On Sunday evening, June 2, community members flocked to Ohel Sara to hear a shiur on transforming relationships, hosted by Chazaq and featuring Rabbi Gavriel Friedman, well-known speaker. The shiur was in memory of Jacke Friedman z”l, Natan Nata z”l, and HaRav Yechiel Yitzchak ben Leah z”l.  The shiur was sponsored by Amudim, UJA, and Ohel Sara.

Ateret Cohanim marked Yom Yerushalayim with its annual New York dinner held this past Tuesday, June 4, at Hewlett Harbor’s stunning The Seawane Club with tables of local Jewish supporters. Widely recognized as Yerushalayim’s shield, Ateret Cohanim continues its mission born 44 years ago to strengthen Jewish roots around the Torah citadels that dot the Old City in a pioneering effort to revitalize Jewish life by families establishing their homes there. Strolling through the modern-day Moslem and Christian Quarters, one finds budding Jewish life on its streets once again, namely in the communities of Abu Tor, Kfar HaShiloach/HaTeimanim, Maaleh HaZeitim, and Kidmat Zion. Ateret Cohanim, nearly single-handedly, has reinvigorated Torah on land barren of its loftiness for some 2,000 years.

Congregation Etz Chaim filled with community members on Wednesday evening, June 5 (Yom Yerushalayim), anxious to hear from the speaker, Shabbos Kestenbaum, a graduate student at Harvard University. As part of the Yom Yerushalayim program at the shul, Shabbos Kestenbaum spoke about his extremely challenging experiences of anti-Semitism at Harvard Law School this year.