Issue 013

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INBOX

ANOTHER SPIN ON WASHING MACHINES

(Re: Tide and True, Issue 012)

Regarding the washing machine review column, it was a wonderful read. Bruchy, it was great to hear your opinion. I’d like to make you aware of another aspect of the LG/GE debate. When I needed a new washing machine about three years ago, those were already the two top trending machines. I was researching the two and trying to make an educated decision when something prompted me to check the dimensions. The two machines have around a 3-inch difference (although it may have been the dryer; I was looking into a stackable set), and after checking with a few installers, it was clear that the slightly larger GE machine wouldn’t fit into my laundry closet. This may be another reason the LG machine is so popular.

Thank you for all the hard work you put in to produce a publication of this caliber on a weekly basis.

A Local Balebusta

CLOTHING TAKES TIME

(Re: Overloaded, Issue 012)

I’d like to respond to the woman who wrote that she puts all her clothes into the dryer, rather than hanging them to dry, because she doesn’t need her clothing to “outlive her.” I have a different take on this. First, I hang most of my laundry, and I don’t find it much more of

a hassle than drying them. Second, if I spent the time shopping for them, I want them to last as long as possible. It’s not about clothing outliving you; it’s about valuing the time and effort spent shopping for them.

I do think it’s wrong to spend so much time, effort and money each season revamping each child’s wardrobe. Only a few years ago, most mothers chose to spend more quality time at home with their children, and didn’t run around shopping in order to dress their kids in brand-new clothes every four months. They pulled out clothes from an older sibling, or maybe tried on stuff from the year before to see if it still fit. In general, there was more value, not for the clothing, but for the precious time that could instead be spent reading to children, playing with them, or even just talking to them, as opposed to scrambling down the avenue for a complete turnover because the new season has arrived — or just went on sale.

Someone Who Misses the Good Old Days

A MOTHER’S LEGACY

(Re: Lasting Impression, Inbox, Issue 012)

I love your magazine and really appreciate all the hard work that obviously goes into producing such a wonderful, informative read.

Regarding the letter about my grandfather, Reb Yakov Potash, the famous Yakob, I would like to clarify that, unfortunately, he did not live to be interviewed when “he was already elderly,” as he was niftar at the age of 52. Also, I don’t recall my father ever telling us about Rosh Chodesh, though it may be true; it was Yakob’s memory of his mother’s licht bentchen and Shabbos food — specifically the effort and hartz she put into making sure the kishke should be tasty in honor of Shabbos — that kept him strong.

A Proud Potash

SERIAL THRILLER

(Re: Give or Take, Issue 012)

This is a long overdue thanks to Chanie Spira of Give or Take. It’s literally the first thing I turn to every week. The story has been keeping me in suspense from the very first chapter!

The characters are so true-to-life.

Their feelings and thoughts are so well expressed in writing, I almost feel like I am breathing along with them.

And thanks for not ending the story in last week’s issue; some writers would just leave us hanging right there.

Looking forward to a happy ending!

A Fan

MORE ON WOODRIDGE

(Re: Woodridge, Issue 011)

I’ve had the pleasure of owning a second home in Woodridge for over 25 years, and I have watched the growth and development of this wonderful village. Thank you for your beautiful article about this gem in the Catskills.

While there are many people worth mentioning who’ve contributed to the expansion of Woodridge, Rabbis Irving Goodman and Hillel Grossman merit special acknowledgement. Both rabbis made Congregation Ohave Sholom a special makom Torah u’tefillah, where all types of Yidden feel welcome all year.

A sentence in your article read, “It still contains a year-round population consisting mostly of aging residents...” It may interest your readers to know that there are at least ten young couples who make Woodridge their year-round home. (One of them, Moshe Weinberger, was featured in a recent article in The Williamsburg View, which introduced readers to the fascinating wooden wonderland he built on his property.) With a Greyhound bus to the city as well as remote work opportunities, young families have found affordable housing in a community that has a shul, grocery, mikvah and chinuch infrastructure. The women have also started a N’shei and plan activities throughout the year. Overall, Woodridge has become an attractive out-of-town option

A Woodridge Resident

FARM FANTASTIC

(Re: Farm of Eden, Issue 010)

Thank you for the exceptional article about Pelleh Poultry’s farms. It was so well written and informative. I was very grateful to find out more about where our food comes from, and the story behind the people who produce that food.

Miriam E. Friedman

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IF YOU READ THE YIDDISH CHURBAN BEIS HAMIKDASH

ON TISHAH B’AV, DO YOU READ IT ON YOUR OWN, OR DO YOU LISTEN IN BY TELECONFERENCE? AT WHAT AGE DO YOUR CHILDREN JOIN YOU?

36%

I listen via teleconference.

7%

I go to my mother’s house, where we read it together.

All the women in my bungalow colony gather in one bungalow, and the older ones among us take turns reading. Sitting together on the floor creates a real mourning atmosphere.

14%

I read it at home on my own/with my children.

43%

I listen/read with my neighbors/ bungalow colony women.

While the men are in shul on Tishah B’Av night, I take the kids to my mother’s house, where we, as well as some of my sisters, listen and read about the Churban while the little kids play together.

We all go over to my mother’s house, where my mother reads Megillas Eicha out loud. She cries as she reads, and I appreciate that the grandchildren witness that.

I read it out loud, and whoever wants can join. The kids usually start out sitting next to me and eventually scatter.

Our extended family has a teleconference on Tishah B’Av night and morning. Someone reads the Eicha/Kinnos text, and then someone talks about the war or other struggles.

I listen to a teleconference on speakerphone so my children can hear as well. I also call in in the morning, but it’s just background noise while I tend to the children. I prefer not to give up the actual calling despite the fact that I’m not fully tuned in, because I do hear some snippets here and there, and it keeps me connected to what the day is all about.

From when I remember, Tishah B’Av night meant that all the kids gathered in pajamas in the darkened dining room. We sat on blankets as my mother read Eicha out loud in a choked-up voice using a flashlight.

I read it out loud myself, and some of my married kids join me.

I listen to the reading of the Churban on a teleconference. Whoever wants can join me — usually family members from ages seven and up are interested in listening in.

I don’t enjoy listening to a hotline. I’ll either say it by myself or read it together with my fellow countrymates.

I usually read it by myself; my concentration is so much better that way.

We listen to Shaindy Kleinman speaking about the Churban.

My mother always read to us from Eicha and also the Churban Beis Hamikdash in Yiddish. Even after my siblings and I got married, we continued making a conference call to have my mother read to us. It’s been many years since, and many grandchildren have joined the conference at this point. It’s been years and years that we’ve wished one another “l’shanah habah b’Yerushalayim,” and we continue to have emunah that Moshiach is at the door, and that this year Tishah B’Av will be a Yom Tov!

Growing up, the neighbors got together at my parents’ house on Tishah B’Av night. The lights were dim, and we all sat on the floor. The women took turns reading the Kinnos. One year, one neighbor’s Bubby came and shared stories of the Holocaust. It was a very solemn and appropriate atmosphere for the day.

Tishah B’Av is a day that visions of my youth flood my memory. My mother, a”h, used to read it in the bungalow colony for whoever wanted to hear. I am not really a fluent Yiddish reader, but when it comes to Tishah B’Av, I still hear my mother, a”h, reading with that special tune, and I do the same. My children join me from birth. If they are old enough to be up at night, they stay up to listen, and in the morning, they listen in as well. They love listening to the story of Chana and her seven sons. I’m always surprised at how much they understand and absorb. May Tishah B’Av become a Yom Tov this year.

I prefer to read it together with all the women outside in the circle. Sitting huddled together on low chairs beneath the stars creates this sad atmosphere that you can’t really have in a brightly lit kitchen.

I read it to my children. From when they can sit quietly (at around six years of age), they join on little stools. I read it on my own. My children are too young to read it, but I do take the time to sit down and tell them about the Churban on their level.

I listen to a teleconference at night when my children are already asleep. In the morning, I read together with them from a Yiddish children’s sefer, titled Uvnei Yerushalayim

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LAST DAY: MOTZEI SHABBOS AUG. 30, ‘25

According to Halucha, it’s strictly forbidden to use passengers for package delivery.

WE ACCEPT PACKAGES TO THE CATSKILLS ONLY THE FIRST 2 TRIPS $15 per package dropped o ONLY at our designated schedule stops

PARSHAS DEVARIM

To Love Every Yid

Y. Levenstein

Devarim begins with Moshe Rabbeinu’s repetition of the Torah. The pasuk says, “These are the words Moshe spoke to all of Klal Yisroel (on the side of Yarden in the Midbar)… between Paran and Tofel and Lavan and Chatzeiros and Di Zahav” ( Devarim 1:1).

Rashi explains that Moshe wanted to give the Yidden mussar for all the times they angered Hakadosh Baruch Hu, but rather than explicitly bringing up each incident, out of respect for Klal Yisroel, he merely alludes to them by mentioning the names of the places where they occurred.

Interestingly, we find that as Sefer Devarim continues, Moshe Rabbeinu does rebuke Klal Yisroel openly, discussing their various sins. What was the point of starting off with these hints if Moshe ended up giving direct mussar in the end? And if he didn’t want to give rebuke outright, why did he do so later?

Moreover, one place mentioned is Di Zahav, which Rashi, citing the Midrash, says is a reference to the chet ha’egel. Moshe Rabbeinu said that since Klal Yisroel was given gold and silver in such abundance, it caused them to make the egel. It sounds as if Moshe wanted to remove the blame from the Yidden. Later on, however, we see Moshe does scold Klal Yisroel for the egel

BESIDES HIS GREATNESS IN TORAH, the Ahavas Yisroel of Viznitz stood out for his greatness in chesed. As the rav in town, he shouldered responsibility for the poor and unfortunate with real fatherly love.

One day, the Ahavas Yisroel asked his gabbai to join him on a walk through town. Soon they neared the large, impressive house of the manager of the local bank. A wealthy man, the manager was aligned with the maskilim. The Rebbe told his gabbai to knock on the door and ask if they could come in for a visit. The maid who opened the door ushered the guests inside and ran to call the head of the household.

The wealthy man welcomed the two rather warmly and invited them to take a seat in his opulent living room. He waited for the Rebbe to explain the reason for his visit, but the Ahavas Yisroel didn’t open his mouth. He sat in his seat silently as several minutes passed.

The bank manager looked on quietly, waiting to hear what the Rebbe had to say. He signaled with his eyes to the gabbai as if to say, “What is the reason for this visit?”

But the gabbai merely shrugged his shoulders mutely. He had no idea; the Rebbe had not let him in on the mystery.

Finally, the Ahavas Yisroel stood up, nodded at his host, and began to walk to-

“I felt like yelling at him,” Rav Elbaz related afterward. “I wanted to say, ‘Fool! You get skilah for that!’ Watering plants on Shabbos?!”

ward the door. The wealthy man followed them out courteously, but he could hardly contain his curiosity.

“Pardon me, Rebbe, for asking,” he said, “but I don’t understand. What was the reason for this visit?”

The Ahavas Yisroel replied, “I came to do a mitzvah, and baruch Hashem, I managed to do it.”

“Which mitzvah?” the man asked.

“Chazal say that just like there’s a mitzvah to say something that will be heeded, there’s a mitzvah not to say something that will not be heeded [Yevamos 65b]. I came to you and did the mitzvah of not saying something that will not be heeded.”

The man was taken aback. “Tell me! What have I not heard?”

“Well, if I tell it to you,” the Rebbe smiled, “then I will not have accomplished the mitzvah. Since I know you will not heed my words, I don’t want to say them.”

“Why is the Rebbe so confident that I won’t listen? Perhaps I will heed your words,” the man argued.

The Ahavas Yisroel agreed to share. He explained that there was a widow in town who could not pay her debt to the bank, and the bank was in the process of evicting her and foreclosing on her house. “The poor woman will be left on the street, literally. You must erase her debt!”

“But I’m just the manager!” the man sputtered. “How can the Rebbe expect me to do that?! I don’t own the bank.”

“Oy! ” the Ahavas Yisroel cried, pain evident on his face. “What a shame! Didn’t I ask you to allow me to continue to keep the mitzvah of not saying something that wouldn’t be heeded?! Why did you push me to share?”

The Ahavas Yisroel left the beautiful house, leaving the manager feeling uncomfortable about the entire exchange.

Eventually, he let the Rebbe know that he decided to pay the widow’s debt from his own pocket.

* * * *

In his younger years, Rav Reuven Elbaz, shlit”a, Rosh Yeshivah of Ohr Hachaim in Yerushalayim, once spent Shabbos in Tiveria. As he walked back from shul after davening, he noticed a man watering his garden. Rav Reuven was surprised. The man had been a part of their minyan that morning!

