Community Corner

Transitions: from remembering Israeli soldiers and terror victims to the joy of Israeli Independence Day; from a familiar American Modern Orthodox upbringing to being a Golani soldier on the Gaza border; from staleness to appreciation of Israel. Those were the themes of the Israeli Day Celebration held at the Queens Jewish Center on Wednesday, May 8.

Once again, Yeshiva Tiferes Moshe ran an exciting Ki Heim Chayeinu vacation learning and davening program. The boys in the fifth through eighth grades had the opportunity to join in a delicious barbecue and win great prizes by continuing to grow in their avodas Hashem during the Pesach break.

Grades 1-4 have been learning about chashivus Eretz Yisrael for the past two weeks. On Thursday, Yom HaAtzmaut, students in the lower grades got a chance to be part of a live interactive webinar about Eretz Yisrael. Without even leaving Bnos Malka, grades 1-4 got to see exciting places in Yerushalayim, Chevron, Be’er Sheva, and the Galil. It’s possible that everyone’s favorite part was seeing the camels cross the road, right next to a sign in Hebrew that says, Watch out for camels crossing!

As the year winds to a close, Central students are joyfully sharing the products of their imaginations with the wider world. Last week on Wednesday, Central’s ACE Team 40 concluded a spectacular year by presenting their design for a nearly two-million-square-foot water park and hotel site in Chenango County at the General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen in Manhattan.

MTA raised a total of $551,080 for its Scholarship Fund during a 24-hour fundraising blitz held on Monday, May 6, and Tuesday, May 7. With help from a committee of dedicated parents, rebbeim, faculty members, and talmidim who worked around the clock, MTA surpassed its original goal of raising $400,000 and increased the goal to $550,000, which was then exceeded. All donations made during the 24-hour+ fundraising blitz were matched 1:1.

On Sunday evening, May 15, the community gathered at Beth Gavriel for an energizing shiur given by Rabbi Eliyahu Yormak, a rebbe at Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin. Rabbi Yormak began, “We just finished the chag of Pesach. Hashem should load us with brachah. The mitzvos of Pesach are an endless z’chus and bring endless k’dushah.” He shared that the amount of merit we accrue from our mitzvos depends on how we relate to the mitzvah.