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On Tuesday evening, February 8, the Navigating the Medical System Lecture Series, hosted by Congregation Etz Chaim, presented an informative virtual lecture on liver disease. Dr. Mel Breite, Founder and Director of the Navigating the Medical System Lecture Series, shared that screening for colon cancer is now recommended for those 45 and over and it’s a 100% avoidable disease. He noted that everyone receives blood tests when they have a check-up, and in the metabolic profile there is a liver test. A lot of people receive abnormal results on that test. He then introduced the featured speaker, Dr. Constantine Fisher, MD, attending gastroenterologist at NewYork-Presbyterian Queens Hospital.

On Monday evening, February 14, Emet Outreach featured Rebbetzin Devorah Kigel in a virtual shiur on true love. Rebbetzin Kigel greeted everyone and shared that February 14 is not a Jewish holiday, but it happened that this year, Purim Katan came out on this date.

On Wednesday evening, February 9, Chazaq, Chickens for Shabbos, and Shlomo Meirov sponsored another wonderful distribution for m’chanchim, moros, and divorcees. Over 200 people signed up. Again, the Ner Mordechai shul in Kew Gardens kindly hosted this beautiful event. Everyone was welcomed with a smile and a personal greeting, and then they were directed to the ballroom that was filled with an incredible assortment of brand-new household items – every imaginable donated item.

Last Thursday night, Rabbi Shmuel Reichman spoke in Queens at Ohel Sara about his new sefer, The Journey to Your Ultimate Self. The book tour was hosted by Chazaq and the Ohel Sara Youth Minyan. As part of his book tour, Rabbi Reichman spoke in five other communities, as well. Rabbi Reichman is an author, speaker, coach, and the CEO of Self-Mastery Academy.

On Sunday night, February 13, while the Super Bowl drew a lot of attention, there was something much more attention-grabbing and meaningful. “Halftime for Torah” kicked off a rousing touchdown into the viewers’ hearts. First, Charlie Harary, well-known motivational speaker, shared that we tend to forget the journey of those playing in the Super Bowl. He noted how the Torah instructs us to procure pure olive oil crushed for illumination to raise up the Ner Tamid. The question is that we know the olives have to be crushed in order to produce oil. Why does the Torah say crushed for illumination to elevate? Olive oil represents fruit that is bitter. This symbolizes hard times. Hashem is teaching us to take hard times, crush them – work them – and from it we will raise ourselves in life.

On Sunday night, February 7, Let’s Get Real with Coach Menachem Bernfeld featured an important shiur on k’dushah in our generation with Rabbi Chaim Dov Stark, Mashgiach of Yeshivas Aderes HaTorah in Yerushalayim.