With music filling the street and sifrei Torah raised in welcome, Briarwood’s Bukharian Jewish community celebrated the dedication of a new sefer Torah by the Gavrielov family on Sunday, November 1.
The family, proprietors of Haim’s International on Main Street near 73rd Avenue in Kew Gardens Hills, opened their Briarwood residence to relatives, friends, and community members for the writing of the Torah’s final letters. Beneath an outdoor canopy, guests gathered around the open parchment as the scroll was completed. Nearby stood its ornate metal case, decorated with intricate designs and colorful stones.
The celebration then moved into the streets, with the sefer Torah carried from the family home on 84th Road to the Bukharian Jewish Congregation of Briarwood on Daniels Street. The Crown Torah Truck provided a festive backdrop for the singing and dancing, while Queens Shmira led the procession alongside the NYPD’s 107th Precinct.
At the synagogue, additional sifrei Torah were brought out to welcome the new scroll. Congregants gathered around the Torahs, singing and dancing as the scroll reached its destination. The congregation’s mara d’asra, Rabbi Simantov Yanetz, addressed those assembled outside the synagogue. Among the participating rabbanim were Rabbi Eran Gohari of Congregation Od Yosef Chai and Rabbi Yaniv Meirov of Congregation Charm Circle.
For the Gavrielov family, the dedication marked both the completion of a cherished mitzvah and a lasting gift to the congregation. The new sefer Torah will remain part of the community’s religious life long after the afternoon’s celebration.
Mazal tov to the Gavrielov family, Rabbi Yanetz, and the entire Bukharian Jewish Congregation of Briarwood.
