Issue 017

BY CHANIE SPIRA

The Kiddie Crave

A

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INBOX

ANOTHER FUNNY ENDING

(Re: A Funny Ending, Inbox, Issue 016)

Speaking of funny laundry stories, here’s one that’s perfect for this time of year.

I sent two kids to sleepaway camp this year. Besides all the money I spent on clothes, I also spent approximately a million dollars on custom printed labels with my name and phone number on them. I was assured they would never come off in the laundry. I wasn’t really thrilled about spending that money, but I figured I had spent so much money on the clothes and supplies my kids needed for camp that I may as well spend a little more to make sure I get everything back at the end of the summer.

About two days after my daughter came home from camp, when I was finally done with all the laundry, she handed me a black skirt and said, “This is not my skirt, it says Greenberg inside.” Sure enough, there was a custom printed laundry label inside, exactly like the ones I had bought, except it had Greenberg’s information and not ours.

I was thrilled. I was so happy to see a laundry label come to good use! My daughter did mention that there wasn’t anyone Greenberg in her bunk, but listen, this is camp we’re talking about, anything can happen.

I called Greenberg. Mrs. Greenberg really appreciated my call and was happy to get the skirt back. She confirmed that her daughter had also just come back from camp. Except it was a different camp than my daughter had just come back from. “My older daughter went to that camp,” Mrs. Greenberg said, “but that was three years ago. She’s going

Shabbos

Candle Lighting Starts Here

to seminary now.”

So weird. But suddenly I realized that my older daughter had also gone to that camp three years ago, and she was also going to seminary now.

Where did that skirt come from? Did it sit in camp for three years and somehow come home with my younger daughter? Or did it come home three years ago with my older daughter, and suddenly surfaced in my house now?

I have no idea. But no one should ever say doing laundry is boring.

T. Epstein

THE UPSTAIRS NEIGHBOR

(Re: Your Shidduch, Your Miracle, Issue 015)

I really enjoyed your recent edition on shidduchim. I have a great shidduch story too. As a kid, I lived in a threefamily house. When it came time for shidduchim, I was redt and got engaged to my upstairs neighbor! My family lives on the first floor, and my shvigger lives on the third. Every engagement is exciting, but ours was extra exciting. I do have to say that it’s super convenient to be able to visit both parents at once — I love it! And since I’m sure you’re all thinking the same thing, no, we do not live sandwiched between them.

Thanks for your beautiful publication week after week.

Name Withheld

true kosher magazine, and ashrecha that after 120, you’ll be able to answer “Tzipisa l’yeshua? ” with a resounding yes!

Miriam L

MEANINGFUL MENTION

(Re: Summer Series, Issue 014)

Thank you for such a great weekly read. I especially love the weekly parsha column. Sometimes I cut it out and reread it to friends and family.

I’m sure there are many readers like me who are enjoying your summer series, the virtual tour through different towns in the mountains. They’re full of rich history and memories of the good old days. I was excited that Rockhill got its turn, but I was disappointed at the things the article focused on. Particularly, why wasn’t more space given to the incredible Camp Mamtakim that we are zoche to have here?

Camp Mamtakim hosts specialneeds girls for six weeks, and this gives them chiyus for the whole year. Their staff works hard to brighten these girls’ lives. I personally have two girls there, baruch Hashem, and they give it all they’ve got. I was disappointed that you failed to mention any of that. What’s going on in Camp Mamtakim is so meaningful, worthy and enriching to read about.

I FELT THE LONGING

(Re: Yerushalayim of Old, Issue 014)

Your article about the old yishuv of Yerushalayim was beyond magnificent. The sense of a strong, personal longing for Yerushalayim really came through. Thank you for giving us a

Thank you,

A Proud Mamtakim Mommy

KASHRUS CONCERN

I would like to bring to the attention of the public a kashrus issue relating to child care centers. Some establishments may order food from places that may not meet your kashrus standards, particularly in the area of bishul akum. It is important to look into this issue before placing your child in a child care center.

A Concerned Neighbor

"Moms Favorite" Pump By

WHEN GETTING INTO THE CAR, DOES EVERYONE BUCKLE

UP? DO YOU LET KIDS EAT IN YOUR CAR?

95% of respondents make sure that all passengers buckle up.

93% of respondents allow their children to eat in the car.

The baby gets strapped in a carseat, and the rest just sit however they please. Of course, I don’t want them to eat in the car, but I’m one against ten…

I grew up with very strict belting rules in my family, even if you sat all the way in the back and even if it was a one-minute ride. As I grew up, I was always proud to be the only girl belting whenever I was with friends, and I’m happy my parents taught me proper responsibility. Your life matters!

6% of respondents don’t allow food in the car unless it’s something neat, like hard candy.

Everyone gets belted; it’s the law and for our own safety. And yes, I allow food in the car. It makes it a calmer car ride with happier kids. I invested in a small handheld car vacuum cleaner that makes cleanup a breeze.

We rarely start driving without everyone properly seatbelted and in car/booster seats where necessary. Even in taxis, we make sure that everyone is safely seatbelted in their own seat. Food is allowed as long as the kids behave and there’s no fighting or screaming coming from the back seats.

Yes, everyone needs a seatbelt before the car pulls out of the driveway. We used to have a rule about not eating in the car, but eventually, as the kids got older, we started allowing them to eat foods that don’t make a mess.

2% of respondents don’t allow food in the car, period.

Traveling with kids in the car is gehinnom! It starts with fighting over seats and refusing to put on seatbelts. We were once stopped by a police officer who’d noticed a child not wearing a seatbelt, and since then, it’s been less stressful for us to enforce this rule.

What’s a trip without food? Part of having a car is taking it for a good vacuum every few weeks.

I wish! We have more than six kids, so buckling up is not a possibility. Food? Of course. It sets the mood. We clean the car before Pesach.

We have six kids, and everyone has their designated seat and gets belted. Regarding food, my husband does not allow eating, except very clean foods like veggie sticks and candy.

In my car, everyone sits in their own seat and buckles up. I didn’t always enforce this rule until I met a couple in the ER with a child who’d sustained a fractured skull and internal bleeding because of a slight short stop.

I make sure that everyone is safely buckled up and have the right car seats or booster seats, as necessary. I aim to do the most hishtadlus possible to keep my most precious treasures safe and protected in case anything ever happens, chas v’shalom

I am not that strict about seatbelts. I should be a little more on top of it.

