for their thanksgiving feast from sukkos and it is okay to like a cultural element of the country we live in considering half of all the people here use their money and goverment programs when they dont really need them anyway. so basically america is only good to use and abuse and actually doing something “american” isnt tolerated? plus the rebbe did say nice things about thanksgiving. no order not to have a meal with thanksgiving style food exists. and if you are a shliach and your community loves and enjoys thanksgiving then more pwoer to you. #2 and #3 when is the last time you fed 1000+ people??? maybe you can use a little thanksgiving in your life?

  • Miry

    Your job is wonderful. However, Why do you have to write “most of whom are low-income and frail”. You don’t respect others dignity! I wouldn’t like to see my Zaidy’s picture and this written about it. You didn’t add anything by saying it.

    Thank you for stopping to advertise this way.

  • great!!!!

    To no. 3, Of course there will always be some idiot like you there to critisize a great act of chesed. First of all Thanksgiving is not a religious holiday. It’s like the 4th of July or Labor day essentially a day off of work. Secondly did you read the article. He prepared hot meals for over a thousand people who probably only receive a hot meal on Thanksgiving. What is wrong with you No. 3? you must be brain dead, evil, stupid or all 3. At the very least you are very misguided or warped in your thinking. I live in Israel but I think Thanksgiving is a great holiday with an awesome toichen that can be celebrated by people of all faiths and backgrounds. Maybe even you can learn something from it and be thankful that there are nice people like this shliach around. And not so many heartless stupid people like you. And A SHLIACH PREPARING A MEAL FOR PEOPLE THAT REALLY NEED IT IS DEFINATELY A GREAT THING NOT ANYTHING TO OBJECT OVER YOU THOUGHTLESS MORON NO. 3

  • rolling my eyes

    To Number 3: Some hungry, lonely senior citizens were given a good meal and some companionship. Isn’t that in itself a good thing? Perhaps you would have prefered to go to these centers, take the food right out from under them, and say, “So sorry – we don’t do Thanksgiving. Now,get outa here!” What is unfortunate is how cold and unfeeling you are.

  • Wondering the same!!!

    I have in full agreement with what everyone wrote. I am surprised it took so long for people to make comments like this. Ebvry year the shluchim proudly announce their Thanksgiving accomplishments. It is disgusting and disgraceful to call yourself Shluchim. I am SURE that ALL the yidden are now Shomer Shabbos, keeping kosher…..

  • Shliach

    2&3 keep it up, and comment on all Shluchim activities that are sadly out of line. Maybe it will remind them why they went out to the boondocks in the first place and who sent them there.

  • FAMILY IN CH COMMUNITY

    If only all you criticizers knew how much chesed Rabbi Wiener has done and still does. I know from personal experience how he has helped countless people and families in our community, including my very own. NOBODY would ever know due to the humble man that the Rabbi is. I’m surprised this was even publicized.
    Yasher koach, Rabbi Wiener. May you continue to be able to help yidden as you do now, whether it be through giving a hot meal to over 1,000 people on a night when it’s so important to THEM (that’s right,unselfish) or by anonymously helping people in the many different areas that you do.

  • yikes!!!!!

    Yeah and shluchim celebrate the 4th of july too its called being patriotic and nice. Try it some time. Yes shluchim do other things besides spread yiddishkiet like help people rehab programs. 2,3,13, 14 you are seriously not normal if this is your biggest beef with shluchim. And 5 im sure he will make a huge chanuka party and dinner with latkas and donuts and more. Weirdos!!!!!!

  • margo

    Thanksgiving is a day that anyone can be grateful for the good in their lives. It is a Mitzvah to give Jews to eat and give lonely people a chance to be with other Jews and have a hot meal. One word of Lashon Harah is much worse!

  • Stunned

    #13 Did you bother to think that these people – most of whom ARE quite poor – might only be eating kosher because someone is providing a kosher meal in a pleasant environment? Miry, the reason that it mentions that most of these people are frail and low-income is so that people understand how important this is. Obviously, it only works for some people – note how many are venting their indignation and the “DISGUSTING” idea of help people out!

    #2 – you are not from ANY school, since you seem to have missed something that you should have learned in 1st grade. Besides the fact that there are only 10 mivtzoyim, you seem to have overlooked that one of the mivtzoyim is “Ahavas Yisroel” – and guess what it’s even a Mitzvah in the Torah too!