“I felt like yelling at him,” Rav Elbaz related afterward. “I wanted to say, ‘Fool! You get skilah for that!’ Watering plants on Shabbos?!”

But Rav Elbaz restrained himself; that’s not the way one should give mussar. Instead, he tried a softer approach. He walked over and said a warm, “Good Shabbos! It was so good to see you in shul today!”

The man smiled.

“You know,” Rav Elbaz continued, “there is a halacha about watering the earth on Shabbos. It’s like planting, which is forbidden on Shabbos.”

“Oh, of course I know it’s forbidden to plant on Shabbos,” the man replied. “But I’m not planting anything; I’m just watering. The poor flowers, in such heat — over 100 degrees — they could dry out. I’m just giving them a little drink so they shouldn’t die.”

The simplicity astounded Rav Elbaz. This man was sure he was being a complete shomer Shabbos. He went to shul, made Kiddush, and refrained from turning on the light. All he did was give his plants a drink!

With warmth in his voice, Rav Elbaz asked, “Would you like your plants to live and you should, chas v’shalom, die? What you’re doing in your garden on Shabbos is punishable by skilah.”

The man invited Rav Elbaz inside, and the two spoke for a while. The man’s heart was open to hearing, and Rav Elbaz reviewed hilchos Shabbos as they pertain to the field. It was a pleasant experience for both men.

As Rav Elbaz left the man’s home, he couldn’t help but marvel at how one warm “good Shabbos” could turn a piece of mussar from garnering a response like, “You can’t tell me what to do!” into “Thank you for teaching me the right way to keep Shabbos.”

* * * * *

There is a mitzvah to give mussar, but one must know how to say it.

Human nature is such that people don’t like to be reprimanded and will often not listen to rebuke. However, it’s possible to give mussar that will be accepted.

Shlomo Hamelech says in Mishlei (9:8), “Reprove a wise man, and he will love you.” If we use wisdom and understanding, we can rebuke another in a manner that will allow him to accept our words and remain on good terms. The key is to truly care about the person and be careful to retain their respect. Words of mussar that come from a place of love and respect stand a chance of being accepted.

Had Moshe Rabbeinu begun with sharp words, the Yidden would have had a difficult time accepting them. In his great wisdom, Moshe began with hints, retaining Klal Yisroel’s dignity. He made it sound as if their actions weren’t all their fault. And therefore, later, Moshe was able to give a sharp rebuke — which was accepted.

* * * * *

The Gemara (Yoma 9b) says that the second Beis Hamikdash was destroyed because of sinas chinam. When one gives another mussar from a feeling of hatred, it’s sure to bring only negative results. But if one speaks from ahavah, the listener will feel the love and accept the rebuke.

This is the time to be mechazek our ahavas Yisroel, be mevater to one another, and forgive each other, to correct the sin of sinas chinam and be zoche to love every Yid.

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אד ןעמ טסקאוו

ןארהאז

ערעדנא יד רעבא ןפראוו ,יטיס יד ןופ טמא

ןליוו ןוא ,ןרעדנא םעד ףיוא רענייא עבאט יד

וצ טסעמראפ םעד ןופ ןעיצסיורא טשינ ךיז

ןעמוקאב וצ טאדידנאק ןגיסעמ רעמ א ןביולרע .ןעמיטש ינאדמאמ-יטנא עלא

,אווילס

ןוא ןראוועג ןסאשעג זיא ,דנאטשוצ עשיטירק א ןיא ךיז ןטילעג ןבאה עכילטע ךאנ ןוא וןפ ןפיולטנא םייב ןדאש עטכייל סמעדע קירע ראיעמ .ענעצס יד ייצילאפ יד טביולעגסיוא טאה ןייז טקורדעגסיוא ןוא עיצקאער .תונברק יד

יז טבעג טראד רימ טפערט יורפ יד

ןסע לסיבא רימ טבעג יז סאוו לאמ סעדעי .ןסע

זא ןכאמ וצ רעכיז םורא גיטכיזראפ ךיז יז טקוק

א - ןוז ריא ןופ טרעטיצ יז .טשינ טעז

לייוו ,טאט עגידאנעג ס’עמאמ ןייז ןופ ןעניפעגסיוא

ןוא ,טרא םנהיג םעד ןיא

ןוא ןרעגאל יד ןיא םישעמ עגיליורג ןקיד םענופ ןענירעגסיורא

ריא ןבאה רוטארטעפרעפ עריא ןכלעוו רעטניה רעיומ חיר םעד טריפשעג טוג טאה טלעוו יד .טקעטשראפ ,ןעגנאגעגנא סע ייז זיא גינייוו ןוא ,תונושמ תותימ יד ןופ רעד ןעוו רעבא .ןריראנגיא

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Sruly doesn’t want to come home for the last few weeks before his wedding.

chapter FORTY

Was she about to lose that last month together with Sruly? Kaily leaned on her shopping cart for support.

She’d willingly sacrificed her entire life for her kids — let all the shadchanim know early on that she wasn’t interested in remarriage until they were all married. She’d worked hard at a dead-end job all the years, just so she could be there for her children.

But she’d failed them. Her home was not a place where they wanted to spend time.

The facts stared her in the face. Sruly didn’t want to come home. Her sons hardly visited. Yes, she knew they lived a two-hour drive away, and they called often enough. But still.

Chaim was right. Her home was not the place for a chasan. So he would host Sruly instead. A neat solution.

“That’s so nice of you to offer, Chaim,” Kaily lied. “Let me think about it.”

“Ma,” Chaim said urgently. He must have heard her pain. “Sruly loves you and wants to be with you… but it’s impossible for you to care for Babi and have time for him. Maybe in a week or two… And also, it’s not really his house.”

Weakly, Kaily maneuvered the cart to the checkout counter and started unloading the food she could barely afford and no one was going to eat.

Until now, she always had to choose between her mother and herself. Her kids or herself. The needs of those around

her versus her own needs.

It had been easy for her to choose. She never chose herself.

But to choose between her son and her mother was a different story.

She could just surrender and allow Sruly to live with Chaim or Gedalya. Continue her solitary existence as her mother’s caregiver and show up at the wedding on January 13 as a guest.

Or she could choose to believe that people did care about her. Her mother, her siblings… and her children.

The Hispanic cashier looked at her curiously as she swiped at her eyes, but she didn’t care. She dumped the clementines onto the counter as her phone started ringing.

Yiddy. He was doing the shift at the hospital now. She didn’t have the luxury to ignore the call.

“Hello,” she said faintly.

“Kaily,” Yiddy said, “I’m putting some documents on the little table. You need to sign them for insurance purposes.”

“Okay,” Kaily said automatically, and hung up.

The phone rang a second later. Yiddy again.

“Kaily, what’s the matter?”

“Nothing.”

Yiddy let out his trademark too-loud chuckle. “I call you and you don’t even ask how Mommy is doing. You don’t even ask if the doctors came by and if her wrist is better! That’s not like you.”

Wow. Someone had noticed.

And then, because he was her brother, and he did, apparently, have a heart, Kaily blurted, “Sruly is supposed to come home for Shabbos, he’s getting married in less than four weeks. But he feels he needs his space.”

“Kaily, what are you trying to say?” Yiddy asked.

She summoned up all her courage. “I think I need help.

At least for Shabbos,” she said.

A beat. “I’m on it,” Yiddy said.

* * * * *

There was not a lick of matbucha left, and not a peanut to be found.

Her mother’s small kitchen was overcrowded with Kaily’s family listening to Havdalah.

“Baruch Atah Hashem… hamavdil bein kodesh l’chol,” Chaim finished, and extinguished the candle in the grape juice. He inhaled the smell of the burnt wicks deeply.

“Ah gutte voch! Ah mazal’dig voch!”

“Amen,” his brothers chorused.

Kaily fervently whispered amen, too. Only a week ago, she’d been davening for clarity about her shidduch. She’d been full of dreams and hopes for the week to come. Instead, she’d spent the week in the hospital, and her dreams of a happier future had disappeared more quickly than the ambulance that had rushed her mother to the hospital.

But different dreams had come true.

Shabbos had been a dream, a dream that had been so unrealistic, she hadn’t even dared dream it.

When Yiddy had said, I’m on it, he meant it. He and Estee had offered to have her mother for Shabbos. “We have fulltime help and a separate suite.” Then Yiddy had this brilliant idea of making Sruly a welcome Shabbos with all of his siblings.

On Friday morning, Kugelz and Ko. had delivered a Shabbos like she’d never seen before. There was a meat board and cured fish, dips and desserts, and a cholent that seemed to contain an entire cow.

The sleeping arrangements hadn’t been all that luxurious. Sruly had even slept on the couch. Turned out, Sruly didn’t need privacy and a king-sized bed to be happy. He needed her to be happy.

“I want the grape juice,” Chaim’s son Moishy said as soon as he spied the half-full becher. Kaily kissed him and handed it to him. Another family member who had grown so much, she barely recognized him.

They’d all grown, her boys, and it wasn’t only because they were all a head taller than her. She’d watched Chaim and Gedalya interact with their families, and her heart had expanded. See? Even without a two-parent home, they successfully navigated adulthood.

“What are we having for melaveh malka?” Sruly asked.

She groaned. “We just finished eating. But you know what? If you boys finish stuffing the invitations, I’ll go make you something.”

“Ugh, the worst job,” Gedalya grumbled. “Anyway, who cares about invitations? The people who care will show up regardless.”

“No melaveh malka, then,” Kaily said.

“All right, all right.”

That settled things.

Malky, Suri and Kaily headed to the kitchen.

“It was so beautiful,” Malky, Chaim’s wife, said. The same daughter-in-law she once overheard telling her son, it’s so awkward. Three women and you at a meal

That comment had stung for years.

BNOS PENINIM

And since then, she’d hardly invited them. Hardly invited Gedalya and Suri when it was their chance. Chose them over herself. Why hadn’t she ever believed that her daughter-in-law might also grow up? And that maybe her daughter-in-law had been right? Maybe it had been awkward?

“I have a yummy recipe for homemade pizza,” Suri said shyly.

Kaily showed her where to find the ingredients. Malky offered to whip up some milkshakes, and Kaily grabbed some vegetables for a salad. The three of them chattered comfortably. She’d forgotten how fun girl company was.

Then the phone rang. Yiddy.

Kaily grabbed the handset. She should’ve called right away, but she’d wanted to hold on to the serenity of Shabbos a bit more.

“Gut voch,” she greeted her brother. “You can’t imagine how nice it all was,” she said warmly. “Thank y—”

But her brother wasn’t listening. It seemed like he’d been holding in mountains of words all of Shabbos.

“Kaily,” he said in a rush. “We’ll talk about that later. Now tell me... Tell me how you manage. This is a full-time, and I mean twenty-four hour, job. It’s not really normal to do this. We didn’t sleep, even with help.”

Kaily let him talk until he ran out of steam.

“It’s only like this now,” she placated him. She picked up the knife and absently started dicing some cucumbers, aware that her daughters-in-law were listening intently. “It gets a bit easier, I think, or maybe I’m just used to it.”

“Even so,” Yiddy said. “It’s not a job for one person. Every cup of water, every change of clothes, every move is complicated.”

“So… are you bringing her back tonight?” Kaily asked. She’d hoped for one more night with her family.

“No,” Yiddy said. “I’ll keep my promise and drive her home tomorrow. But… we have to make a plan. It’s not sustainable. Especially, you know, if this shidduch thing… whatever. Who will care for her?”

“Okay, we’ll talk tomorrow,” Kaily agreed. “Thanks again, Yiddy.”

“Was that Yiddy?” Sruly asked, his nose in the pantry.

“It was,” she said. “Aren’t you supposed to be doing invitations now?”

“We are, Ma, but we’re hungry.”

He rummaged in the pantry, finally pulling something from the top shelf.

“This chocolate platter looks good.” He reached out to get the platter she’d hidden on the top shelf. “You can’t hide anything from me,” he teased.

“No!” Kaily said urgently. “It’s mine.”

“Oh, sorry,” Sruly said uncomfortably. “I thought you weren’t eating chocolate… to fit into your gown…” He stared at her strangely. Kaily’s boys, probably wondering whom she was yelling at, slowly inched their way in from the dining room.

The kitchen was quiet.

“It doesn’t matter anymore,” Kaily said, finally breaking the silence. But then she looked at the concerned faces around her. She swallowed.

“But then again, maybe it does matter.”

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COMING TO LIFE THE CATSKILLS

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SOUTH FALLSBURG WOODBOURNE

CATSKILLS EXPLORINGTHE

WEEK 5

WOODBOURNE

Walk up to any Yid in the Catskills and ask where you can get the biggest variety of kosher food in the mountains. The unhesitating answer will be Woodbourne.