We’re delighted to let the kids enjoy snacks or even lunch in the car, as long as it’s done thoughtfully. We gently remind them to eat carefully, especially with foods like yogurt or leben, to help keep things tidy. Honestly, snacking while on the go has become one of our favorite parts of any trip! Our kids really look forward to having snacks and lunch during a ride.

I’ve been driving for many years, usually with more kids in the car than there are seatbelts. I try my best to have my kids sitting nicely. I was once stopped by a cop when my car was full. He gave me four tickets for the kids sitting on the floor, and not in seatbelts. Luckily, my father, a”h, knew someone who worked for the DMV who tried finding a loophole to help me out of it. After some time, he figured it out: Nowhere in the books does it say that a child sitting on the floor needs a seatbelt! He got all of my tickets dismissed. In reference to eating in the car, I allow eating, and I know that after the summer and Chol Hamoed, my car needs a good vacuum.

Of course everyone buckles up. We do eat in the car, but we collect the garbage so there’s no messy build up. We also invested in rubber mats instead of the carpets. They click into existing toggles built into the car. This means that even if there is a mess or spill, we don’t stress about it.

V’nishmartem me’od l’nafshoseichem — seatbelts are a must. Regarding eating in the car, we purchased a small hand vacuum for the car. We’d rather have happy and calm kids than a clean car, especially on long trips. And if a car wash is needed, we’ll do that too.

Dina d’malchusa dina! In our car, all the children know from a very young age that you have to be belted at all times. If my husband starts driving before they’re all belted (by mistake, of course), they literally scream “Tatty, please stop! I’m not belted yet!” By the way, newer cars come with sensors that detect unbelted passengers even for the back seat. It’s a pleasure.

The car is our second dining room!

No food in the car except sugar-free (nonsticky) hard candies.

We don’t own a car and have dreams of a car where all the kids are seated nicely with smiles on their faces, seatbelts fastened, and eating clean foods like sliced cheese and cut-up apples. Our real car trips look quite different with the kids resisting seatbelts and without food since we can’t mess up others’ cars.

םחנמ ’ר ךיז טאה

טזאלעג ןרעהראפ תוכלה תבש

PARSHAS SHOFTIM

To Judge or Not To Judge

Y. Levenstein

The Torah instructs us to set up judges to enforce the law, and explains: “V’shaftu es ha’am mishpat tzedek” — and they shall judge the people righteous judgement ( Devarim 16:18).

The Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh points out that here the pasuk says “mishpat tzedek,” while in Kedoshim, the pasuk says “b’tzedek tishpot amisecha” — you shall judge your fellow with righteousness (Vayikra 19:15). Why here, in Shoftim, is the letter beis missing? Why doesn’t it say “ b’tzedek”?

Explains the Ohr Hachaim: The Torah wants to establish an important principle. When two people come to a rav with a din Torah, the rav should view the shailah that each side presents as a simple question in learning. He should not think in terms of each person presenting his side of the argument, but rather as a halachic conflict he is trying to resolve. Once the rav rules on the matter the way one learns an isolated halacha, he can translate his resolution into the specific case at hand.

If, while judging a case, a rav thinks he is attempting to resolve a dispute between Person A and Person B, his mind will automatically favor one over the other. The moment the image of a person — or people — is involved, the mind will be inclined to one party.

The Torah says, “ V’shaftu es ha’am,” do you want to issue impartial judgement? “Mishpat tzedek,” do it as if there is already a final decision.

We can take this to the next level. This lesson obligates all of us — even those who are not a rav or dayan. We may not realize how much the images of the people around us affect us. The way a person looks, how he dresses and the name he’s earned for himself all affect the way we view them. The Torah wants to teach us that we should not judge another based on externals. If even a rav is instructed to look at the bare halacha without the image of the people involved lest his perception of the truth be impacted, certainly we must look at those around us with tzedek. One can never know who another person really is inside, regardless of the impression he makes.

The following story was told by Reb Tzvi Getker.

PINCHAS* is a talmid chacham living in Eretz Yisroel. His friends know him for his hasmadah and broad range of knowledge. Chavrusos appreciate his sharp mind — and have to deal with the sharp tongue that complements his strong character.

One morning in beis midrash, he and a friend were arguing over a point in Hilchos Shabbos. The back and forth grew heated, in the manner of true rischa d’Oraisa. Just then, a simple-looking Yid walked into shul. A taxi driver by profession, he had no airs about him as he sat down. Observing the scene, he came over to Pinchas and his friend and stated his opinion on the halacha. Pinchas took one look at the taxi driver. There was no way this Yid could know the correct answer to the difficulty he was sweating over so intensely. And he’d rattled it off so easily! Without thinking, Pinchas retorted, “Why are you getting involved? Did you ever in your life open a Mishnah Berurah and learn Hilchos Shabbos?”

The taxi driver didn’t flinch. He didn’t seem bothered by the insult, and instead flashed a bright smile. “Do you want to test me?” he asked. It sounded like a joke, but Pinchas took him seriously. He grabbed a Mishnah Berurah from the shelf and began

His obsession for more and more boxes was actually an obsession for more and more Torah

firing questions, one after the other. To his shock, the taxi driver shot back answers clearly and smoothly, as if the sefer was open before him.

Pinchas mellowed and asked forgiveness. “You know it so well you, you can teach me these halachos,” he said, “and here I was underestimating you. Please forgive me!”

“Nah.” The taxi driver waved his hand dismissively and simply reiterated his reasoning to the halachic dispute on hand.

The discussion came to a close, but Pinchas was left with a niggling sense of unease. In one judgmental moment, he had belittled another Yid! He decided to go down to the taxi driver’s home to ask forgiveness again.

The man welcomed him in and showed him his large bookcase filled with seforim. He explained that he did the night shift as a taxi driver, and spent his days with his seforim

“I didn’t have the opportunity to learn as a child, so Gemara is difficult for me,” he said. “Instead, I invest my energy in learning Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim, and Mishnah Berurah and poskim Baruch Hashem, I have covered quite some ground and see much hatzlacha in my learning.”

* * * * *

In Bnei Brak, there was an elderly Holocaust survivor everyone knew as “the box collector.” All day long, he rode the streets of Bnei Brak on his bicycle in search of cardboard boxes. He was a common sight in the neighborhood, and he could usually be found sitting on his bike, surrounded by heaps of cardboard.

Once a week, a big Tenuvah truck would come to his home, and the large stockpile he’d collected that week would be swallowed up and disappear for good. The man was paid only small sums for the reusable cardboard, but he’d quickly replenish his stash. He was constantly on the lookout for more cardboard, and it was amazing to see how many boxes one man could gather.

