This past Sunday, Pirchei Moshe Nechemia of Kew Gardens and Richmond Hill, named in memory of longtime askan and baal chesed Moshe Sukenik z”l, held its annual Pre-Chanukah Mesibah – and, baruch Hashem, it was a huge success. Over 100 boys from Kew Gardens, Richmond Hill, and Kew Gardens Hills joined together for a night full of ruach, leibidikeit, and achdus, making it a truly special evening for everyone.
From the moment the boys arrived, the excitement was contagious. They were treated to delicious fresh pizza from Naomi’s Kosher Pizza, setting the stage for a night of fun, laughter, and pure Chanukah enjoyment. A big thank you goes out to Rosenblum’s Grocery for helping with the food orders, nosh, and paper goods, and to Golan Taib for helping coordinate everything and distributing the tickets to the boys – his support helped make the night run so smoothly.
One of the highlights of the evening was the incredible entertainment. Mordechai Schwartz wowed the boys with an amazing magic and illusion show, full of tricks, sleight-of-hand, and funny surprises that had everyone laughing and amazement. Following his performance, Tzvi Bennet of Tzvi Bennet Productions took the stage and truly brought the house down. With his lively and upbeat music, he had the boys dancing with joy all night long, turning the hall into a leibidige celebration.
The dancing was led by the eighth graders of Yeshiva Ketana of Queens and Yeshiva Tiferes Moshe, who set a wonderful example of leibidige, yet organized dancing that inspired the rest of the boys to join in. Throughout the night, they showed the perfect balance of enthusiasm, respect, and derech eretz – true b’nei Torah in action.
Over 25 prizes were raffled off, including Amazon and Safra gift cards and many other exciting surprises. The highlight of the raffle was a beautiful menorah and a copy of Rabbi Paysach Krohn’s newest book, The Maggid of Tefillah. In a memorable and heartfelt moment, Rabbi Krohn personally signed the winning book and shared a warm message with the lucky boy: “I hope your t’filos will become stronger because of this book.” Rabbi Krohn also mentioned – with obvious pride – that he himself served as a Pirchei leader in this very neighborhood back in the 1960s when Pirchei first began its legendary presence here.
As the night went on, the boys were treated to delicious doughnuts, and each received a candy-filled dreidel as a door prize – making sure that everyone went home with a little sweetness to remember the evening by.
Of course, none of this would be possible without the tireless dedication of Rabbi Moshe Fogel, who has been running Pirchei for the past ten years with love, energy, and devotion. Week after week, Rabbi Fogel gives up his Shabbos afternoons to provide the boys of our neighborhood with wholesome fun, a safe and positive Torah environment, and opportunities to grow in their limud haTorah. Under his guidance, Pirchei continues to flourish, inspire, and unite boys from across the community.
As the evening came to a close, there was a true feeling of pride, joy, and gratitude in the room. The boys left not just with prizes, doughnuts, and memories, but with the happiness of being part of a warm, close-knit Torah community filled with camaraderie, learning, and genuine simchas ha’chayim.
May Hashem continue to bless Pirchei of Kew Gardens and Richmond Hill, and may it continue to grow mei’chayil el chayil, bringing joy, learning, and achdus to every boy in our community for years to come.