Woodbourne is just about the only place in the Catskills whose main street, Hasbrouck Road, is lined with exclusively kosher and Jewish stores. Whatever you’re in the mood for, whether it’s pizza (there are two pizza shops), fleishigs, upscale milchigs, or ice cream, Woodbourne is the place. Sury, who’s been summering in Woodbourne for over 20 years, says, “People come for the food!”

Woodbourne of Old

In the Borscht Belt days, Woodbourne was more famous for its “kuchaleins” than for glitzy hotels. (Kuchaleins means exactly what it sounds like: Guests would cook for their families since they couldn’t afford the more upscale establishments.) However, there were a few famous hotels in Woodbourne. The Aladdin hotel was one of the last to go and hosted “Passover Seders” until its last gasp in the 1990s. The menu featured good old Jewish delicacies like gefilte fish (with horseradish sauce), chopped liver and flanken. It’s now the site of Beirach Moshe bungalow colony, which has one of the biggest chassidish cheder day camps in the mountains, bussing Yiddishe yingerlach in from all the corners of the Catskills.

Down the road from Beirach Moshe is the crumbling facade of the Chalet Hotel. Before it was the Chalet Hotel, it was Chester’s Zunbarg. This was supposed to be a meeting place for the very Jewish, but very secular, Yiddish-speaking intelligentsia, and they prided themselves on being a safe haven for Jewish com-

munists who were blacklisted during the height of the anticommunist panic of McCarthyism in the 1950s.

Today’s Panorama

Today Woodbourne is flourishing. Many summer home developments have cropped up, leading to many city folks coming up to “the country” all year round. Much of the growth has been encouraged by the astonishing reemergence of Woodbourne’s iconic shul, the “Klal Yisroel Shul.”

The original shul building has been there since at least 1920. For years, it stood right next to a theater, personifying in real

CATSKILLS EXPLORINGTHE

life the words of Chazal, “Anu ratzim v’heim ratzim.” The theater has long been shuttered and every year deteriorates further. The shul, on the other hand, has seen fantastic growth under the guidance of the Nikolsburger Rebbe Rabbi Jungreis, shlit”a, who serves all of Klal Yisroel. It is now the minyan factory of the Catskills and is the place where every Yid is welcomed for a warm tefillah and a hot plate of cholent. Visitors to the shul will find the heartwarming sight of every kind of Yid, whether dressed in shorts and a t-shirt or a shvartze rekel, all shuckling with a bren to the same Eibishter. There is even a local legend that one day a local Jew came riding by on his horse and stopped by the shul to get a blessing from the rabbi. (We don’t know if he dismounted before the blessing!)

Although in years past Woodbourne had a somewhat seedy reputation, it is now one of the most family-friendly places to spend the day. After chapping ah vareme Mincha at the Klal Yisroel shul, you can park your husband at Hakol B’sefer, a Woodbourne fixture for seforim and books for many years. Right next door is Café Chocolat, followed by a fleishig restaurant. Bubby’s is every camp girl’s favorite haunt, where you can find everything from jewelry to tichels to souvenirs.

“The stores on Main Street have really changed

over the years,” says Sury. In years past there used to be little hole-in-the wall stores on Main Street. There was a fruit store (Banda’s) that also sold fish, and a candy shop that closed down after a garbage truck crashed into it and the whole thing came down. Now Woodbourne is served by Zest, a large supermarket. The town is also famous for Dougie’s, a fleishig restaurant with outdoor seating, as well as its two pizza shops, Citrus Café and a Satmar butcher shop.

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CATSKILLS EXPLORINGTHE

Popular Landmarks

Right around the corner from Zest Supermarket is the highlight of many a child’s Sunday: the creek. There is a little excuse for a park on the banks, which isn’t much to write home about. But the creek is home to quite a few flocks of “katchkelech,” and the many challah pieces strewn about are evidence of the many visits from delighted Yiddishe kinderlach. The more intrepid can sometimes be seen canoeing along the creek/ river (when it’s dry it’s a creek, when there’s been lots of rain it’s a river!).

One of the most famous Woodbourne camps is Camp Tubby. It’s practically a Woodbourne institution, having opened way back in the 1960s. It became famous for its highly professional major plays, which draws an audience of hundreds of excited summer residents.

One site that is definitely not on your visiting list is actually what Woodbourne is most famous for: The Woodbourne Correctional Facility. It’s a medium-security men’s prison and looms over the mountaintop where it sits, watching over the Catskills and the little

kids who don’t want to go shluffy. (Interesting anecdote: I know someone who once went there to service their large format printers. Why the prison has a print shop I don’t know! The entire prison does not have air conditioning, but the print room was fully air conditioned. Turns out, the inks don’t work very well when it’s too hot.)

Today the grand hotels have long been closed, sold or burned down. The theaters have been consigned to the Borscht Belt graveyard. Down the road from where assimilated Jews spent their summer, Yidden of all stripes now gather en masse to connect with their Creator. Where Jews once sat in elegant dining rooms in evening dress and dined nostalgically on chopped liver and gefilte fish, little boys in curly peyos now recite the alef-beis in a sweet sing-song, connecting to a long chain of Jewish tradition that continues to flourish even in this modern day and age.

CATSKILLS

Woodbourne Bungalow Colonies

52-42 Villas

Beirach Moshe

Bush Gardens

Chalet Estates

Clearwater Estates

Five Star Estates

Golden Hills

Green View

Hill View Homes

Hillar

Holiday Park

KBW Bungalows

Lansman’s

Lakeshore Hills

Park Garden Estates

Rachves Estates

Shady Brook

Skyview

Sunrise Park

Tri-Star

White House Estates

Woodbourne Estates

Woodbourne Resources

Maimon Care

432 NY-52, Woodbourne, NY 12788

The Woodbourne Shul (formerly Bnei Israel)

457 NY-52, Fallsburg, NY 1273

Woodbourne Food

Cafe Chocolat

441 NY-52, Fallsburg, NY 12733

Dougie’s Barbecue

440 NY-52, Woodbourne, NY 12788

Citrus Café

436 NY-52, Woodbourne, NY 12788

iSwirl

437 NY-52, Woodbourne, NY 12788

J2 Pizza

433 NY-52, Woodbourne, NY 12788

Kosher Inn Pizza & Dairy

432 Main Street, Fallsburg, NY 12733

Smash House Burger

407 NY-52, Woodbourne, NY 12788

Zest Supermarket

425 NY-52, Woodbourne, NY 12788

Food Circle Supermarket

184 Hasbrouck Drive, Woodbourne, NY 12788

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by Zahler

Gummies for Their Bones

CINNAMON BUN HEAVEN

FAIGY REINER

After a long summer fast, there’s nothing like that first sweet bite of goodness to rejuvenate you.

CLASSIC CINNAMON BUNS WITH COFFEE FROSTING

These cinnamon buns hit all the right notes: soft, gooey, loaded with pecans, and topped with a dreamy coffee cream frosting. Around here, they never last more than a few minutes after the fast ends.

BASE DOUGH

1½ cups milk

2 T. sugar

1 T. dry active yeast

4¾ cups Wondermills all-purpose flour

¼ tsp. salt

¼ cup sugar

2 eggs

4 T. unsalted butter, melted

1 tsp. vanilla extract

BROWN SUGAR CINNAMON FILLING

¾ cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 T. cinnamon

1½ cups pecans, chopped

1 cup heavy cream

FROSTING

8 oz. cream cheese

¼ cup unsalted butter

1 cup powdered sugar

¼ cup half-and-half

2 tsp. coffee or espresso, diluted in a drop of water

1 tsp. vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line two 9x13-inch baking pans with parchment paper or grease lightly. Set aside.

2. Heat the milk gently until it reaches 110°, warm but not boiling.

3. Stir in the sugar and yeast, and let the mixture sit for 10 to 12 minutes, until it starts to bubble and become foamy.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, salt, additional sugar, eggs, melted butter and the activated yeast mixture. Mix for about 2 minutes until just combined. Add the vanilla extract.

5. Continue mixing the dough for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and pulls cleanly away from the sides of the bowl.

6. Lightly oil a large bowl, and place the dough inside.

7. Cover the bowl with a towel or plastic wrap, and let the dough rise in a warm spot for about 45 minutes, or until it has doubled in size.

FILLING

1. Once risen, roll the dough out into a large rectangle on a floured surface.

2. To prepare the filling, in a bowl, beat together the softened butter, brown sugar and cinnamon until it forms a spreadable paste.

3. Spread the cinnamon filling evenly over the dough, and sprinkle with chopped pecans.

4. Roll up the dough jelly-roll-style, and cut into 1½-inch rounds.

5. Place rolls face-up on the prepared pans. (This recipe will likely require two pans.)

6. Cover with saran wrap, and allow to rise again until the rolls have doubled in size, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

7. Pour 1 cup of heavy cream evenly over the rolls before baking.

8. Bake at 350° for 25 to 27 minutes, or until lightly golden. Do not overbake.

FROSTING

1. Let the rolls cool in the pan while preparing the frosting.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine frosting ingredients. Beat until soft, smooth and fluffy.

3. Once the rolls have cooled, generously top each one with a dollop of the coffee cream frosting. Serve warm and enjoy.

S’MORES CINNAMON BUNS

These S’mores Cinnamon Buns are great fresh out of the oven, with the marshmallow fluff all toasty and golden. They’re perfect for those slow summer nights when everyone’s gathered around the table.

BASE DOUGH

1½ cups milk

2 T. sugar

1 T. dry active yeast

4¾ cups Wondermills all-purpose flour

¼ tsp. salt

¼ cup sugar

2 eggs

4 T. unsalted butter, melted

1 tsp. vanilla extract

BROWN SUGAR CINNAMON FILLING

¾ cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 T. cinnamon

1 cup heavy cream

TOPPINGS

1 sleeve graham crackers (9 crackers)

3 (3.5 oz.) bars dairy chocolate

1 (6.3 oz.) tub marshmallow fluff

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line two 9x13-inch baking pans with parchment paper or grease lightly. Set aside.

2. Heat the milk gently until it reaches 110°, warm but not boiling.

3. Stir in the sugar and yeast, and let the mixture sit for 10 to 12 minutes, until it starts to bubble and become foamy.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, salt, additional sugar, eggs, melted butter and the activated yeast mixture. Mix for about 2 minutes until just combined. Add the vanilla extract.

5. Continue mixing the dough for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and pulls cleanly away from the sides of the bowl.

6. Lightly oil a large bowl, and place the dough inside.

7. Cover the bowl with a towel or plastic wrap. and let the dough rise in a warm spot for about 45 minutes, or until it has doubled in size.

FILLING AND TOPPING

1. On a floured surface, roll the dough out into a large rectangle.

2. To prepare the filling, in a bowl, mix the softened butter, brown sugar and cinnamon into a smooth paste.

3. Spread the filling evenly over the rolled dough.

4. Sprinkle the crushed graham crackers over the cinnamon filling, then top evenly with the chopped chocolate.

5. Tightly roll up the dough jelly-roll-style.

6. Slice into 1½-inch rounds, and place them face-up on your prepared baking pans. (You’ll likely fill both pans.)

7. Cover loosely with plastic wrap, and let rise again until doubled, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

8. Pour 1 cup of heavy cream evenly over the risen rolls.

9. Bake at 350° for 25 to 27 minutes, or until goldenbrown. Do not overbake.

10. Once baked, dollop or spread the marshmallow fluff over the top of the warm cinnamon buns.

11. Return the pans to the oven, and broil at 400° for 5 to 7 minutes, until the marshmallow topping is lightly golden and just toasted. Keep a close eye as it can burn quickly. Serve warm and enjoy!

PEACHES AND CREAM CINNAMON BUNS

These Peaches and Cream Cinnamon Buns are warm and bursting with the sunny flavors of ripe peaches and cozy cinnamon. Whether you’re serving them fresh from the oven or slightly chilled, they’re the perfect way to ease back into comfort after a day without food.

BASE DOUGH

1½ cups milk

2 T. sugar

1 T. dry active yeast

4¾ cups Wondermills all-purpose flour

¼ tsp. salt

¼ cup sugar

2 eggs

4 T. unsalted butter, melted

1 tsp. vanilla extract

BROWN SUGAR CINNAMON FILLING

¾ cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 T. cinnamon

1 cup heavy cream

PEACH JAM

3 ripe peaches, sliced

2 tsp. sugar

3 tsp. corn starch

1 tsp. lemon juice

2 peaches, thinly sliced, for topping

CRUMBLE

¼ cup + 2 T. light brown sugar

½ cup Wondermills all-purpose flour

½ tsp. cinnamon

¼ tsp. kosher salt

3 T. margarine, softened and cubed

CREAM

8 oz. cream cheese

¼ cup unsalted butter

1 cup powdered sugar

¼ cup half-and-half

1 tsp. vanilla extract

PEACHES AND CREAM CINNAMON BUNS

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line two 9x13-inch baking pans with parchment paper, or grease lightly. Set aside.