People who saw him pitied him. Some thought he’d lost his mind. Their wonder only grew when, as the Yid aged, he roped in his daughter to help him with his project.

When the old man passed away, his daughter revealed the truth. Although he was devastatingly poor, he didn’t collect and sell the scrap cardboard because he needed the money to put bread on the table. The money he earned from the boxes went to support the yeshiva of Slabodka. He so badly wanted to support Torah learning, but since he had no money to spare, he came up with this creative way of earning some extra cash. His obsession for more and more boxes was actually an obsession for more and more Torah.

Never judge a man on externals alone, without insight into his inner world.

*Name has been changed.

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יטיס קראי וינ יד

טנעמטראפעד עיצאטראפסנארט

עכלעוו ןאלפ םעד ןדלאמעג טאה

טכאמראפ ןייז ןלעוו סע סעיניל

רעדנעייגנא רעד ןופ לייט סלא

רעד ףיוא טעברא עיצקורטסנאק

עגיטצעי יד .קירב גרובסמאיליוו

ןפא ןזאל גידנעטש טעוו טעברא

עדייב ןיא עיניל ןייא סנטסגינייוומא

וצ טעטראוורע זיא ןוא ,ןעגנוטכיר

יד .גאטיירפ םעד טגידנעראפ ןייז

טעוו ןטעהנאמ ןייק ןיירא עיניל

ןייז גאטיירפ זיב ךאווטימ ןופ

3 זיב ירפרעדניא 10 ןופ טכאמראפ

ןייק ןיירא עיניל יד ןוא ,גאטימכאנ

5 ןופ טכאמראפ ןייז טעוו ןילקורב ןייא ףיוא גאטימ 12 זיב סגאטראפ רערעדנא רעד ףיוא ןוא ,ייסאש

ןעלטימ טייהרעכיז עטסעב יד טימ טאטשעגסיוא

זיא ייברעד ןוא ,םעלבארפ קיפארט ,ןעגנאלראפ טייהרעכיז עלעיצעפס

סאוו ןטייהרעכיז-רעבייס עלא וצ ןלעטשוצ ךיז ןוא

ייז ןבאה םעלא םעד ראפ ןוא ,ךילגעמ ראנ ןענעז

קראי וינ רעד ןופ גנוגיטעטשאב יד ןעמוקאב ןיוש .סלעקיהיוו-ראטאמ-ווא-טנעמטראפעד טיעטס

ןייז אמיעוו טעוו טימרעפ םעד ןופ לייט סלא זיב ןריבורפוצסיוא טביולרע

םעד ןופ ףיול ןיא סראק טכא

ךאנרעד ןוא ,שדוח

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ןופ טדער רעוו ,הטורפ ןייק טאהעג טשינ

טעמכ .םינינב עגיקאטשכיוה עגיטנייה יד

א ןפערט טפראדעג ןעמ טאה ראי סעדעי

וליפא ךיז ןעמ טאה לאמא ןוא ,ץאלפ רעיינ

שממ זיא’ס !ראי ןטימניא

ןבאה עלא זא טייוו יוזא ,לוש רענעמ ןיא זיא רעשאמראש הרש ייב” זא טסואוועג

יירטעג ןעוועג זיא יז .”תובורעת ןייק

טגעלפ

.רבא

וצ .”ן’יבר ן’ראפ סעלא” ןקורדסיוא טפא ךיז ןופ סיורא ןיוש ךעלדיימ ערעטלע סלא

ןלאז רימ זא טלאוועג יבר רעד טאה ,עלוש .סטכאנוצ גאטיירפ םארגארפ לקיטש א ןבאה ס’רעשאמראש הרש וצ ןייגפיורא ןגעלפ רימ ןבאה רימ ןוא לגוק

תרמ עטכא ןוא עטעביז ,עטפניפ ,עטרעפ יד ןיא ןירערעל

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

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

וטסייוו טצעי

גאטימ

:םוקמ לכבו

A N E W

S E A S O N

W I T H

N E W

R E A S O N S

ךיז ,ןַאמ’הרבח רעגיפיפ א ןעוועג א טאהעג לָאמעלַא טאה רעכלעוו םורַא יוזא ןוא סעציילפ יד ףיוא פאק .סיצַאנ יד ןגולקוצרעביא ןזיווַאב רַאפ טלייצרַאפ טָאה רעטנוג ךיז ןזיווַאב טָאה רע יוו לרעב

רעשיצַאנ רעד ןיא ןקורוצניירַא ,עירטסודניא םליפ עדנַאגָאפארפ !רעגינייוו טשינ

רעד זַא ןסאפפיוא ךיא

ןדנואוושרַאפ לענש ךיא לעוו ,ךיז ”.טרָאד ןופ ןרעוו ןופ טניוטשרעד ןעוועג זיא לרעב

רע .טייהרעכיז-טסבלעז ס’רעטנוג ,ןָאט ןרעכיז אזַא טימ טדערעג טָאה

רע זַא ןטכאד טנעקעג ךיז טָאה’ס זַא רַאפ ןבָאה טעוו רע סָאוו טריטוקסיד א טשינ ןוא ,טנווָא םענעי לָאמטכַאנ .עיצַאוטיס טיוט-ןוא-ןבעל

FRUSTRATIONAVOIDANCESTRUGGLINGDIST

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DISCOURAGEDANXIOUSRESTLESSCONFUS OVERLOOKEDHOPELESSISOLATEDMISUND ERSTOODFRUSTRATEDDISCOURAGEDPRESS

IOUSRESTLESSSBEHIND

Yoel Greenfeld

UREDDELAYEDINSECURE ANX

At the family Chanukah party, Roiza gives her children one more gift: She asks them to hire an aide for her.

help thinking about this wedding in those terms. The macro event — waiters scurrying about, the hall manager busy giving orders. A wedding was happening. There was a schedule to follow. There had to be music, flowers and food. A badchan, tables and chairs.

But then there was the micro aspect of the wedding, where each face was an entire world with a past and a future.

The wedding hall was bathed in the dim pre-wedding lighting, and the photographer’s umbrellas flashed repeatedly, creating a fireworks effect. Kaily stood behind the tripod waiting for her turn with Bina. She watched the photographer adjust some functions before snapping.

“Mommy, look at the kallah. Kallah, look at the flowers. Tatty, chin up!” Flash. Flash. The photographer checked the screen, adjusted the umbrellas and flashed again.

