Rising above North Woodmere’s ranch houses, Khal Lev Avos kicked off its expansion with a groundbreaking last Motza’ei Shabbos on the occasion of the shul’s tenth anniversary. Among the builders, Moshe Kopelowitz follows in the example of his father, Aaron, a longtime supporter of Yeshiva Bais Abraham Slonim of Yerushalayim. The Rav of Khal Lev Avos, Rabbi S
hmuel Weinberg, is a talmid of the yeshivah, where he learned under the guidance of his great-uncle, Rabbi Shalom Noach Berezovsky zt”l, the Slonimer Rebbe, who authored Nesivos Shalom.
“We started as a small community in a house. We now have two minyanim for Shacharis and many shiurim,” Kopelowitz said. He added that the goal of the expansion is to accommodate its growing membership and provide more programs.
“What began in 2015 as a small group of families responding to North Woodmere’s rapid growth has blossomed into a vibrant makom Torah u’t’filah. In those early days, Avi and Penina Sipzner graciously opened their living room to serve as the shul’s first home,” said Moshe Edelstein.
He noted that alongside their esteemed mara d’asra, Rebbetzin Tzipora Weinberg is a noted historian, serving as a Fellow at the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture and hosting Veiled Reference, a podcast focusing on Jewish women in history.
“Under their leadership, the shul flourished, quickly outgrowing its original space and moving to its warm and welcoming home at 500 Hungry Harbor Road,” he said of its present location.
“We’ve outgrown the space. Our new building will have classrooms, a women’s section, and a simchah hall on the top floor. At this Melaveh Malkah, we are recognizing the past while building towards the future,” said Dani Melmed.
The event took place at Congregation Ohr Torah, one of the pioneering shuls in North Woodmere that transformed a neighborhood on the edge of the Five Towns into a desirable community for Orthodox families. On Hungry Harbor Road, the main road in this community, shuls include the Young Israel, Beis HaKnesses of North Woodmere, Congregation Bnai HaYeshivos, Kodesh, and Congregation Ohr Torah; with K’hal Noam Hashem, Khal Chassidim, and Chabad toward the neighborhood’s northern side.
The rabbis of these shuls were present at the event, celebrating the growth of the shul. They were joined by Hempstead Town Supervisor John Ferretti, who was elected to a full term last month, and former Congressman Anthony D’Esposito. “Both dear friends of the k’hilah who played instrumental roles in helping the shul reach this moment,” Edelstein said. They picked up the ceremonial shovels and hard hats for an off-site groundbreaking, which involved a thin layer of soil sprinkled on the floor of the lobby leading to the banquet hall.
The program opened with remarks from Shul President Yitzi Gross, who expressed deep gratitude to the many members whose generosity of time, resources, and spirit enabled the shul to reach its groundbreaking. He was followed by founding member Avi Langer and former president Rabbi Yosef Friedler, who reflected on the origins of the k’hilah, the significance of the name Lev Avos, and the profound hakaras ha’tov owed to Irving and Itta Bauman for their extraordinary partnership in enabling both the original and the new building.
Rabbi Weinberg delivered the keynote address, drawing a poignant parallel between the shul’s current juncture and the conversation in Sefer M’lachim between Elisha and his students. When the talmidim shared that their existing space had become too small, they sought permission to go to the Yarden to gather wood and expand. After Elisha granted permission, they asked him to accompany them: a seemingly unnecessary request for the leader of klal Yisrael.
Rabbi Weinberg explained that the students did not need Elisha’s carpentry skills; they needed his spiritual guidance. Any physical expansion must be accompanied by a spiritual one. So, too, he noted, this groundbreaking represents not merely the construction of a larger building, but the opportunity and responsibility for the k’hilah to grow in its spiritual capacity as well.
The evening concluded with a lavish dessert and a spirited kumsitz, leaving participants uplifted and inspired as they look ahead to the next chapter of Khal Lev Avos.
More information about the k’hilah can be found at khallevavos.org.
By Sergey Kadinsky