2. Heat the milk gently until it reaches 110°, warm but not boiling.

3. Stir in the sugar and yeast, and let the mixture sit for 10 to 12 minutes, until it starts to bubble and become foamy.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour, salt, additional sugar, eggs, melted butter and the activated yeast mixture. Mix for about 2 minutes until just combined. Add the vanilla extract.

5. Continue mixing the dough for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and pulls cleanly away from the sides of the bowl.

6. Lightly oil a large bowl, and place the dough inside.

7. Cover the bowl with a towel or plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm spot for about 45 minutes, or until it has doubled in size.

PEACH JAM AND FILLING

1. In a small saucepan, combine sliced peaches, sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice.

2. Simmer over medium heat until the peaches break down and the mixture thickens.

3. Remove from heat and cool completely.

4. On a floured surface, roll the risen dough into a large rectangle.

5. To prepare the filling, in a bowl, beat together the softened butter, brown sugar and cinnamon until a paste forms.

6. Spread the cinnamon mixture evenly over the dough.

7. Spoon the cooled peach jam over the filling.

8. Add a layer of thinly sliced fresh peaches on top.

9. Roll the dough tightly into a log, and slice into 1½-inch rounds.

10. Place into two parchment-lined or greased 9x13-inch pans.

11. Cover and let rise again for 45 minutes, until doubled in size.

CRUMBLE AND CREAM

1. Add all crumble ingredients to a Ziploc bag. Use your hands to mix and form crumbles. Sprinkle crumble evenly over the buns.

2. Pour 1 cup heavy cream evenly over the buns just before baking.

3. Bake at 350° for 25 to 27 minutes, until golden and set.

4. Let cool slightly before frosting.

5. To prepare the cream, beat together all ingredients until fluffy and smooth. Add a generous dollop of cream over each bun before serving. Enjoy!

CAKES BY HAND

LEAH STERN

PHOTO CREDIT: C. TARKIELTAUB

These cakes are uncompromised in taste, texture and (dis)appearance, despite being mixed by hand.

Revisiting the timeless recipes of our beloved food columnist, Leah Stern, a”h

CHOCOLATE BROWNIE

Dense brownies should never be overmixed. Therefore, they make the perfect mix-by-hand cake.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup oil

½ cup cocoa

2¼ cups sugar

6 eggs

2¼ cups flour

2½ tsp. baking powder

1 T. coffee, dissolved in 2 T. hot water

¾ cup water

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°.

2. Mix oil, cocoa and sugar.

3. Add eggs and mix.

4. Add the rest of the ingredients, and mix until well combined.

5. Pour batter into a 10x16” pan, and bake for 50 minutes.

COFFEE CRUMB CAKE

This moist cake is the perfect accompaniment to coffee. Add mini chocolate chips to the crumb topping for even more chocolate flavor.

INGREDIENTS

4 cups flour

2 cups sugar

2 T. vanilla sugar

1¼ cups oil

4 eggs

2 T. coffee, diluted in 3 T. hot water

7 oz. water

3½ tsp. baking powder

TOPPING

¾ cup of the 4-ingredient mixture (see instructions)

2 T. cinnamon

1½ T. cocoa

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°.

2. In a bowl, mix the first four ingredients by hand. Set aside ¾ cup of the mixture for the topping.

3. Add the rest of the ingredients, and mix with a fork.

4. Pour batter into a lined 9x13” disposable pan.

5. Mix cinnamon and chocolate into reserved crumbs. Sprinkle over batter.

6. Bake for 1 hour.

TIP:

Spray bundt pan with flour-based baking spray and freeze it while preparing the batter.

Swirl Bundt

4 eggs

2 cups sugar

1 cup oil

2 ½ cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

Pinch of salt

1 tsp. vanilla extract

½ cup orange juice

10 oz. Bakers Choice

Crunchy Hazelnut Cream

GLAZE:

¼ cup whip topping

2 tbsp. margarine

3 oz. Bakers Choice

Baking Chocolate

¾ cup confection sugar

¼ cup Bakers Choice

Hazelnut Brittle

DIRECTIONS: Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a bowl, beat eggs and sugar until fluffy, then mix in the oil. Fold in the remaining ingredients, except the crunchy hazelnut cream, until just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, add the crunchy hazelnut cream, and swirl to marbleize. Bake for 50 minutes, then let cool completely.

For the glaze, melt margarine, whip topping, and baking chocolate in a double boiler. Stir in confectioners’ sugar until smooth, then mix in hazelnut brittle. Pour over the cooled cake and let set before serving.

Bakery Style Chinese Cookies

6 cups flour

1 ¾ cups sugar

3 eggs

2 sticks margarine

¼ cup oil

1 tsp baking soda

Pinch of salt

½ Bakers Choice

Vanilla Sugar

1 tsp. Bakers Choice

Almond Extract

3 oz. Bakers Choice

Liquid Marble

Bakers Choice

Chocolate Glaze

DIRECTIONS: Mix all the ingredients together, except for the liquid marble. Once combined, add the liquid marble and mix just enough to create a marbled effect. Shape the dough into logs and freeze until firm. Slice the logs into cookies and arrange them on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350°F for 10–15 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool.

Melt the chocolate glaze and pipe it onto the center of each cookie.

H zelnut

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We’re in a period of mourning, a period that brings our reality into stark focus — a nation cast away, yearning for freedom, for home.

Yet for some Yidden, the longing for freedom is part of their day-to-day existence. For these people, the desire for home is constantly at the forefront of their minds.

Here, The Williamsburg View speaks with Mr. Shimon Kaplan*, who has spent the past few Yemei Hadin davening alongside these Yidden in a place devoid of any hint of freedom — the prison compound.

It began two years ago on a sweltering August day, when Mr. Kaplan received a call from Mr. Braun*, a man he describes as “a huge baal chesed.” Mr. Braun visits Yidden in prisons, and he arranges minyanim for them for Yomim Tovim. He had a request.

There was a maximum security prison in Upstate New York, he explained, where a handful of frum Yidden were incarcerated, r”l. They were allowed to bring in enough guests to form a minyan only once a year — Yom Kippur. Mr. Braun had been arranging their Yom Kippur tefillos for a number of years, and never once, he told Mr. Kaplan, did he succeed in getting a kohen to join the group. Yom Kippur was approaching once again, and he desperately wanted to give these Yidden the experience of Birchas Kohanim. Would Mr. Kaplan be willing to spend Yom Kippur in the prison compound to give these unfortunate Yidden the privilege of the blessing?

“I didn’t even hesitate,” Mr. Kaplan shares. “I immediately knew the answer was yes.”

Mr. Kaplan’s wife, Faigy, needed no convincing either.

“It was a scary thought,” she admits. “I

was a wreck that first Yom Kippur, contemplating where my husband was and fearing for his wellbeing.” But she knew he was doing something huge, something only a minority of the population was qualified to do.

“That’s why we’re here,” Mr. Kaplan says, “to perform chesed for Yidden, especially on Yom Kippur, when we all need more zechusim. What was even the question?”

There was another factor that prompted Mr. Kaplan to push past his comfort zone and perform this unusual chesed. “A Yid from my community, someone I know well, has been incarcerated there for years, through no fault of his own.”

Mr. Kaplan had long wanted to visit the man, but

“That’s why we’re here,” Mr. Kaplan says, “to perform chesed for Yidden, especially on Yom Kippur, when we all need more zechusim. What was even the question?”

REHABILITATION ASSOCIATES

Mr. Kaplan had been cleared to spend the holiest day of the year in a maximum security prison. He was overjoyed — and a bundle of nerves

the compound, religious items are, on some level, above the law.

“For example, they don’t allow shoelaces,” Mr. Kaplan says, “so we all have to wear shoes without laces.”

strangely, his every attempt to arrange a visit had been thwarted. “There was always a different reason why I was unable to visit him, despite my numerous arrangements and efforts.”

Now this turned out to be an amazing stroke of hashgacha. Prison regulations dictate that religious services must be a purely religious matter, with no overlapping social motives. Thus, outsiders allowed in for the tefillos must have no personal connection with any of the inmates.

“Before I was cleared to join the group, I had to sign an affidavit stating that I had never visited any of these Yidden. Had I managed to visit once — just once — I would have been instantly disqualified.”

Getting Cleared

The approval process, in Mr. Kaplan’s view, seems designed to discourage potential visitors. There are mounds and mounds of paperwork, a background check, questions and forms, and yet more questions, some of them quite intrusive.

“I had to write an entire essay about why I wanted to join this effort and what motivated me,” he recalls. The paperwork was submitted through Tzedek, an incredible organization that serves as a liaison between people like Mr. Kaplan and the often-formidable prison system. “I would not be able to do this without them,” he says.

Finally, after weeks of bureaucracy, Mr. Kaplan got the word: He was in. He’d been cleared to spend the holiest day of the year in a maximum security prison. He was overjoyed — and a bundle of nerves.

“Erev Yom Kippur,” Faigy says, “I served a seudah, but he couldn’t even eat. He nibbled at some challah while the married kids trickled in so he could bentch them before he had to leave.”

All the while, Tzedek kept calling with more instructions, more rules to bear in mind. It was frightening, Faigy remembers. “I was terrified he’d mess up and end up getting arrested himself.”

The Process and Prep

“Every year, we bring along everything we need for davening,” Mr. Kaplan says. “Talleisim, machzorim, a Sefer Torah and a little shtender.”

While prisons can be stringent with regard to what items are or aren’t allowed into

But the prisoners are all allowed tefillin, and no one made a fuss when the group once brought in a gartel, which is essentially one gigantic shoelace. No Crocs can be worn, though — the group has to come prepared with alternate Yom Kippur footwear, for Crocs, apparently, are a lethal weapon.

“I think they once had a bad story that somehow involved Crocs,” Mr. Kaplan says. “And since then, Crocs have been banned.” Much like the TSA, prison regulations are often guided more by isolated occurrences than common sense.

For the duration of the Yom Tov, Mr. Kaplan’s “home” is a trailer in the prison’s parking lot, though he spends the majority of his 26-hour stay inside the prison building, davening with the inmates.

“There’s a Yid who donates these trailers to all the prisons in the area so the inmates can have minyan for Yom Tov,” Mr. Kaplan explains.

Entering the Compound

The actual prison building, Mr. Kaplan says, looks much like the prisons portrayed in children’s books.

“These buildings are over a hundred years old, and in the past century, the only update has been the addition of cameras all over,” Mr. Kaplan says. The walls are brick, with exposed pipes running along them, and there are bars everywhere. There is no air conditioning in most of the building. “In the room where we daven there are fans, and the heat is awful despite them. The cells, however, don’t even have fans.”

Entering the prison complex involves a lengthy and somewhat unnerving process. “First, you have to hand in your ID, and you get a locker to store your possessions. Then your hand gets stamped with an invisible stamp, and you go through a metal detector.”

The group is then escorted through multiple hallways, one leading into the next. “Every time a door opens in front of you,” Mr. Kaplan relates, “another one first locks behind you.” At the end of the journey, the groups’ hands are scanned by a UV light, and then they’re allowed

access to the cell area. From that point onward, no one can go anywhere on their own. The entire group, inmates and visitors, gets locked into the room where the davening is held, with guards stationed outside. If anyone needs to leave, he can do so only accompanied by a guard.

The expected duration of the tefillos must be submitted in advance, and precisely at the scheduled end time, the guards will disband the group. Mr. Kaplan and his group make sure to allow ample time when scheduling so they don’t run the risk of the tefillos being prematurely terminated.

The Tefillos

If the atmosphere in the building is gloomy, the mood in the makeshift shul is anything but.

“These buildings are over a hundred years old, and in the past century, the only update has been the addition of cameras all over,” Mr. Kaplan says

“There are smiles all around when we walk in,” Mr. Kaplan says, “everyone seems to be in good spirits.”

There are, sadly, five frum Yidden incarcerated in that prison. The visiting group is comprised of six to ensure a complete minyan.

And the inspiration? That’s provided by the inmates themselves.

“They’re unbelievable,” Mr. Kaplan marvels. Most of them have spent years in the facility, with many more left to their sentence. “The person I’d wanted to visit has been there for over ten years, yet he assured me, ‘Hashem doesn’t make mistakes. I’m exactly where I’m meant to be, and when the right time comes, I’ll get out.’”