Leah’s diminutive figure flanked Bina from the right, and Levi’s only slightly taller one from the left.

The photographer switched from macro to micro, and suddenly the faces came alive in the shot, and the flowers and backdrop faded into an unidentifiable blur. Kaily couldn’t

What would the photographer think after the chuppah when he took some shots with Sruly and his father? Would it simply be something to cross off his list? Kallah with parents, chasan with parents?

Would he know what was behind that simple shot? This was the first time Naftali left his hometown since she’d left him there more than two decades ago.

Could the photographer fathom the strength of character her kids displayed in bringing him over? How

WHAT WOULD THE PHOTOGRAPHER THINK AFTER THE CHUPPAH WHEN HE TOOK SOME SHOTS WITH SRULY AND HIS FATHER? WOULD IT SIMPLY BE SOMETHING TO CROSS OFF HIS LIST?

CHANIE SPIRA

THIS WAS USUALLY KAILY’S CUE TO FEEL LONELINESS ENVELOPING HER, TO FEEL THE ACUTE PAIN OF EXPERIENCING EVERY MILESTONE ALONE

Chaim had flown to London in order to escort his father back, using his own money to pay for airfare despite the fact that Naftali had never acted like a father to him?

“Now, kallah, move aside. Tatty, Mommy, smile.”

Leah and Levi smiled. Bina moved out of the way, her lips murmuring softly, and Kaily found herself mouthing some Tehillim too. For her, for Sruly and even for Naftali.

She watched her mechutanim pose for pictures.

“Leah, did you eat anything today?” Levi asked between shots. “What can I bring you to eat?”

Leah shook her head. “Nothing. But you should eat — you’re hungry. You’re saying it because that’s how you feel.”

This was usually Kaily’s cue to feel loneliness enveloping her, to feel the acute pain of experiencing every milestone alone.

Instead, an incongruous laugh bubbled up inside her. Mordechai had called her right before she left the house. “Mazel Tov,” he said. “I’m davening for you and the entire family. May everything go smoothly. And… make sure you eat something before you go. You need energy.”

She’d been too jittery to actually eat, but she felt full from the joy.

“Chasan’s mother,” the photographer called.

Kaily stepped up onto the slightly raised platform and hugged Bina gently. Sruly’s kallah looked gorgeous and serious all at once, and her heart expanded with joy. The photographer flashed away, documenting the joy forever.

For Kaily, the moment wasn’t about the everlasting picture. It was about the here and now, and the endlessly flowing goodness in her life.

* * * * *

Perela entered the hall still floating on the post-chuppah cloud. She was all of 35, and she had just walked a kallah to her chuppah.

Her arms still felt warm from where they had been linked with Kaily’s arm on one side and Bina’s on the other. At first, she’d felt like an imposter, stealing Kaily’s place in glaring unfairness.

“I need you to do it,” Kaily had said. “I have to feel comfortable walking along with you. I need you as a sister.”

This had been her mother’s place at Kaily’s sons’ weddings, but now her mother sat in her wheelchair silently, observing them with an unreadable expression. Her aide stood inconspicuously on the side, watching her with eagle-eyes.

The discomfort lasted until they started circling the chasan, when the crowd faded away and the stirring strains of song enveloped her in prayer. Something awak-

ened within her.

How much longer until it would be her turn to link arms with her children and walk them to the chuppah? Tears rose within her and flowed down her cheeks as she davened for the chasan and kallah, for her children, for her mother, for Kaily. But most of all, she davened for herself, for the strength to keep giving to her family from a place of contentment and joy.

Her mascara had trailed a path down her cheek, but she felt sweet and whole inside. Now, with her makeup retouched and her roiling emotions at peace, she felt ready to enter the ballroom.

“Perela,” Kaily called as soon as she spotted her. Her face was aglow and serene, like a kallah herself. She stood alone, unlike Leah Czinner who was surrounded by a gaggle of daughters, but she didn’t look lonely.

“Kaily, did I tell you how gorgeous you look?” Perela asked.

“Only about a hundred times. Same for yourself. I need your help here with making sure everyone has where to sit. This used to be Mommy’s job.”

Her eyes instinctively scouted the hall and located her mother sitting with her new group of friends from the support group. Some had caregivers with them, others didn’t. They’d chosen a table on the side, and a motley assortment of walkers, canes and wheelchairs leaned against the wall.

They watched their mother for a long moment. “She’s good,” Perela murmured finally.

After that, Perela helped Kaily with the seating, schlepping another chair to the Handler table so a cousin could join before heading to the table where Kaily’s friends sat.

Kaily introduced them to Perela. “This is my sister. My only one. So that makes her my favorite and least favorite one.”

“Same here,” Perela added.

Kaily wasn’t done. “She’s this famous clothing designer. She got me this gown. You know, everything I’m not.”

“That’s not true,” one woman said. “Who coordinated all of our trips all these years? And those cute snacks?”

Kaily waved her away. “Not like her.”

Perela snorted. “Don’t believe her. I’m not a designer anymore.”

Her heart still beat quickly whenever the topic came up. A part of her still longed for the exhilaration that she’d felt at work. She surveyed their faces — some lined and worn, and some glowing and resilient. All of them single and struggling, while she had so much beauty in her life.

Mira came to the hall and encircled Kaily in a chokehold. “Kaily! I can’t believe Sruly is getting married!”

“I know.” Kaily nodded. Then a blond, heavyset woman with huge glasses rushed over. “Mira, Kaily, my two kallahs!”

Kaily blushed under her makeup, and Mira giggled.

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THE WAY EZRIEL LET HIS ARMS FALL IN RELIEF FILLED HER WITH JOY. SHE TURNED BACK TOWARD THE HALL. SHE WAS READY TO DANCE

“Not yet, not yet, Fruma Esther,” she said. And she steered her away from all the staring women.

To save face, Kaily kept talking. “Perela, this one here is Nechy. You’ll like her. Also super-talented and all.”

A sweet woman, youngish, with deep blue eyes, waved to her.

“Maybe I’m looking for someone just like you,” she said conversationally. “We can really expand the organization if we have the right people.”

Something inside of Perela stirred. Maybe?

Kaily nodded enthusiastically. “She would be amazing !”

One of the Czinner daughters walked up to them. “Mechuteniste, they’re doing pictures now, and they’re waiting for you.”

Kaily left, her gown trailing, while Nechy continued addressing Perela. “I mean it. We have the funding for this, and it’ll add so much for all of us.”

Part time. Flexible. Fun. What could be better?

