There are 12 Chabad-led congregations in Queens, including one at Queens College. But perhaps most significant is that Queens is also home to the Ohel, the resting place of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. As the Jewish world marked the Rebbe’s 31st yahrzeit on 3 Tamuz (June 29, 2025), three Queens-based Chabad rabbis reflected on his enduring legacy and how his teachings continue to guide their lives and work today.
World Jewry and the Lubavitch movement were decimated by the Holocaust when Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson became the leader of Chabad in 1950, following the passing of his father-in-law. At that time, Chabad had only a few hundred core adherents – mostly in Brooklyn – with small numbers in Israel and elsewhere. Today, there are an estimated 90,000–95,000 adherents and around 4,900 shluchim (emissaries) worldwide. Chabad-Lubavitch is the largest and fastest-growing Jewish organization, according to Chabad.org.
Rabbi Menachem “Mendy” Hecht, Director of Chabad of Forest Hills North and a Jewish chaplain at Rikers Island, often traveled from his home in Melbourne, Australia, to meet with the Rebbe.
As a young child, Mendy Hecht once wished the Rebbe a “Good Shabbos” while the Rebbe was handing out dollar bills on a Sunday for people to donate to charity. “The Rebbe said, ‘Good Shabbos,’ in return. By the Rebbe, it always felt like Shabbos – even on a regular Sunday!” Being acknowledged and answered “was very special,” said Rabbi Hecht.
Today, the Rebbe imbues Rabbi Mendy Hecht with “this fire to always be there for another Jew, no matter the circumstances, and to have that true ahavas Yisrael.”
Rabbi Hecht strives to live up to his role as the Rebbe’s emissary and “do even more to be there for that lonely Jew – lonely spiritually, or even simply physically.”
He shares the Rebbe’s message “to see the world in a different light – a more beautiful world, and a G-dly one, with so much potential,” not just with our physical eyes.
Rabbi Mendy Hecht learned from the Rebbe: “Each person is a world, and he deserves the most undivided attention, personal time, and sincerity – no matter how big or small he is, or how many people are part of the community.”
Rabbi Mordechai Hecht, a cousin of Rabbi Mendy Hecht, is the rav of Anshe Shalom in Kew Gardens. Born and raised in Forest Hills, he attended many of the Rebbe’s farbrengens, rallies, and dollar and book distributions. “Those were very precious moments,” he recalled.
In his work, Rabbi Mordechai Hecht said, “Our entire approach and lifestyle is based on the Rebbe’s approach: Every Jew is precious – each mitzvah priceless.”
He has met “great Jewish leaders and tzadikim,” but the Rebbe impressed him with his “vast knowledge in practically every area of knowledge. It reminds me of what it says about Daniel the Prophet – that he was an ish eshkolos – broad-spectrum and multi-faceted.”
“It was this knowledge, alongside the Rebbe’s saintliness, that enabled him to revive a generation after the Holocaust and lead it into the 21st century.”
The Rebbe’s message for today, according to Rabbi Mordechai Hecht, is: “Faithfulness and trust in Hashem, especially in trying times, is at the core of what a Jew does and what a Jew is.”
Rabbi Yossi Blesofsky, of the Chabad of Northeast Queens, in Bayside, had private audiences with the Rebbe along with his family on a number of occasions.
“Truth be told, to be a shliach (emissary) of the Rebbe is not an easy path,” said Rabbi Blesofsky. “The Rebbe was tireless and worked non-stop from the moment he took the leadership role until he fell ill, just shy of 90 years old. That work ethic is what we must aspire to live up to. The Rebbe’s selfless dedication to – and endless love for – the people of Israel is a tremendous inspiration to me, both as an individual and as a rabbi.”
Rabbi Blesofsky tries to apply the Rebbe’s “endless optimism, powerful faith, boundless love, pure conviction, and complete clarity of purpose.” Those are just “some of the myriad values” he seeks to implement.
As for the Rebbe’s messages for today’s troubled times, he said: “How critically important Jewish unity is. How urgent it is for Israel to be strong and fearless. How we must view the world as G-d’s garden and do our part in nurturing that garden and making it fruitful. A central value as a Jew must be to reach out in love to every Jew and attempt to uplift them and bring them closer to G-d. To believe in the imminence of the arrival of Mashiach.”
Rabbi Blesofsky added, “The Rebbe was the incredibly unique and outstanding Jewish leader of our generation. He took upon himself the gargantuan task of rehabilitating a broken people after the Holocaust – and he succeeded in creating the most powerful army of light around the globe. His impact is impossible to fully grasp, and we thank Almighty G-d for gifting such a holy and righteous individual to our generation.”
According to multiple sources, approximately 400,000 people visit the Rebbe’s gravesite, known as the Ohel, each year, from all walks of life: Jews and non-Jews, religious and secular.
The Ohel is one of the first stops for many shluchim visiting New York City for the annual Kinus HaShluchim (International Conference of Chabad-Lubavitch Emissaries).
More than three decades after his passing, the Rebbe’s vision remains vibrantly alive in the hearts of his emissaries across Queens and around the world. Whether through personal encounters or lifelong inspiration, these rabbis continue to carry out his mission – one of unwavering faith, love for every Jew, and the belief that each good deed brings the world closer to redemption.
By David Schneier