The tefillos themselves are, in Mr. Kaplan’s words, “extremely derhoiben.” He explains, “They daven with a minyan only once a year, so it’s a very intense davening.” It’s as if these people are transported, past the guards, beyond the bars. For those few hours, it’s just every Yid and his Father.

Remembering last Yom Kippur, Mr. Kaplan says that Birchas Kohanim was unlike any he’s ever experienced. “I felt like my voice was reverberating throughout the entire prison complex.”

Mr. Kaplan recalls a particularly touching moment, when one of the inmates addressed his friends in preparation for the prayer of Ne’ilah.

“Yidden!” He thundered, “One year passes, then another and another, and we’re here, we’re still here! Sometimes we get used to it, our hearts turn to stone, and we start thinking that it’s okay.” But now he beseeched his fellow Yidden to let themselves

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“Sit down,” one inmate begged Mr. Kaplan. “Let me serve you. When do I get the opportunity to do a chesed for a Yid?”

feel, to daven, really daven. “It’s Ne’ilah now, it’s a powerful time. Scream, Yidden, you can poel your yeshuah now!”

His electrifying words, spoken from the depths of his very being, shook every person in the room. The ensuing Ne’ilah seemed to shake the universe itself.

As the skies darken and the walls echo with the fervent hopes of “Leshanah Haba,” food is brought in so the group can break their fast.

“They get a nice meal,” Mr. Kaplan says. “Challah, grape juice, fish, danishes,”

The inmates, in a show of appreciation, ply their visitors with food. “Sit down,” one begged Mr. Kaplan. “Let me serve you. When do I get the opportunity to do a chesed for a Yid?”

Yidden and the Prison System

In his dealings with the prison authorities, has Mr. Kaplan ever encountered antisemitism or hostility?

“Never,” he asserts. “On the contrary, I’ve found the guards to be extremely accommodating and respectful of our religious needs.”

The official facility rules mandate that all of a visitor’s possessions must be removed by the visitor upon exiting the building. On Yom Kippur night, as the group prepared to leave after Maariv, they found themselves in a quandary. Their arms were laden with taleisim, machzorim and everything they’d brought in — and they were now expected to carry all of it out of the prison building. Only… there was no eiruv on premises. There was no way they could take their possessions back to the trailer ‘home.’

“We explained the issue to the guards, and they were very understanding. They made an exception for us, allowing us to keep our things in the locker overnight.” The next morning the group arrived empty-handed, simply removed everything from the lockers, and they were set. “There’s a measure of respect for us and our religion.”

Lasting Impressions

Mr. Kaplan has one message for the community at large: “Daven for them,” he says simply. “I meet erliche Yidden in prison, wonderful people. And when Yom Tov is over, I go home to my family, to my life, and they cannot.”

Especially now in the summer, Mr. Kaplan’s thoughts keep going back to the people he’s met.

“Go visit them,” he urges, “visit as much as possible. As long as an inmate is with visitors, he gets to sit in an air-conditioned room. The rest of the time, he’s stuck in a cell, in this unbearable heat, with no cooling system.”

Most of all, he repeats, daven. Daven with the awareness of their suffering, with the yearning for their release, and with the knowledge that your tefillah can bring it about.

SIVI SEKULA

Steel bars. Concrete walls. Armed guards. These are supposed to be impenetrable, ironclad symbols of justice and order.

Occasional headlines, however, tell a different story. Time and again, those walls are breached, their silence shattered by the sound of footsteps running toward freedom.

A prison break isn’t just an escape. It’s a rupture in the system — a moment where control is lost and chaos erupts. It sets off alarms, ignites manhunts and rattles the public’s sense of safety. Each escape tells its own story of planning, opportunity, desperation or failure in security. Some are quiet and methodical, others erupt in violence. But all of them force society to reckon with the limits of control and the high stakes of confinement.

THE TEXAS SEVEN

December 13, 2000. In the John B. Connally Unit, a maximumsecurity prison in Texas, seven inmates carried out one of the most infamous escapes in American history. The group — Joseph Garcia, Randy Halprin, Larry Harper, Patrick Murphy, Donald Newbury, George Rivas and Michael Rodriguez — were serving sentences that ranged from 30 years to life. Their escape would later be compared to the infamous 1962 Alcatraz breakout.

At around 11:20 a.m., the seven inmates took civilian workers and prison staff hostage in the maintenance area. Disguising themselves in uniforms they had seized from the hostages, they used stolen ID cards and keys to access secure areas. In just under an hour, they’d overpowered guards, stolen sixteen weapons and a hundred rounds of ammunition, and escaped in a maintenance vehicle, leaving chaos behind.

Once free, the Texas Seven went on a weeks-long spree that gripped the nation. They robbed stores for supplies, evaded law enforcement across state lines, and eventually held up a sporting goods store in Irving, Texas. It was during that robbery that Officer Aubrey Hawkins of the Irving police department responded, and was ambushed and murdered by the escapees.

The killing intensified the manhunt. With tips pouring in and national media coverage heating up, the FBI placed all seven on its Ten Most Wanted list. Their break came to an end in January 2001, when a series of tips led authorities to an RV park in Woodland Park,

Colorado, where the fugitives were posing as missionaries. As authorities closed in, one member, Larry Harper, took his own life. The others surrendered.

All six surviving members were sentenced to death. Michael Rodriguez later waived his appeals and was executed in 2008. George Rivas, the ringleader, was executed in 2012, and Donald Newbury and Joseph Garcia were executed a few years later. Randy Halprin and Patrick Murphy remain on death row, serving as a grim reminder of a breakout that cost lives and exposed deep flaws in the system.

THE IRANIAN SPY

Daniel Abed Khalife, a 21-year-old former British Army soldier of Iranian descent, shocked the United Kingdom in 2023 when he escaped from HM Prison Wandsworth while awaiting trial on serious national security charges. Khalife was accused of terrorism and espionage, having allegedly shared classified British military intelligence with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He had worked in the Royal Corps of Signals and reportedly used his position to access sensitive information related to elite military operations.

While held on remand, Khalife carried out a bold escape. On September 6, 2023, he exploited his position working in the prison kitchen to access the loading area. There, using improvised straps, he secured himself to the underside of a delivery truck and was driven out of the prison completely unnoticed.

His escape triggered a massive nationwide manhunt. Police locked down airports and major transit points, while intelligence services scrambled to assess the scale of his betrayal.

Three days later, Khalife was recaptured on a canal towpath in West London. His escape not only humiliated prison authorities, but also exposed serious lapses in the UK’s ability to contain high-risk suspects. The British press reacted with outrage, calling the breakout a national embarrassment and a glaring failure of security. Headlines described Khalife as a “dangerous fool” and a “fantasist,” while editorials demanded urgent reform of prison oversight and intelligence protocols. It reignited concerns over insider threats and the reach of foreign intelligence operations within Western military institutions.

ESCAPE FROM DANNEMORA

In June 2015, two convicted murderers, Richard Matt and David Sweat, escaped from Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, New York, in one of the most elaborate and publicized prison breaks in modern U.S. history. The escape was not only daring, but also deeply embarrassing for state officials, revealing significant failures in oversight, staffing and security at one of New York’s most secure prisons. The two men spent months planning their escape, enlisting the help of a civilian prison employee. This employee smuggled in tools concealed in frozen meat that allowed Matt and Sweat to cut through steel walls and access tunnels beneath the prison. Over several nights, they sawed their way through cell walls, squeezed through a narrow catwalk, and eventually emerged through a manhole cover outside the prison’s 40-foot walls.

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Their disappearance set off a three-week manhunt involving over 1,500 law enforcement officers. The search spanned hundreds of miles of rugged terrain in upstate New York. On June 26, Matt was shot and killed by U.S. Border Patrol agents. Two days later, Sweat was captured alive near the Canadian border.

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Their escape led to an overhaul of security procedures at Clinton and at other state prisons. Investigations revealed a culture of complacency, poor training and staff misconduct. The rogue prison employee was sentenced to prison, and a prison guard was also charged with aiding the escape.

The Dannemora escape was a chilling reminder that even in highly fortified facilities, human error and manipulation can defeat concrete and steel. It exposed how relationships, trust and negligence can become fatal weak points in prison security.

SUPERMAX SUCCESS

If there is a fortress designed to crush escape entirely, it’s the ADX Florence in Colorado.

Nicknamed the “Alcatraz of the Rockies,” this supermax facility was built with a singular goal: to make escape not only impossible, but unimaginable. It houses some of the most dangerous criminals in the United States, including terrorists, drug kingpins and spies. Inmates are confined

to their cells 23 hours a day, often in solitary confinement, with their every movement, breath and blink under relentless observation.

What sets ADX Florence apart from even the strictest high-security prisons is its multilayered defense system. Its 29-acre perimeter is secured by razor wire fencing, vibration sensors, pressure pads and continuous patrols by armed guards and trained attack dogs. Inside, more than 1,400 steel doors are remotely controlled, allowing the facility to lock down instantly at the first sign of trouble. Surveillance cameras eliminate blind spots, and biometric and RFID systems monitor the whereabouts of inmates and staff at all times.

Even within their cells, inmates are not left unchecked. The architecture is deliberately disorienting — narrow windows prevent visual orientation, soundproof walls muffle communication, and concrete furniture removes any possibility of concealment or weapon creation. The air, lighting and water systems are all optimized for monitoring and control. When prisoners are moved, they are escorted by multiple armed officers under strict protocol.

For the first three years of incarceration, prisoners do not come into con-

tact with anyone other than their jailers. Unlike in other facilities, ADX Florence has no public dining room or library where inmates can meet. Instead, meals are delivered to each cell.

MAXIMUM SECURITY

Not all prisons are created equal. Unlike the facilities that housed the Texas Seven or Daniel Khalife — where poor oversight, staff shortages or outdated procedures played a role in security failure — some prisons have proven practically inescapable.

Perimeter fences are laced with razor wire and watchtowers. There are reinforced walls, soundproof cells, underground holding blocks and sally ports. (Sally ports are secured spaces with two interlocking doors, with the first door closing before the other opens. This security measure slows movement between zones and prevents anyone from rushing through unchecked.) Each element of security serves one purpose: containment.

Escape attempts have been made, but none have come close to success. Inmates have tried to manipulate guards, forge documents and stage internal distractions, but the design and operations at ADX Florence are such that even minimal deviations from protocol are immediately detected and contained. High-profile prisoners like al-Qaeda terrorist Ramzi Yousef, Richard Reid (aka the “Shoe Bomber”), and Ted Kaczynski (aka the “Unabomber”) have been held there without incident. Another infamous prisoner who escaped two maximum-security prisons in Mexico, has made no escape attempts at ADX — testament to its unbreachable reputation.

Eyes never blink in modern prisons. High-definition surveillance cameras are placed to eliminate blind spots, streaming footage to command centers staffed around the clock. Biometric scanners confirm the identity of every person moving through each secure area, while radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags track the movement of both inmates and staff.

Motion detectors and seismic sensors can pick up digging or tampering attempts, while laser tripwires guard sensitive zones like gates and control rooms. Some institutions deploy drones for aerial patrols, and others have begun incorporating artificial intelligence that monitors behavior patterns to flag suspicious activity before it escalates.

At the cutting edge, digital mapping systems and automated lockdown protocols can isolate specific cells or wings within seconds. For prisons like ADX Florence, this digital fortress model is the new standard.

The battle against wannabe escapees isn’t just physical. It’s psychological, technological and constant. Modern prisons aim to seal every crack before it’s even noticed.

While critics argue that the conditions inside amount to psychological torture and raise serious human rights concerns, supporters maintain that ADX is a necessary tool for housing the “worst of the worst.” In a world where prison breaks can cost lives, ADX stands as a monument to control — unyielding, unflinching and so far, utterly secure.

EL SALVADOR’S MEGA PRISON

El Salvador’s Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT) is another maximum security facility, which drew global attention in 2023 when President Nayib Bukele launched it as the centerpiece of a militant crackdown on gang violence. Nestled at the foot of the San Vicente volcano near Tecoluca, the 57-acre facility and its 346-acre surrounding military buffer has space for 40,000 inmates, making it the largest prison in Latin America. By mid-2024, it housed over 14,500 prisoners, with plans already underway for expansion.

Security at CECOT is unmatched. Two concrete walls — one almost 30 feet tall and another almost 2 feet thick — are topped with electrified wire and backed by nineteen guard towers. Crushed gravel alerts guards to every step, and double layers of electrified fencing act as further barriers. Inside, cell blocks under constant CCTV surveillance can house dozens of inmates each. Anyone entering faces strict inspections, including X-ray screening. Those labeled gang or terrorist affiliates are placed under prolonged solitary confinement and 24-hour artificial lighting, ensuring no darkness or privacy.