Then she looked around the table at women who would give anything for her life. She swallowed the yes bubbling up in her throat. “Wow. Sounds like a really good offer, but not at this point, Nechy. If I change my mind, I’ll let you know.”

Perela took down her contact information just in case and then headed toward the mechitzah where she spotted Yonah.

“Call Tatty,” she said urgently. She needed to ground her decision, tell it to someone so the doubts wouldn’t chase her peace away.

Ezriel hurried over. “What happened?”

“Let’s go outside,” she whispered.

They left the hall and headed to the parking lot.

“Ezriel,” she burst out, “I was offered a job. Part time. Flexible. For this organization Kaily used to work for.” She walked briskly to keep warm, and Ezriel shivered as he hurried after her.

“Wow. That’s nice,” he said. She could see him struggle to inject enthusiasm into his voice. “It works perfectly with your skill set and with our family’s needs.”

Perela felt warm inside despite the wind. He had said yes. Not because he wanted it, but because he thought she wanted it.

“So did you say yes?” he asked.

“I said no,” she answered simply.

The way Ezriel let his arms fall in relief filled her with joy. She turned back toward the hall. She was ready to dance. * * * * *

Roiza abandoned her soup spoon. Her gown was at the risk of getting dirty, and most of the food didn’t land in her mouth anyway. Besides, Louisa, standing guard behind her, didn’t care about her vegetable intake the way Kaily had.

She looked up and saw a bunch of abandoned soup bowls.

Nava, an olive-skinned Southerner, leaned toward her. “I always ate my vegetables, and where did it get me? So now I eat cake.”

Roiza laughed. There was nothing like eating a meal with a group of women who could eat soup only with a straw. With a group of women where she was considered the healthy one because she could still — technically — walk. (Just not at a wedding, where the entire hall was an obstacle course of people and tables and chairs.) With a group of women who came along with apparatuses as a badge of honor and heaped mazel tovs and brachos upon her.

Amen.

She could use every one of their heartfelt blessings.

May all the brachos in her life continue flowing. May each of her children have what they need. May Kaily’s impending engagement bring her happiness. What was a broken body compared to the bounty she had? Her children were all here for her and for each other.

She was celebrating with friends, women who had taught her how to make the most of their betraying bodies by tapping into their blessings.

She was so grateful.

Until the music suddenly beat a staccato heralding the chasan and kallah. The familiar fear hit her with a physical force, causing her entire body to shake. The dancing was starting — she would have to dance with the kallah. She would be on display, for every guest to cluck their tongue and see how she’d aged.

“I’m terrified to dance,” she confided to Nava.

“So don’t,” Nava said simply.

So don’t. Easy for her to say when it wasn’t her grandson’s wedding.

The music reached a crescendo, and the crowd was going wild.

Perela hurried over to her. “Come Ma, the kallah is coming in.”

Louisa took her position on the left and Perela on the right, ready to help her stand up. After all, she’d gone through hundreds of physical therapy sessions for just this moment.

“No,” Roiza said. She picked up a surprisingly steady hand to block them.

Perela looked startled.

“You can wheel me over, Perela,” she said. For the moment, she felt like herself again, and the old, confident Roiza waved her hand airily and said, “When you’re this happy, you can dance sitting down.”

THE END

Against the backdrop of the American Revolution, other battles unfold.

What’s really going on between Judith and Rebecca? Joseph runs to join the Patriots — but who is he running from?

We the People

BY BROCHY GANELES

Can they live in peace with each other — and themselves?

Coming next week!

ON NEWSSTANDS 9/3

A closer look at the establishment of

BAIS RUCHEL D’SATMAR

ROIZY WALDMAN

PART1 OF 3

Picture this: It’s 1946. A Holocaust survivor steps off a ship in New York harbor with barely any money, no English and the weight of unimaginable loss on his shoulders. Four years later, that same man announces to his small community that he’s going to do something unprecedented for that particular group: He’ll be opening a school for girls. This wasn’t just any refugee making this bold declaration; this was Harav Yoel Teitelbaum, zt”l, the Satmar Rebbe. And his decision to open a girls school in New York would change everything.

An Incredible Start

In 1950, the Satmar Rebbe called a meeting of his chassidim to inform them of his decision to create a girls school. Many of the chassidim were instantly on board. After all, anything the Rebbe said was sacred to them. But others were not that quick to understand. “What do we need it for?” they asked.

Their confusion made sense. Back in Hungary, where most of these families came from, there were no frum schools for girls. Even in Poland, where the need was desperate — many girls from religious families were abandoning Yiddishkeit — establishing Bais Yaakov had been an uphill battle.

But the Satmar Rebbe saw something his community didn’t yet understand. “In America, we need this,” he said firmly. “I must prepare kallahs for the boys who go to my cheder.”

The Rebbe asked his followers to start working on raising $5,000, the sum he expected was needed to launch a school. But some chassidim weren’t enthused about the idea of a girls school altogether. They were already struggling to support a Talmud Torah. How could they possibly manage another $5,000 for a girls school? But the Rebbe wouldn’t budge. He had made up his mind and was determined to push the plan through.

“My father,” says Mrs. Elky Schwartz, who attended the first Bais Ruchel class and whose father was one of the chassidim at that historic meeting, “came home from the meeting and told me, ‘Di geyst geyn in school (you’re going to go to school).’ If the Rebbe said so, my father instantly agreed.”

Six Little Girls on Morton Street

And so, in the fall of 1951, Bais Ruchel (officially, Beth Rachel School for Girls) opened its doors. Well, “doors” might be generous. The school was just a room in a house on Morton Street in Williamsburg. Six kindergarten girls showed up that first day to what was essentially someone’s living room converted into a classroom.

But what kind of school was it?

Mrs. Sarah Strulowitz, who joined the school in its third year of its existence, paints a vivid picture: “We didn’t have our own building or even Jewish teachers for limudei chol. I went to kindergarten in the house of Mrs. Moskowitz on Bedford Avenue and Morton Street. Mrs. Moskowitz didn’t have children. There were no toys and no games. For entertainment, we sat by the windows and looked out at the street.”

Some days, they’d meet in a different house entirely — in the attic of the Margareten Rav’s home on Wilson Street. It was a bare-bones, no-frills education at its most basic level.

Perhaps the most telling detail from those early days involves their first-grade English teacher, a Black woman who wasn’t Jewish and who used to give the children M&M candies as treats. The children never ate them, of course, because they weren’t kosher. But they never told her, either, because they didn’t want to embarrass her.

