Former White House Middle East Envoy Jason Greenblatt to Deliver Keynote Address

As university commencement seasons begin around the country, Yeshiva University recently announced to its students that the school’s 90th Annual Commencement will take place in person at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens, New York, on Wednesday, May 26 at 1 PM EDT. The event, which will be the first commencement and major event to be held at Arthur Ashe Stadium at the USTA Billie Jean King Tennis Center since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, will provide students of the undergraduate class of 2021 with an opportunity to celebrate together with their family and friends in person.  The ceremony will also be broadcast via livestream allowing for opportunities for those joining remotely to participate in the live programming.

Met Council celebrated the grand opening of the Chesed Center, a brand-new social service hub to address the needs of the frum community of Boro Park during these unprecedented times. Social services and direct food assistance will be provided by Met Council to support the community and help families struggling in the wake of the pandemic and the economic downturn.

The Queens Jewish Link and its feature article “KGH Civic Petitions for Library Reopening” set into motion a series of events that led to a press conference this past Thursday afternoon, May 6. Those gathered felt that their work was not quite done with regards to getting the library back open, and invited NY1 News to share their plight citywide. City Council Member James Gennaro also deemed the library’s continued operation as a NYC Health & Hospitals site unnecessary, considering the drastic decrease in positive COVID case numbers.

Shavuos is the culmination of the seven-week-long “counting of the Omer” that occurs following Pesach. The very name “Shavuos” means “weeks,” in recognition of the weeks of anticipation leading up to the Har Sinai experience. Shavuos commemorates Hashem giving the Torah to B’nei Yisrael. During the holiday prayer services, we read the story of the Revelation at Mount Sinai and the giving of the Ten Commandments. On the second day of Shavuos, we read Megillas Rus (the Book of Ruth).