Since CECOT’s inauguration, and the extension of the “state of exception” in March 2022 (a legal measure that suspended certain constitutional rights and enabled mass de-

tentions of suspected gang members without warrants), El Salvador has experienced an astounding drop in homicides. In 2019, the year before Bukele took office, there were approximately 2,398 homicides (about 38 per 100,000 people). By 2024, the number dropped to 114 homicides, or 1.9 per 100,000, marking the lowest rate in the Americas and representing a decline of more than 95%.

CECOT also made headlines due to a controversial deal with the Trump administration. In March 2025, the U.S. began funding the deportation of illegal immigrants with criminal records to be housed in CECOT, paying El Salvador $6 million for the service, raising alarms about sovereignty, legality and human rights.

Human rights watchdogs, including the UN and Human Rights Watch, have called out the facility’s harsh conditions: overcrowded cells with often less than 1 square meter per inmate, forced head-shaving, round-the-clock lighting, no family visits, and limited legal and medical access. One critical editorial described it as “Guantánamo on steroids,” warning that its existence normalizes authoritarian methods in civilian society. Still, many Salvadorans, weary of years of gang-related extortion and murder, see CECOT’s effect: the enormous drop in murders. Yet the prison’s rapid expansion, mass detentions with minimal due process and its use in international deportation schemes raise profound questions about balancing security and human dignity.

Prison breaks make headlines — but their impact runs deeper. Each escape challenges the systems meant to protect society, and reminds us how thin the line between order and chaos can be.

THE FALL OF ASSAD

The fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024 reverberated through Syria’s most notorious detention center — Sednaya Prison, located north of Damascus. Initially built in the 1980s and notorious for its brutal treatment of political prisoners, including women, children and dissenters, Sednaya became symbolic of Assad-era repression.

On the night of December 7, 2024, forces aligned with the rebel coalition entered and seized the prison. Hundreds of prisoners walked free: a mix of political dissidents, journalists, entire families and children — many of whom had been held for years without trial.

The breach of Sednaya was more than a physical escape; it peeled back two decades of state secrecy: hidden torture chambers, mass graves and forced disappearances. Survivors emerged disoriented and traumatized, while the international community grappled with conflicting narratives — celebration of liberation on one side, and fear of extremist resurgence on the other.

PRISON BREAK STATISTICS

How often do dramatic prison escapes really occur? Surprisingly infrequently, but when they do, the

UNITED STATES

Roughly 2,000 escape attempts each year, mostly from lowersecurity facilities. High-security breakouts are virtually unheard of.

LATIN AMERICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST

Higher numbers due to corruption, civil unrest and underfunded institutions.

EUROPE

Much lower rates due to rigorous oversight, staff training and tight regulations.

What happens to escapees?

Over 85% of escapees are tracked down and recaptured within 72 hours.

Here are some facts.

For those who evade the arm of the law longer than that, the average time on the run until recapture is about one month.

Around 36% of escapees commit additional crimes during that time, with more than half involving violence.

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A Displaced Memory

The rich smell of cooked beets filled the air in the mess hall, and Hinda’s mouth watered. It also flooded her with memories, a fact she found surprising. She’d gone through gehinnom, managed to cling to life on a rope knotted with miracles, and lost her family, home and basic human dignity all in one go. How could she still remember her mother’s borscht?

Her mother was no longer here, and her pickling jars were probably being used by some gaptoothed homemaker smug at her nation’s success at banishing the Jews. Hinda could imagine the woman mixing the contents of the jars with the wooden spoon marked with an X for parve. She probably let it drip onto the floor Hinda’s mother had kept so clean, it was no big deal if the baby crawled around with bare legs.

So many sweet babies, grown tall and sturdy and handsome on her mother’s dumplings and her father’s love, all gone.

Hinda stood in line, a soup bowl in hand. A relief worker ladled some soup into her bowl, and Hinda, inhaling, let the steam waft over her face.

She carried her soup to the wooden table and sat down on the bench. Next to her sat Gittel Kahan, from a small town in Romania. It was hard to talk to Gittel. Hinda wasn’t sure whether it was due to her personality, or whether the girl’s near-silence was the result of spending nearly five years living her last hour every hour.

Tearing off a chunk of bread from the slice in front of her, Hinda dunked it into her soup and stared at the pink seeping all the way up to the crust. Then she caught the piece of bread with her spoon and lifted it to her mouth.

“My mother used to make the richest borscht,” said a girl from across the table. Ruchel, her name was. From Czechoslovakia. Her new tichel was neatly tied at the nape of her neck.

“So did mine,” Hinda said. “She also used to make a delicious, garlicky beet soup. When I have a kitchen of my own, that’s the first thing I’ll cook in it.”

Gittel eyes followed the conversation silently. Then she looked back into her plate and continued eating.

TBut Hinda couldn’t tell Ruchel that it was all right for her to get married, when her husband came from a family who were mechutanim with her own family. Hinda, too, would marry, but only when she’d find a man who knew her yichus, who remembered the way her father’s smile would light up the shul whenever he shared a good vort with his kehillah, or offered a word of chizuk to a bochur. He had been the venerated Rav Rubinstein, and the knowledge filled the hole in her heart.

She was royalty, only no one in Bad Gastein knew it. She was a displaced people, not a displaced person. And she would only marry the man who knew it too.

She was royalty, only no one in Bad Gastein knew it. She was a displaced people, not a displaced person. And she would only marry the man who knew it too

he Bad Gastein displaced persons camp offered vocational training to the DPs living there. (Hinda disliked the word persons. They were all individuals, few had family, but they were still part of a People.)

Hinda had chosen to learn millinery. Her father had been a rav in their native Pinsk, and her mother, as a proud rebbetzin, had covered her sheitel with a beautiful hat. Her father’s face always broke into a smile when he saw his wife don her hat.

“Dein panim sheint in dus,” he would say. “Your face shines when you put that on.”

And Hinda, as a little girl, could hardly wait to wear her own hat, and have her own husband praise its beauty, its grace. So she chose millinery, the art of hat-making.

Many of the girls in the camp had already celebrated their own weddings. Some had even been blessed with a child. But she fashioned hats, and waited.

“What are you waiting for?” Ruchel kept asking her.

The gossamer thread between what a human heart can tolerate and what it can’t is often a whisper of hope, a flicker of light yet to come.

Displaced people, Hinda thought, spent their days clinging to hope and noticing the light so their hearts could stay alive, pumping life-giving blood along with enough optimism to keep them from getting lost in the dungeons of their memory.

But sometimes things slipped… and that’s when it was obvious how broken, how battered, her fellow DPs were.

Hinda was back in the mess hall, again with Gittel at her side, when a commotion at the serving table caught her attention.

“WORMS!” a white-haired man howled. “WORMS!” Straightening his stooped back as much as he could, he took his bowl of soup and threw it against the stone wall. It shattered upon impact and landed on the floor in a puddle of worm-like noodles, soup and earthen smithereens.

Silence fell over the mess hall. Several men jumped up, napkins in hand, and went to clean up. Another man, tall and thin, approached the white-haired man, who was by then crouched on the floor, fist over his mouth, keening. The taller man placed a gentle arm around the smaller fellow, helped him up, and led him to an empty table in the corner of the hall. Then he sat down next to him, murmured something gently, and patted him on the arm.

Slowly, the murmuring in the room picked up again, and Hinda tore her eyes away from the two men in the corner. Ruchel, who was sitting farther along at the table, exchanged a glance with her, and Hinda knew what she was thinking: That could be any of us.

“You should marry him,” Gittel said abruptly, an idea so

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strange, Hinda almost forgot to be surprised by the fact that the girl was talking to her at all.

“He — he looks like he’s eighty,” said Hinda, spilling the first thought that came to mind.

“He’s thirty-two,” Gittel said, with obvious effort. “White before his time. But I meant my brother. The other man.”

Hinda looked at her, flummoxed. “Why?”

“He’s a good man. Meet him — just once?”

And more out of pity for Gittel than anything else, Hinda agreed.

Yecheskel Kahan turned out to be a kind, soft-spoken man, and a talmid chacham. Hinda recognized the singsong in his voice, and the sefer peeking out of his pocket. He spoke about his extended family, chashuve Yidden some of them, and about his father, who had been a mohel inderheim.

Then he mentioned his late wife, who died still on the trains, and Hinda’s heart stopped.

“I — I didn’t realize you’d lost a wife,” she said haltingly. “I’m so sorry to hear that. Gittel didn’t mention anything.”

Then Hinda thought she heard Yecheskel mention “Pinsk,” and her heart jumped.

“...for a Shabbos. My chavrusa got married there on a Sunday,” he was saying.

Hinda grasped at that thin strand of possibility. “Do you — do you remember the shul you visited?” she asked, desperation clawing at her words. “It wasn’t the more modern city synagogue, was it?”

All Hinda could think were the words her father used to say when shadchanim called about her older sister Surale: “Torah, yiras Shamayim, and middos, middos, middos”

“Gittel doesn’t say more than she needs to,” Yecheskel said, a sad smile in his beard. “I apologize; we didn’t mean to mislead you.”

“No, no,” she said, shaking her head. She could hardly be misled when she knew next to nothing about this man, and couldn’t find out more even if she wanted to.

She also took a turn sharing stories and memories, some of inderheim and some of gehinnom, and Yecheskel listened respectfully, and thoughtfully.

All Hinda could think during their meeting were the words her father used to say when shadchanim called about her older sister Surale: “Torah, yiras Shamayim, and middos, middos, middos.”

She was on her own here, on a quiet bench in an Austrian DP camp, but she thought her father would approve.

But could she give her heart to a man who already carried so many memories in his own heart?

And how could she marry a man who didn’t know where she came from? Didn’t remember the home she was raised in? Didn’t understand that she grew up on the melody of Torah and tales of Tanach, and that she longed for a home like that, one built on a foundation of peace and truth?

“I remember some of it,” Yecheskel said. “The beautiful leining, the aufruf, pekelach falling to the bimah right under the chandelier… I was afraid crystals would fall off,” he said with a small laugh.

Hinda pictured the scene hungrily. “Yes! That sounds just like my father’s beis midrash!”

“It may have been,” Yecheskel said cautiously. “I don’t know for sure. I’m not sure the rav’s name was Rubinstein, but I’m not sure it wasn’t, either.”

There was a pause as Hinda pinned hope to hope, chained light to light.

Yecheskel stood up, and Hinda blinked away the deluge of memories.

“Well,” he said. He took off his hat and adjusted his yarmulke. “It’s almost time for supper.” He threw a shy smile at Hinda. “Thank you for your time.”

Hinda watched him walk toward the mess hall. He seemed to be a kind man. A good man. Did she have the luxury of waiting for someone like she always imagined she’d marry? Some landsman from Pinsk, some family of family?

The months were marching forward, and it was time to rebuild.

Hinda and Yecheskel stood under the chuppah a few weeks later. It was a balmy summer day, and the weather was delightful. Hinda wore the gauze-turned-veil Ruchel had worn to her own wedding, and a white dress donated by the Joint. The dress, too, had been worn by previous kallahs in the camp, and Hinda hoped all of their collective tefillos rose straight up through the chuppah to their Father on high.

Ruchel and Gittel walked Hinda to the chuppah, and Ruchel’s husband and Yecheskel’s chavrusa escorted the chasan

The brachos were recited, and Hinda stood, eyes clenched, as tears streamed down her face. She tried controlling her

sobs, tried to cry silently, but she felt her parents’ presence, hoped they were proud, and hoped she and Yecheskel would bring them nachas

The official wedding ceremony was over fairly quickly, partly because there were two more weddings taking place that day, and the veil had to go from kallah to kallah.

But supper that evening was festive. Yecheskel had gotten a shochet to prepare some meat, and the new couple and some friends enjoyed a meal in an empty room off the mess hall. The mood was upbeat, and afterward, the guests moved to the then-empty mess hall to dance to music played by a round-shouldered man with an accordion.

As she danced with her friends on the women’s side of the makeshift mechitzah, Hinda kept glancing over at the musician. He sat near the mechitzah, angled toward the men. The accordion sat on his lap, and his feet were tapping in time to the music while tears rolled down his face. He captured the essence of the moment with quiet, profound eloquence that Hinda found very fitting.

After their marriage, Hinda and Yecheskel moved into a room in one of the requisitioned hotel buildings that comprised Bad Gastein. American soldiers surprised them with some chocolate in honor of their wedding, and over the next week, Hinda and Yecheskel slowly made their way through this sweetest of gestures.

know Gittel either.

It was just Yecheskel she knew, and for Hinda, it was like they were floating about in the big wide world with no tether to the ground.

