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This past Monday afternoon, in front of the Kew Gardens Hills branch of the Queens Public Library, New York lawmakers and hundreds of community members joined forces to denounce Hamas’ ruthless terror attack on Israel.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer visited the Queens Jewish community of Hillcrest this past Thursday morning to provide rabbanim and community leaders with a strong reassurance that the American government stands firm with Israel. The meeting, organized by Assemblymember Nily Rozic, noted the measures taken locally to ensure the safety of the city’s 1.6 million Jews. Before departing, the senator spoke exclusively with the Queens Jewish Link, providing further insight.

“Please talk in shul. It’s okay, really. But… only to Hashem,” has become a tagline ingrained into thousands of homes throughout the worldwide Orthodox Jewish community. The brainchild of Kew Gardens resident Rabbi Aloni Russek, founder of Divrei Chizuk, the catchphrase has successfully spread to minute corners of the globe.

S&M Pharmacy on Main Street has been a quintessential neighborhood store, serving medicine with a smile since 1969 when Stuart Pomper founded the family establishment; it’s now run by his son Sean of North Woodmere. Launched as an equal partnership with Martin Behar, a pharmacy school pal, they each used their life savings and some family capital to accrue the necessary $20,000 to begin. In 1984, Pomper became the sole owner and expanded to the current number of combined storefronts by 1989. Sean follows the motto that the customer is always right, a staple of his grandfather’s, the longtime proprietor of a Manhattan hardware shop. The pharmacy cherishes its neighborhood clientele with its core Orthodox Jewish base.

Last Tuesday, October 17, Divrei Chizuk spearheaded the Queens Gear Drive at Bais Yaakov of Queens, where they collected over 100 duffel bags worth of men's undergarments, towels, hygienic goods, baby powder, protein bars, foldable mattresses, and tactical water bags.

Outgoing President Michael Nussbaum honored for lifetime commitment

As a guest of Linda Spiegel of Margaret Tietz and as a QJCC board member, I was privileged to attend one of the strongest shows of local solidarity for Israel to date. The dignitaries at the Queens Jewish Community Council’s 54^th anniversary gala held at Da Mikele Illagio in Elmhurst on Sunday, October 18, all agreed to Israel’s obligation to destroy Hamas. The evening also paid tribute to the lifetime of commitment to the Jewish community of outgoing President Michael Nussbaum.