  • Wolfson

    There appears to be some confusion here. Rabbi Wiener’s Jewish Community Council of Greater Coney Island (JCCGCI) and Chabad of Coney Island are two separate non-related organizations. Chabad of (Sea Gate and) Coney Island is run by shluchim Rabbi Chaim Brikman and Rabbi Pinny Marozov. Rabbi Wiener’s JCCGCI is a non-sectarian social service agency, providing social services to people in need both locally and throughout NYC. Other than the fact that Rabbi Wiener, JCCGCI’s Executive Director, is a Lubavitcher, JCCGCI is not affiliated with Lubavitch. Rabbi Wiener is not a shliach. Thanksgiving celebrations were held by JCCGCI, not by Chabad of Coney Island.

  • Staten Island Mesivta

    There is a curious aspect of Rabbi Wiener running Thanksgiving events that has not been mentioned. A few years ago, Rabbi Wiener (who besides his work with Jewish Community Council of Greater Coney Island also wrote sefarim regarding the halachos of the beard and about tznius) gave a shiur in the Staten Island mesivta about whether it is permissible to observe Thanksgiving with a traditional Thanksgiving meal. He explained various opinions of Rishonim about how to define chukos akum and showed how according to some Thanksgiving observance would be permitted and according to others it would be prohibited and he reviewed differing positions of contemporary poskim. I don’t recall what the conclusion of the shiur was, but I don’t think Rabbi Wiener encouraged having Thanksgiving meals. Now Rabbi Wiener himself is sponsoring Thanksgiving events.

  • hey

    No. 20 point taken. But just because he was sponsoring it, does not mean he participated in it or had one at home. It was a nice gesture on a NEUTRAL AMERICAN HOLIDAY!. What is the major crime over here that people can’t seem to get over? He made a huge dinner for elderly people in need on a holiday that “they” celebrate and expect a hot meal on. It wasn’t a farbrengin. These people arn’t chasidic or even strictly orthodox but I’m sure everything was 100% Glatt kosher so I really don’t see what anyone’s problem is here.

  • Feigie

    My mother benefits from the Kosher Senior Center Hirama. The fact that they were open and serving meals on Thanksgiving, made it possible for my mom to receive a hot nourishing meal. She is no longer able to shop and cook for herself. These senior citizens would have been at home alone instead of together.
    Thank you Rabbi Weiner for your amazing energy in helping our seniors.

  • Stunned

    Staten Island Mesivta – did it ever occur to you that there is a difference in a general discussion of a halachik issue and a P’Sak L’Ma’ase? In the former, you look at the shitos this way and the shitos that way, and you often don’t get to a specific conclusion. When dealing with Halacha l’Ma’ase, that’s the totally wrong approach. Rather a posek looks at the sources, concentrating on the sources that are most in line with the general shitah he holds with (eg Remo vs Beis Yosef) overall, and looking for the information that deals with or is related to the SPECIFIC situation. Based on those specific sources he comes to a conclusion about the SPECIFIC case.

    Anyone who knows Rabbi Wiener knows that he can make a scholarly presentation about the halachik issues on given subjet and can hold his own in a scholarly debate. They also know that when it comes to halacha lema’ase he actually looks for a P’sak din and is perfectly capable of asking any Shailo from a “more horo’o bepoel”. And, most importantly, he knows when the scholarly presentation is appropriate and when p’sak halacha is required. (In case you didn’t realize it, when dealing with practical questions that affect the lives of a large number of older people, the latter is required.)

  • hmm shliach you say, really????

    No 13 you are DISGUSTING and DISGRACEFUL. How dare YOU sir call yourself a shliach of the Rebbe shlita? Get off the computer and maybe actually do something in your daled amos. Maybe you are jealous that some people in Lubavitch actually genuinely care about other people and not only their own kavod. And as someone pointed out he is not an official Shliach but he is more of a “shliach” than you will ever be and a huge talmud chocham. So I would think long and hard about that slanderous post u posted mr no 13 maybe some tshuva is in order for you. Maybe than you can honestly reclaim the title of shliach for yourself.

  • TZADIK of our generation

    Anyone who knows Rabbi Wiener at alll knows very good and well that he would never do anything against halacha. May you all take a lesson from this holy Rabbi and trrrry your very best to emulate him juuuust a bit. You probably can’t – caz he’s too holy for most people around today.