Those first few months after their wedding involved the delicate balance of creating a new reality while healing past scars — scars that would never fade, no matter how long Hinda and Yecheskel would live.

Just like the girls with whom Hinda used to share a room, she and her new husband soon grew accustomed to each other’s nighttime terrors, triggers and sources of illogical terror.

There was no other place to keep bread or fruit, and there was no way she could live in a room that didn’t have at least some food hidden away — just in case

For the rest of Hinda’s life, chocolate would always taste like that new beginning in Bad Gastein.

After settling into their new home, they agreed that America was their next stop. Both had family there, and they began actively working on their immigration applications.

Hinda’s new last name was Kahan. Kahan was a very special name, really, harkened back to those beautiful days of glory. But who was she, Hinda Kahan? She didn’t know her in-laws, and she suspected that the Gittel Kahan she knew was only a shell of her former self, which meant Hinda didn’t really

Like the white-haired man who couldn’t abide noodles in soup, Hinda soon learned that Yecheskel didn’t like closing doors that led to small spaces. This drove Hinda crazy sometimes. They were living in their own, cozy space, and no matter how neat she kept their tiny apartment, those open closet doors always got under her skin. But who was she to argue with nightmares of demons who sprung out of closets?

Besides, Hinda knew Yecheskel grew mildly irritated when she herself tucked leftover rolls and fruit inside their armoire — and he said nothing at all.

(Middos, middos, middos, Hinda always thought to herself when he was kind to her like this, and she would imagine her father looking down at her, beaming with happiness at her good fortune.)

It wasn’t like she thought it was perfectly normal to store clothes and food in one place, either, but there was no other place to keep bread or fruit, and there was no way she could live in a room that didn’t have at least some food hidden away — just in case.

Just in case what? Just in case she was hungry in the middle of the night. Hinda remembered those nights where she was so hungry, she contemplated eating the splinters from her bed.

She couldn’t abide being hungry. She was ashamed at how many weeks in advance she dreaded fast days. (Over the years, Yecheskel learned how to help. He’d fill the house with food before Yom Kippur and Tisha B’Av, and while for most people, seeing an overabundance of food was a terrible tease on a fast day, for Hinda, it was just what she needed to

STORE HOURS: SUNDAY - THURSDAY 11:30 AM - 7 PM

FRIDAY (WINTER) 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM | (SUMMER) 11:30 AM - 2 PM

counter the hunger.)

So Hinda grew to know Yecheskel’s terrors, and Yecheskel grew to know hers, just like they were growing familiar with each other’s mannerisms, and word choices, and eating habits. It was all part of getting married and linking their lives together.

One day, with Elul in the air, Hinda and Yecheskel were taking a stroll around the camp. As they walked, Hinda described to Yecheskel what their family sukkah looked like back home.

“Everyone knew to visit Rav Rubinstein’s sukkah,” Hinda said, a trace of pride in her voice. “It was very spacious, and the walls were hung with glittering fabric my mother once bought in Vitebsk.”

“Did people use your father’s sukkah, or did all the members of the kehillah have their own?” Yecheskel asked.

Hinda shook her head. “All of Pinsk was dotted with sukkahs. Well, maybe not all of it,” she amended, “but the Jewish section, certainly.”

Yecheskel’s head snapped up. “Did you say Pinsk?” he asked. “I thought you grew up in Minsk!” Hinda just looked at him. Her eyes were dimming. “So — so that Shabbos aufruf was in…”

Hinda accepted the handkerchief and blew her nose like a trumpet. Neither of them cracked a smile.

By now her breathing had slowed, and she sipped from the water.

“That Shabbos in Minsk, you thought Pinsk…” Yecheskel began carefully. “Was that why you married me? For a memory?”

There was bewilderment in his gaze, and more than a little hurt, and Hinda’s heart broke a little more.

She shook her head quickly, maybe too quickly, and thought to herself, Torah, yiras Shamayim, and middos, middos, middos. But she didn’t say it.

“It — it was just a good sign,” she said instead, her voice scratchy with tears.

She’d lost everything — her family, her home, her health — and now she had lost her one remaining dream

“Minsk, yes. I’m sorry,” Yecheskel whispered. The raw compassion in his face was too much for Hinda, and she looked away.

“I — I need to — ” she began, and then she broke off and began running toward home.

She didn’t make it too far before she fell, kneeling to the ground beside the road, as a torrent of tears surged out of her very soul.

She’d lost everything — her family, her home, her health — and now she had lost her one remaining dream.

After a few minutes of inconsolable weeping, Hinda sensed a Yecheskel-shaped shadow fall over her. She swallowed her sobs, gulping and gasping for breath, until she was composed enough to follow her husband home. Inside, she followed her husband dumbly to a chair and sat down. Yecheskel brought her a glass of water and sat down next to her.

“I’m so sorry,” he said quietly. “I’m sorry I caused you pain.”

Hinda only shook her head. She didn’t trust herself to speak.

Yecheskel stood up and retrieved a clean handkerchief, which he placed next to Hinda’s glass of water.

Yecheskel nodded, and then he said, “And now, do you feel like it was all a mistake?”

“No,” whispered Hinda. “My father would say it was meant to be. I’m just sad you don’t know where I come from.”

There was silence in the room. Hinda took another sip of water.

Then Yecheskel spoke up. “I didn’t know my shver, that’s true,” he said. “But I believe you are, and always will be, a daughter of your parents’ home.”

Tears began dripping from Hinda’s eyes again, each one hitting the table with a tiny splat

Yecheskel stood up to give her some privacy, and all Hinda could think was, middos, middos, middos.

Yecheskel was an early riser. He was usually gone by the time Hinda woke up, and the next morning was no exception.

As she entered the main area of their small apartment, Hinda noticed a note sitting on the table. It was written in Yecheskel’s still unfamiliar scrawl, and she sat down to read it.

Dearest Hinda, America will be a new beginning for both of us. In addition to relocating to a new home, I would also like to change our names. You and I, we will be Yecheskel and Hinda Rubinstein. I feel honored to perpetuate your father’s legacy.

Have a good day,

Yecheskel

TISHA B’AV DAY CAMP

Dearest Preteen,

The Williamsburg View is back this year with another wonderful day camp schedule!

Come Tisha B’Av, your mother and sisters will be fasting, and your help will be super appreciated. We know running a day camp for your siblings might be hard, but with mounds of positivity, we’re sure you’ll do an amazing job!

Here are two tips to keep in mind:

1. Being calm and kind to the kids will make your day so much easier, and so much more successful. We’re sure you can do it!

2. The schedule below has been created to help you out. If you feel that any part of it isn’t a good fit for you or your family, simply choose a different activity that will be more suitable.

Hoping to meet you all in Yerushalayim!

Trany

9:45–10:15

Getting Dressed

Start your day the night before by setting out the kids’ clothing. This will make it easier for them to get dressed on their own without having to wake anyone who’s fasting. It’s okay for them to do their hair themselves; they’re not going anywhere! Remember to make sure that everyone washes negel vasser — but only until the knuckles!

10:15–10:45 Breakfast

Spread out a plastic tablecloth for easy cleanup, and seat the kids around the table. Serve a filling breakfast they like — you want everyone to eat it happily! Ideas: Bread with peanut butter or scrambled eggs, yogurt, or cereal and milk.

10:45–11:00

Davening

This is a great opportunity to explain to your younger siblings that Tisha B’Av is a time to daven for the Geulah.

Davening with kids of different ages might be a challenge. Start by saying Modeh Ani with everyone present. Then direct the older kids to continue davening on their own, while you sing together with your younger siblings.

11:00–11:10

Tehillim

Say a kapitel Tehillim pasuk by pasuk with the whole group, and ask for Moshiach to come very soon.

11:10–11:30

Storytime

Gather everyone together in a cozy cuddle on the couch, and tell them an exciting story. You can choose a book in advance, or it could be a story you heard in school and will repeat for your siblings.

Get everyone involved by cueing them to chant repeating words from the story using exaggerated facial expressions, choosing different voices for different characters, and acting out what’s going on as you read.

Another option is to play a story CD. It can be a new one, which is exciting, or one you know they love. You can set up crayons and paper for the kids to color while they listen.

11:30–12:00

Tower Game

Are the kids ready for some real fun?

Help them build a tall tower with plastic cups! On Tisha B’Av, the tower is the Bais Hamikdash, built with our mitzvos.

SUPPLIES

1 pack of plastic cups

Permanent marker

HOW TO PLAY

STEP 1: Have kids think of any mitzvah that could help build the Bais Hamikdash.

STEP 2: Give each kid a turn to share their ideas, and write each mitzvah on a plastic cup with the permanent marker. Make sure to praise the kids for their creativity!

STEP 3: Use the cups to build a tower. How high can your mitzvah tower go?

Alternatively, you can divide the cups into two equal piles, and have two teams race to finish their tower.

12:00–12:30

Writing Letters

Encourage the kids to write a letter to someone they miss, or just want to thank. It could be a mother, grandmother, friend or sister in camp.

SUPPLIES

Colored papers

Markers

Stickers

Envelopes

Stamps

INSTRUCTIONS

Give each kid a paper to write a letter to someone they love. Give them craft supplies to decorate it. Once they’re done, help them stamp and address their envelopes, and walk together to the nearest mailbox to mail it.

12:30–12:45

Cleanup Time

Direct the kids to clean up all the supplies from the morning’s activities. Give each child a specific task. Sing a cleanup song to make it more fun.

12:45–1:30

Lunch Time

Spread out a plastic tablecloth for easy cleanup, and seat the kids around the table. Cut up vegetables like peppers, cucumbers and cherry tomatoes, and serve it to the kids with some water or juice to drink. While they’re eating, make pizza in the Betty Crocker. To keep the kids at the table during lunch, play 21 Questions while they eat.

Say the brachos aloud so everyone can answer amen! Bentsch together, and then clean up.

1:30–2:00

Food Fun

SUPPLIES

Marshmallows

Toothpicks

INSTRUCTIONS

Give each child a plate with marshmallows and toothpicks. Use toothpicks to connect the marshmallows to each other and build unique shapes or creatures. For kids who need ideas to get them started, suggest they build a swing, house or flower (see photo).

2:00–2:30

Free Play

Have each child choose a toy for free play. You can direct them to age-appropriate toys like MagnaTiles, puzzles or LEGO.

2:30–3:15

Craft Time

Let’s create a beautiful sign featuring the stones of Yerushalayim! This is a great project that works well for all ages.

SUPPLIES

White cardstock

Masking tape (natural color)

Green colored paper

Black marker

Instant coffee

Hot water

Paper towels

INSTRUCTIONS

STEP 1: Give each kid a piece of white cardstock before helping them with the following instructions.

STEP 2: Rip off a 1-inch piece of masking tape, and stick it on the bottom corner of the page. Continue placing small pieces of tape in a row across the bottom of the page, leaving small spaces between them. These will become the first row of stones.

STEP 3: When the bottom row is done, create a row above it. Continue creating rows of tape until you are about 2 inches from the top of the page.

STEP 4: Mix 2 tablespoons of instant coffee with hot water. This will be used as a “stain” for the maskingtape “stones.”

STEP 5: Dip a paper towel into coffee, and start “painting” the stones. Brush lightly so the cardstock doesn’t get too wet.

STEP 6: Tear off a small piece of green colored paper, and crumple it to resemble grass. Stick it between the stones, so it looks like grass growing from between the stones. Add several throughout the wall.

STEP 7: With a marker, write םילשורי

in the sky (the 2-inch space above the stones). Finally, let the cardstock dry, and hang it with pride!

3:15–4:00

Baking Cookies

After so many fun activities, a simple baking activity will help everyone wind down.

(You may choose to prepare the dough in advance to make this activity shorter and more doable with little kids.)

INGREDIENTS

2 sticks margarine

3 eggs

4⅓ cups flour

1 T. vanilla sugar

2 cups confectioners’ sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

INSTRUCTIONS

STEP 1: Mix all dough ingredients well to form a smooth, soft dough. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

STEP 2: Give each child a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, or sprayed with oil.

STEP 3: Divide cookie dough evenly among the kids.

STEP 4: Form cookies with cookie cutters, or by hand. Optional: Distribute sprinkles and chocolate chips to add fun and flavor to the cookies.

STEP 5: Once the cookies are ready, bake at 350° for 10 minutes.

While the cookies are baking, clean up. Assign each child a specific task.

When the cookies are ready, have each child choose one or two as a snack, which they can eat while looking quietly at a book.

Congratulations!

You did a great job keeping everyone busy and occupied in a meaningful way! May we celebrate next Tisha B’Av as a Yom Tov, together in Yerushalayim!