Sarah Strulowitz explains, “Look, the Rebbe believed that if you live in a country, you have to try to learn the language. So he hired teachers who knew the language. And how many frum Jewish women knew English then? But the Rebbe

The Bais Ruchel building on Heyward Street, as it appeared in its early days, and more recently

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The building on Morton Street that housed the first Bais Ruchel class

wouldn’t give up on establishing a school just because he didn’t have the teachers he wanted. He figured out a way.”

That phrase — “he figured out a way” — captures something essential about those early years. This was a community that refused to let perfect be the enemy of good. They made do. They improvised. They compromised when they had to. They knew, perhaps only subconsciously, that this was all in service of a larger vision.

This pragmatic approach paid off. Just one year after it opened, the school boasted not only those original six kindergarteners (now first-graders) but also twelve new kindergarten students — eighteen girls in total. This expansion happened largely because of one man’s determination: Chaim Mordechai Steinberg, who recruited ten families so his own six-year-old would have classmates.

Why did Steinberg go to such lengths? Because he couldn’t bring

A STUDENT’S MEMORIES

Esty* shares:

I remember our two principals — Reb Binyamin Hersh Berkowitz, the Yiddish principal, and Rabbi Frankel, the English principal. Mr. Berkowitz’s wife was the school secretary. The atmosphere was very different back then. If you were sent to Mr. Berkowitz’s office for misbehavior, the right thing to do was to cry. Because then he’d tell you, “That’s how an ehrliche Yiddishe girl should behave — tears show that you’re doing teshuvah. Very good!” But with Rabbi Frankel, if he saw you crying, he’d say, “Aha, you’re guilty! That’s why you’re crying!” So when you were sent to his office, you needed a face of stone. It’s also interesting to note that Mr. Berkowitz, a chassidish man with a beard — and the limudei kodesh principal! — was called “Mr.,” while Rabbi Frankel, who was the English principal, was referred to as “Rabbi.” But both of them understood what really mattered — not grades or academics alone, but the essence of what it means to be a Yiddishe girl. I still remember one time when Rabbi Frankel praised my artwork — a compass I had drawn as the art editor of a school newspaper. His genuine appreciation meant a great deal to me and has stayed with me all these years.

Left: Reb Binyamin Hersh Berkowitz in his later years. Right: Rabbi Berkowitz on a nesiyah to Eretz Yisroel with the Satmar Rebbe, circa 1955. Rabbi Berkowitz appears second from right, holding a tallis

Left: Rabbi Hertz Frankel, standing, as he appears with the Beirach Moshe of Satmar, zt”l, and Reb Yaakov Kamenetzky, zt”l Right: Rabbi Frankel, leaning over the table near the Satmar Rebbe, Reb Yoel, zt”l

himself to send his daughter to the existing Bais Yaakov school in Williamsburg. It wasn’t that Bais Yaakov wasn’t frum— it was — but Steinberg knew that the Satmar Rebbe’s ideology clashed with theirs. For a devoted Satmar chassid, the other frum school simply wasn’t an option.

The Bigger Picture

From our vantage point today, it’s easy to see Bais Ruchel’s opening as inevitable. The Satmar community in New York now spans thousands of families across multiple neighborhoods. Their schools are institutions. But in 1951, none of that was guaranteed.

that his community would not only survive in America, but thrive there.

The main takeaway of this account of the school’s early days is about something much bigger than the opening of a school; it’s about a community choosing to invest in its future at a moment when that future was far from certain. The Satmar Rebbe wasn’t just starting a school; he was making a bet

That first classroom on Morton Street, with its six little girls sitting by the windows for entertainment, was the seed of something much larger. It was the beginning of a community saying, “We’re not just passing through. We’re here to stay.”

NEXT WEEK:

How a handful of Holocaust survivors created a curriculum from scratch — and why students had to censor their own textbooks.

Discover the magic that is crispy rice. To prepare crispy rice, sushi rice is fried in a tempura or breadcrumb batter to create a delicacy that is soft on the inside, crisp on the outside. Use it as a base for an array of elegant and delicious appetizers, think sheva brachos appetizer, newcouple-is-coming appetizer, or to plan ahead for Yom Tov.

MIRIAM PESSY WERCBERGER

SALMON TOWERS Crispy Rice

A crispy rice tower with sushi-style flavors, this dish never fails to please.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups rice

3 cups boiling water

2 tsp. salt, divided

1 tsp. oil

2 T. seasoned rice vinegar

1 tsp. sugar

1 package tempura batter mix

SALMON TOPPING

4 slices salmon

¼ cup sweet chili sauce

2 T. soy sauce

1 mango, cubed

1 avocado, cubed

Sweet sauce, for drizzling

Spicy mayo, for drizzling

Black and white sesame seeds, for sprinkling

Jalapeno, for topping, if desired

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°.

2. Rinse the rice. Transfer to a 9x13” pan with the boiling water, 1 teaspoon salt and oil. Cover tightly and bake for 40 minutes.

3. Uncover the rice, and immediately cover with a paper towel for 10 minutes.

4. Add the seasoned rice vinegar, sugar and remaining salt, and mix well.

5. Press the rice into a lined cookie sheet, using another sheet of parchment paper to help flatten it until it is ¼” to ½” thick.

6. Place in the freezer for 45 minutes to allow it to cut and fry more easily.

7. Place your store-bought tempura batter into a bowl, and add water according to package directions. Set aside.

8. Cut the rice into 2” to 3” squares.

9. Dip each semi-frozen rice square into the prepared tempura batter, and fry until golden on both sides.

10. To prepare the salmon, preheat the oven to broil.

11. Mix the sweet chili sauce and soy sauce in a small bowl, and brush the sauce over the fish.

12. Broil for approximately 8 to 10 minutes, until the fish is cooked through and flakes easily with a fork.

13. To assemble, pile cubes of salmon, avocado and mango onto each fried rice square.

14. Finish with a drizzle of sauces and sesame seeds. Top with a slice of jalapeno, if desired.

CHICKEN TOWERS Crispy Rice

Don’t go for fish? This savory chicken tower has got you covered.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups rice

3 cups boiling water

2 tsp. salt, divided

1 tsp. oil

2 T. seasoned rice vinegar

1 tsp. sugar

1 egg, beaten

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°.

