Chabad in Downtown Brooklyn Marks 26 Years

A crowd of 300 gathered for the 26th anniversary dinner of Congregation B’nai Avraham of Brooklyn Heights, led by Rabbi Aaron and Shternie Raskin.

It was a snowy day as the 300 guests arrived to the Museum of Jewish Heritage on the tip of lower Manhattan for Congregation B’nai Avraham’s 26th Anniversary dinner.

The ball room offered breathtaking panoramic views of the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, the Hudson River, the Jersey skyline and beyond. The guests were also afforded the rare scene of snow and ice floating down the East River.

The hall was brilliantly set with a dazzling array of foods. First the crowd hit the open bar; they enjoyed to sushi, lamb, charcuterie and a mouth-watering display of side dishes. During this time, the guests were treated to a tour of the museum below.

By eight o’clock it was time to file downstairs to the auditorium for the more official part of the evening, but already some were wont to remark that the mood had escalated to a kind of spiritual high at seeing so many people at so joyous an occasion.

The M.C. of the evening, the Honorable Steve Cohn, started it all off by introducing Vice President Richard Golden to address the audience. Rabbi Aaron L. Raskin, spiritual leader of CBA, came next with a Dvar Torah. The Rabbi also announced the exciting new project of Brooklyn Heights Jewish Academy Hebrew Day School in downtown Brooklyn starting in September 2015. See more here:  www.BHJA.org

All this was followed by the Honor Roll, with CBA honoring Lydia Galeon for Woman of the Year, Marshall G. Kaplan for Man of the Year and Phyllis Klein with the Eishes Chayil Award. They all gave a short address, which were all heartwarming and beautiful.

“We would like to extend a big thank you to the honorees and all our supporters for all the wonderful work you do in helping keep Judaism alive in Downtown Brooklyn. Without your assistance and support CBA’s exciting programs and institutions such as Gan Menachem Kiddie Korner, Heights Seniors Kluger Klub, Heights Hebrew School and all the learning classes and programs would not be the same,” said Rabbi Raskin.

Despite the loveliness of the setting, the warmth of the candlelit room, a keen, unspoken longing was felt by all for a change of locale: May the next year’s Annual Dinner be held, not on the edge of the Hudson  but in the City of Jerusalem, with the coming of Moshiach. May he not tarry!