Let us know how your Tisha B’Av day camp worked out to be entered into a raffle to win a surprise Toys4U package!

NAME:

AGE: _________________________________________________________________

SCHOOL:

PHONE NUMBER: _______________________________________________

HOW MANY CHILDREN PARTICIPATED IN YOUR CAMP? _________________________________________________

WHICH ACTIVITIES DID YOU DO?

WHICH OF YOUR OWN IDEAS DID YOU TRY?

WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE IN THE FUTURE?

WHAT OTHER COMMENTS DO YOU HAVE?

Submit this form by Thursday, August 7, for a chance to win!

Email: contest@thewview.com Fax: 718-247-8881

IN REVIEW

PLAYMOBIL

BACKSTORY

Born in Germany in 1974, Playmobil was the brainchild of Hans Beck, a model aircraft enthusiast turned toymaker. During the oil crisis a year earlier, plastic was scarce, so Beck was tasked with designing a small toy that used very little material, but delivered big play value. The result was the iconic three-inch figure with movable limbs and a fixed grin. Did you know that the classic Playmobil faces intentionally lack noses? Beck designed “nameless, nose-less” figures that could be anyone, anywhere, so that kids could project their own ideas onto them.

At first, no one was interested in the toy. Then, at the 1974 Nuremberg Toy Fair, a Dutch buyer ordered an entire year’s production on the spot. That one order sparked a global empire, and by year’s end, Playmobil had earned a whopping one-sixth of its parent company’s total revenue.

The line has remained timeless. No licensed gimmicks, no batteries; just modular simplicity, molded in Malta, where one machine nicknamed “the Octopus” cranks out 100 million figures a year. It’s humble, wholesome, and very hard to outgrow.

LOGO

The cheerful blue logo features a friendly, smiling face above the wordmark in a chunky, rounded sans-serif, and the splitdot “i” gives it a quirky charm. The emblem evokes warmth, trust and fun — the very feelings Playmobil inspires in kids everywhere.

TISHA B’AV YAHRTZEIT OF THE RAV YAAKOV YITZCHOK HALEVI HOROWITZ, THE CHOZEH

OF LUBLIN (1745–1815)

The Chozeh of Lublin, zt”l, one of the greatest tzaddikim of the early chassidic movement, was known as the “Seer of Lublin” for his spiritual vision and ruach hakodesh. A towering figure in Polish chassidus,

How did the business get started?

STREET VIEW

Our grandfather, Shia Freund, bought the business right after the war. At the time, the neighborhood was a high-end place with expensive condos and wealthy residents. Eventually, the neighborhood changed, and things got rough.

There was a fruit store next to the fish store, and the two establishments shared a phone, which was installed in the fruit store. When a call came in for the fish store, they’d klap on the steam pipe to let us know. The Italian owner of the fruit store would never go home early because he didn’t want to leave Zeidy alone; that’s how dangerous it was.

Back then, the Manhattan fish market was run by the mafia. If you wanted to buy one box of whitefish, you had to take ten boxes of other fish you didn’t need. Later, Zeidy started going straight to the wholesalers, even driving to Canada at times to get the fish he wanted.

Most days, Zeidy would wake up at 3 a.m., take the train to Williamsburg, buy the fish, and deliver it himself. Soon business was booming, and since there were no other workers, Moshe Freund, even as a bochur, would come by after yeshiva to help out.

What is your most popular fish?

Today it’s salmon, followed by bronzini. Around 50 or 60 years ago, halibut was more popular, because salmon was so expensive; in fact, it was treated almost like gold. At $20 a pound, which would be about $270 a pound in todays

he drew thousands of chassidim from across Europe, and his influence continues to shape chassidus to this day.

Born in 1745 in the town of Dukla, Poland, Rav Yaakov Yitzchak Horowitz came from a family of distinguished rabbanim and talmidei chachamim. He became a talmid of the Maggid of Mezritch, and later of Rav Elimelech of Lizhensk, who molded his approach to avodas Hashem and uplifted his holy neshamah

After the passing of his rebbe Rav Elimelech, he settled in Lublin, where he became known as the Chozeh, the Seer of Lublin, because Yidden believed he could see things far beyond the physical — from deep inside a person’s ne-

market, Zeidy would take it home at night just to make sure it didn’t get stolen. It was transported by car, where it sat in a bag in the front seat.

What’s the most challenging part of the business?

Keeping the fish super fresh and of high quality. Every single box that comes in must meet the Freund standard. We’re known for that. Getting orders out on time is also a huge job, especially with today’s demand.

Can you share any memorable stories?

Years ago, Tzvi Dov and Pinchus Yoel Freund would drive up to the Catskills themselves, and at each destination, they would call out on a mic that the fish truck had arrived. Without today’s technology, the announcement would let people know to come to the truck and pick up their fish.

We also remember that rabbanim and ehrliche Yidden would often come into the store in person to buy their fish l’kavod Shabbos.

What do you want customers to know?

No one has fish like us. Our fish goes from the water to the store, and is sold on the same day. It’s also tracked by a computerized chip for temperature and freshness every step of the way. That’s what makes it premium.

shamah, or even matters in Shamayim. With just one look, he seemed to know a Yid’s struggles, thoughts and potential.

The Chozeh of Lublin, together with Rav Mendel of Rimanov and the Kozhnitzer Maggid, joined in a hidden effort to bring Moshiach. With fiery tefillos, fasts and deep kavanos, they tried to awaken the Geulah early. But in Shamayim, it was decreed that the time had not yet come, and all three tzaddikim were taken from the world within the same year.

Though his mission was cut short, the Chozeh’s avodah left a deep imprint on the world, planting sparks that continue to illuminate the path toward the final Geulah.

Est. 1949

BOGGLE TOURNAMENT

HOW TO PLAY:

1. Gather round the table to play a family game of Boggle, using this Boggle board.

2. Once you have a winner, fill out the form below in its entirety

3. Email the form to comments@ thewview.com or fax to 718-2478881 by Sunday at midnight.

4. Two winners will be drawn each week, each of whom will receive by mail a $10 gift card at Sprinkles!

PLAYING RULES:

Find words on the board containing four letters or more. Letters of a word must be connected in a chain (each letter should be adjacent to the next either vertically, horizontally or diagonally), and each letter can only be used once in a given word. The following are not allowed in Boggle: Adding “s” to a word • Proper nouns • Abbreviations • Contractions • Acronyms

POINTS

4-letter words: 2 points | 5-letter words: 3 points | 6-letter words: 5 points | 7-letter words: 7 points | 8-letter words: 9 points | 9+ letters: 12 points

HINT

Each Boggle board hides a word of nine letters or more!

G E B T M F H A P O

N U K C E I R R I V

E H S A D

Family name: ___________________________________________________________________ Phone: ___________________________________________________________________________

Full mailing address: _________________________________________________________

Full name of winner: _________________________________________________________

Amount of points: ____________________________________________________________

Full names of competing players:

List some words only the winner found:

you to the hundreds of readers who sent in beautifully colored pages! Keep coloring!

Rechela Moskovics, 4

Sarah Miriam Matzner, 7, Pupa

Baila Esty Krausz, 5, Satmar

Zevy Berdugo, 11

050.412.3651

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HELP WANTED

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TEACHER POSITION

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Sewing designer gowns for young married sis of bride, post high school girls. Your Tailor will come to you, for Bridal, Hems, Suits, highest quality personalized tailoring experience from start to finish. Fitting & delivery free. Rush Alterations, garment repair services . Great, reasonable prices. Call for appointment 347-754-1413.

MAKEUP ARTIST

Certified makeup artist for all your special occasions. Call: Yides Neuwirth 917.309.6000 718.858.0815

FURNITURE REPAIRS

Cabinet & General Repairs, specializing in ChosonKallah Apt. Call: 718.633.6231

AYIN HORAH

The renowned Rebetzin Aidel Miller from Yerushalayim Is always available to remove Ayin Horah over the phone. Call: 718.689.1902 or 516.300.1490

GARTLECH

We fix knitted & crochet

Gartlech & make beautiful professional fringes. We also teach how to knit & crochet. Please call: 917-414-3281

GARTLECH

Beautiful HANDMADE

GARTLECH, Hand crochet, Hand knit, Silks & more with beautiful Gartel bag. Text or call: 718.283.4589 Wholesale orders available.

CONSTRUCTION

Bathrooms, kitchens, closets, decks, extensions, additions, Basements, all electrical, plumbing, Carpentry. Lowest prices, fastest service. Call:718.951.0090

ELECTRICIAN

All Electrical work, outlets, switches, fixtures, new lines for washer/dryer or air conditions, shabbos clocks, circut breakers. Call:718.951.0090

HANDYMAN & PAINTING

Experienced & Reliable handyman. Small jobs our specialty! Plumbing, Electric, construction, Locksmith, painting, plastering. Shabbos clocks, outlets/switches, call: 347.275.5408

KITCHEN

Kitchen cabinet hinges, tracks, drawer boxes, garbage pull outs replaced at reasonable prices. Call Mr. Likht 917-817-6981

REMOVE EYIN HORA

A baby, a simcha, a new lease in town? Call Ayin BeAyin so things dont chalila go down! Call Today 718-400-AYIN (2946) www.ayinbeayin. com

WOOD REPAIR

Professional transformation to ur kitchen cabinets thru design & color chg. Also revamp, repair estate furn, drm chairs, bdrms, libraries, & ext wood doors. Best price, svc & decorators consult txt or call 212-991-8548.

PHOTO EDITING

Professional photo editing, many years of experience. Special rates for photographers. Also specializing in Custom photo albums Chosson, wedding, etc. Photo Dreams 347.563.5153

CUSTOM PHOTO ALBUMS

Specializing in Custom Photo Albums, Chosson, Wedding, etc. Also professional Photo Editing, many years of experience. Special rate for photographers. Photo Dreams 347.563.5153

WHOLESALE FISH

Buy by the case & save. Baby & Regular Salmon. Hashgucha Volove Rav. Free delivery to your home. Call Eli: 516.270.6755

Servicing all over New York

Barter or Cash for Cans

All Formula Brands

Choice of Baby Products Free Pickup & Delivery

Choice of Baby Products Free Pickup & Same-Day or Next-Day Delivery

Same-Day or Next-Day Delivery for All Formula Brands

LATE OPEN LATE

Exchange

CLASSIFIEDS

THE CRACKER DIET

Since 2004. $200 includes 2 months follow up. 732.886.0954 We accept credit cards.

WHOLESALE SPOTLIGHTS

We sell Spotlights, twice as bright for half the price. We also sell Smoke & Carbon Monoxide detectors with 10 year battery suitable for Section 8. Free Delivery. Call: 718.951.0061

VAN FOR RENT

Refrigerated van for rent daily or weekly with or without a driver. Call or Text: Eli 516.270.6755

Yossi`s Van Service, 15 Passenger van, Local & long distance, Airports & delivery. Call: 718.962.4664

ODDS & ENDS DIABETIC STRIPS

Looking to buy your extra Diabetic Test Strips, strictly confidential. 347.871.7574

GEMACHIM

Breastpump Gemach 718.599.0721

Lights for your simchas. Minimal fee 718-854-2404

Twin carriage 718-522-3891

GOWNS

GOWNS

Introducing for the first time in Williamsburg! New designer gowns & brand name Simcha wear at great prices. We are also offering designer fashion & timeless pieces that redefine elegance, in our beautiful luxurios salon located conveniently on Kent Ave. Ready sis of bride & groom & Mechitaniste gown for fabulous prices. Please join us & elevate your style. For an appointment 347-7018061

FOUND

A paperback gmara in yankys car service with name yaakov hillel meyer 347 604 4303

Black fuzzy jacket size 6 in 15 passenger car service 929283-0456 blue scooter 347-661-7654

FREE GIVEAWAY

Brochos cards for Moshiach’s arrival at moshiachbrochoscards@gmail.com. Endorsed by Gedolei Yisroel gas dryer good condition 718852-6476

4 door china closet good condition 347-232-4028

Maisons-Alfort, France

PUBLISHER Yoel Itzkowitz

EDITOR IN CHIEF Esther Malky Neiman

ASSOCIATE EDITOR Zivi Reischer

MANAGING EDITOR

Libby Tescher

FOOD EDITOR M.P. Wercberger

CREATIVE DIRECTOR AJ Wachsman

PROJECT COORDINATOR R. Itzkowitz

320 Roebling Street, Suite 119 Brooklyn, NY 11211

TELEPHONE: 718.428.2400

FAX: 718.247.8881

E-MAIL: ads@thewview.com WEBSITE: www.thewview.com

| ads@thebpview.com

Boro Park Location

• 1460 56th Street

• 1520 48th Street

• 145 Rutledge Street

• 104 Ross Street