½ cup Wondermills flour

1 cup seasoned cornflake crumbs

TERIYAKI PASTRAMI CHICKEN

1 lb. chicken cutlets, cut into nuggets

1 (6 oz. ) package pastrami

1 onion, sliced

¼ cup teriyaki sauce

1 tsp. cornstarch

2 T. water

1 T. honey

1 T. rice wine vinegar

½ tsp. garlic powder

¼ tsp. ground ginger, optional

¼ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes, optional Sweet sauce, for drizzling Spicy mayo, for drizzling

2. Rinse the rice, and transfer to a 9x13” pan along with the boiling water, 1 teaspoon salt and oil. Cover tightly and bake for 40 minutes.

3. Uncover the rice, and immediately cover with a paper towel for 10 minutes.

4. Add the seasoned rice vinegar, sugar and remaining salt, and mix well.

5. Press the rice into a lined cookie sheet, using another sheet of parchment paper to help flatten it until it is ¼” to ½” thick.

6. Place in the freezer for 45 minutes to allow it to cut and fry more easily.

7. Prep your breading station by placing the egg, flour and cornflake crumbs into separate shallow bowls.

8. Cut the rice into circles using a 2” ring mold.

9. While still semi-frozen, dip each circle into the flour, then eggs and then cornflake crumbs. Fry in hot oil until golden on both sides. Drain.

10. To prepare the chicken: Slice and saute the onion for 5 minutes over medium heat.

11. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce: Place the teriyaki into a small bowl along with the cornstarch. Mix until the cornstarch is diluted.

12. Add remaining sauce ingredients. Set aside.

13. Once the onions have turned golden at the edges, add the chicken and pastrami and sear for approximately 5 minutes, mixing occasionally until the chicken is browned on all sides.

14. Add sauce, and allow to simmer for an additional 2 minutes.

15. To assemble, place a mound of the teriyaki chicken mixture in the center of each crispy rice round. Drizzle with sweet sauce and spicy mayo.

AVOCADO APPETIZER Crispy Rice

On a visit to Salt Steakhouse in Deal, New Jersey, my favorite appetizer was a dish of these magical squares of crispy rice topped with guacamole, scallions and sushi sauces. I was delighted to find how simple it is to recreate. Don’t skip the scallions; they add just the right finishing flavor (but if you’d like, substitute with finely chopped red onion).

INGREDIENTS

2 cups rice

3 cups boiling water

2 tsp. salt, divided

1 tsp. oil

2 T. seasoned rice vinegar

1 tsp. sugar

1 package tempura batter mix

AVOCADO TOPPING

2 avocados, divided Salt, to taste Lemon juice, to taste

Bunch of scallions, cleaned and sliced

Sweet sauce, for drizzling

Spicy mayo, for drizzling

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°.

2. Rinse the rice. Transfer to a 9x13” pan along with the boiling water, 1 teaspoon salt and oil. Cover tightly and bake for 40 minutes.

3. Uncover the rice, and immediately cover with a paper towel for 10 minutes.

4. Add the seasoned rice vinegar, sugar and remaining salt, and mix well.

5. Press the rice into a lined cookie sheet, using another sheet of parchment paper to help flatten it until it is approximately ¼” thick.

6. Place in the freezer for 45 minutes to allow it to cut and fry more easily.

7. Place your store-bought tempura batter into a bowl, and add water according to package directions. Set aside.

8. Cut the rice into 2” to 3” squares.

9. Dip each semi-frozen rice square into the prepared tempura batter, and fry until golden on both sides.

10. Make a quick guacamole by mashing 1 avocado and seasoning with salt and lemon juice to taste.

11. Slather a bit of guacamole onto each tempura rice square.

12. Slice the remaining avocado thinly, and squirt with some lemon juice to preserve freshness.

13. Lay a couple of slices onto each square, and finish off with scallions and a drizzle of sauce.

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A CONVERSATION WITH THE TEAM BEHIND BETTY Z SCHOOL UNIFORMS

Ican still recall standing in those endless back-toschool lines at the iconic Fraylich School Uniforms store on 14th Avenue and 45th Street. Along with supplies and shoes, buying those crisply starched uniforms was a yearly ritual.

Just in time for back-to-school season, Mr. Menachem Zelcer, son of Fraylich’s founders, shares the story behind the store’s founding.

“Fraylich was a simple store selling children’s wear in Boro Park when my parents, Leah and Chaim Zelcer, a”h, bought it in the 1980s,” Mr. Zelcer says.

After successfully manufacturing their own clothing and supplying giants like Burlington with baby bibs, a new opportunity arose in 1990 when their daughter Etty needed a durable, easycare uniform for Machon High School. With no formal uniform store nearby, the Zelcers spotted a significant gap in the market. They ventured into uniform manufacturing, and as their son says, never looked back.

“They kept the name Fraylich for the store itself,” Mr. Zelcer explains. “It’s a good name, a happy name, and we wanted to stick with that.” But for their innovative uniform brand, a new name emerged: Betty Z.

“The B is for my sister Baila’s English name, Betty, and the ‘etty’ includes my sister Etty’s name,” Mr. Zelcer says. “The Z is for Zelcer. It’s a family business, right down to the label.”

Bucking the Trend

Bais Yaakov of Williamsburg started the uniform movement for the frum community back in the 1970s, believing it would reduce peer pressure and jealousy among students. This trend quickly gained popularity, and now only one school in Boro Park, Tomer Devorah, doesn’t require uniforms.

Yet even as uniforms became the norm in Boro Park, the Satmar communities of Monroe and Williamsburg resisted the trend. The concern was twofold: the avoidance of ayin hara, and that of chukas hagoy However, the very absence of uniforms created a different problem: peer pressure among the girls, with both a social and financial fallout.

“After a recent meeting with the hanhalah, we worked out a solution,” says Mr. Zelcer. “This year, Monroe and Williamsburg launched the Kleider Mit a Hechsher initiative, providing twenty mix-and-match uniform options for skirts and shirts.”

THE UNIVERSE OF UNIFORMS

When it comes to manufacturing, Mr. Zelcer works with a global network of suppliers. He sources fabric from India and Mexico, and buttons and zippers from China. He places orders in October for the coming school year, noting that it can take six months for everything to arrive.

Even with meticulous planning, the unexpected can happen. Mr. Zelcer recalls a near-disastrous phone call from overseas.

“One of the trucks was in an accident, and 30,000 pounds worth of skirts were overturned on the highway,” he recounts. “It took a crane to lift the container, and the skirts had to be sent back to the factory to be re-hung before they could be re-shipped.” There was lots of nail biting until that shipment finally arrived at their warehouse, the skirts hanging neatly inside.

