Community Corner

Towering inflatable air dancers swayed at the entrance to the Lander College for Men (LCM) Quad as festive music filled the air and families streamed in for an afternoon of fun. Children raced excitedly toward giant inflatable slides and bounce attractions while parents paused to greet neighbors and capture photographs before the carnival was even fully underway. Within minutes, the grounds were bustling as youngsters eagerly hurried from one attraction to the next.

For more than a century, Regina Puterman carried memories that few could ever imagine. She witnessed the destruction of her family, survived one of history’s darkest chapters, and endured decades of personal heartbreak. In her final years, she quietly carried the profound pain of believing she had been forgotten. Yet, in her final days—and especially at her funeral—the Jewish community answered that loneliness with an extraordinary act of unity.

There was a time when a growing Jewish community celebrated the opening of a new shul or yeshivah as a sign that it had truly taken root. Today, another institution has become just as indispensable to communal life: a Hatzalah station.

Every graduating class hopes to be remembered, but the senior class at Torah Academy for Girls (TAG) in Far Rockaway will be remembered for something no diploma can measure. What began with a classmate’s heartbreaking cancer diagnosis became an extraordinary expression of achdus, inspiring thousands and offering a moving reminder of what Torah values look like when they are lived rather than simply taught. The story reached a broad audience after being shared by community news networks, drawing emotional responses from people who had never even met the students involved.

After 132 years, the thunder of hooves at Aqueduct Racetrack has fallen silent. On Sunday, June 28, the historic “Big A” in South Ozone Park held its final day of live thoroughbred racing, bringing the curtain down on a venue that had stood as a Queens landmark since September 27, 1894. Fittingly, the day’s final race was named “It Was a Good Run,” a sentiment shared by the thousands who gathered to bid farewell to one of New York City’s most recognizable sporting institutions.

From a historic Asifas HaRabbanim at Beth Gavriel to a mass gathering at Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim, one extraordinary day united communities on behalf of Keren Olam HaTorah

Long before the first word was spoken, the message had already begun spreading across Queens. On Tuesday, June 16, rabbanim, roshei yeshivah, askanim, and community leaders gathered first in Forest Hills and later in Kew Gardens Hills for one of the most significant Torah events Queens has ever hosted.