At Fraylich’s, the work never stops. While August and September burst with eager shoppers, the period from October through June are calmer yet equally productive as the Zelcers

GOLDIE HIRSCH

focus intently on inventory. The warehouse inventory gets counted. The store inventory gets counted. Inventory gets restocked.

“We are very on top of our organized system,” Mr. Zelcer emphasizes. “We need to be. If someone mistakenly took the wrong size, the computer tells us everything.”

This need for a robust system became even more critical with Fraylich’s digital expansion. The Betty Z website was born during COVID. With unexpected time on their hands, Mr. Zelcer’s son became an impromptu model, trying on countless uniforms while they snapped photos (and then, of course, cropped out his head). Now, Fraylich’s website showcases uniforms for over 300 schools that Betty Z manufactures for, serving as a vital resource for out-of-state schools

that don’t have a local uniform store.

“And yes,” Mr. Zelcer says, “I know the uniform of every single one of those schools!”

Mr. Zelcer describes his job as “a delicate balancing act.” While every school wants a distinct uniform, he also prioritizes efficiency.

“When a school comes to me, I steer them toward a fabric that’s already in use elsewhere,” he explains. “This ensures we can get the fabric quickly and efficiently. It also helps that mountains of fabric don’t go to waste if a school closes down.

Despite Mr. Zelcer’s encyclopedic knowledge of uniforms, his customers often lack the same expertise.

“I’ve seen parents walk out with the wrong uniform for their daughter,” he shares. “It’s a common mistake because to the untrained eye, many uniforms, like those from Bais Shifra of Boro Park and Bais Yaakov of Bensonhurst, look very similar in color and pattern.”

THE ART OF THE UNIFORM

When a new school chooses a uniform, Mr. Zelcer gets creative. The principal might love a certain plaid but want bigger squares, or maybe the stripes from one school and the

Beyond Uniforms

While Fraylich’s specializes in girls’ uniforms, their reach extends far beyond traditional school attire. Boys, for instance, typically wear black pants and don’t face the same clothing pressures girls do. However, when Be’er Yeshaya of Monsey required a uniform, Fraylich’s was there to help with embroidery for the yeshiva’s logo, which is now featured on the students’ pants, shirts and even their yarmulkes

Fraylich’s uniform expertise has also attracted a diverse clientele. Yitzy Bald of the New York Boys Choir purchases black vests from them, and a non-Jewish production company recently ordered 100 gray wool skirts for a dance. Interestingly, some non-Jewish schools in Iowa and Florida also turn to Fraylich’s for modest uniform skirts that they can’t find in national brands.

Fraylich’s uniform skirts are so popular that they’ve found a second life in camps. “Why not?” Mr. Zelcer says. “The skirts are cheap, washable and comfortable.” He notes that many married staff members buy them too. “And it’s not just skirts,” Mr. Zelcer adds, recalling a girl who bought nine different colored scrunchies — made to match the uniforms — just for camp.

Bais Shifra of Boro Park and Bais Yaakov of Bensonhurst

Perfectly Pressed Pleats

Mr. Zelcer offers a behind-the-scenes glimpse of how Betty Z crafts a sharp uniform pleat. The work is so fascinating that some schools have even taken students on a “sewing trip” to see how pleats are made.

The magic is all in the baking. Pleated skirts are sandwiched between cardboard, rolled up, and steamed in a special oven for twenty minutes before being fanned out. And while it takes immense heat to create a pleat, a dryer will undo all that hard work.

“We can’t stress this enough,” Mr. Zelcer says. “Wash your skirts in cold water, and hang them to dry.”

For plaid skirts, the fabric is meticulously cut with scissors, ensuring the stripes are perfectly aligned, whereas solidcolored skirts can be cut with a knife.

To guarantee quality, Fraylich tests its fabrics before manufacturing stock. They create sample pleated skirts out of new fabrics, with each panel made from a different fabric and color. These samples allow them to see how each fabric washes, if it holds its pleat, or if it develops an unwanted shine. This information makes it possible for Fraylich to choose the best materials for your uniform.

sweater from another. This is where the magic happens. “We can take the exact same fabric and make it look totally different just by how we iron and pleat it,” Mr. Zelcer says. “We can actually hide a color in the plaid inside a pleat by pleating it a certain way.” A fabric that’s pleated horizontally in one school and vertically in another will result in two completely different uniforms.

Many schools want their logos prominently displayed, but Mr. Zelcer guides them otherwise. He often advises princi-

pals, “I’m sure you love your school’s name, but high school girls prefer the logos to be as small as possible, or placed on the bottom corner of a sweater.”

What happens if a school changes its logo?

“No problem at all,” Mr. Zelcer says. “Our team digitizes the new design and programs it into our embroidery machines, even if it’s just two weeks before school starts.” Sometimes a principal will wait in the store to approve the design and colors on the spot before giving their final go-ahead.

When a school updates its uniform, most allow for a one-year transition period.

“We’ll slash the prices on the ‘old’ uniforms,” Mr. Zelcer says, “and parents are happy to get a bargain.”

There was one instance though, when a new principal in Lakewood completely changed the uniform, leaving the business with a useless surplus. “We ended up donating over 1,000 shirts to charity,” he recalls.

THE MATH OF A PERFECT FIT

“When it comes to sizing, we go all out,” Mr. Zelcer says. “We offer fifteen different waist measurements and twelve skirt lengths.” That’s a total of 180 different sizes.

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“We service the tiny, the tall and the husky.” The sizes start in children’s size 3 and go up to skirts with a 52-inch waist and a 40-inch length.

Mr. Zelcer remembers an eighth grader from out of town who came into the store to buy a uniform for the very first time. Not because her school was new, but because she had never been able to find a uniform that fit. “Can you imagine being the only girl in school without a uniform?” he asks.

That’s why Fraylichs has a sample waistband as wide as 58 inches for girls to try on. “We know some girls might feel embarrassed being measured with a tape, so we offer a discreet way for them to find their size.”

Their goal is for every student to leave the store feeling “fraylich,” without the need for alterations.

GOING THE EXTRA STITCH

Although a uniform is a uniform, there are definitely trends. “Now the girls want long, longer and even longer,” Mr. Zelcer says.

Pint-Sized Pleats

Fraylichs also sells uniforms for 18-inch dolls, a dream item for every little girl.

“For every uniform we carry, we create a doll version. It’s cute to see,” Mr. Zelcer notes, “how mothers are quicker to splurge on these doll uniforms than on their own children’s uniforms.”

“Each school sets its own length rules, and sometimes principals even send staff to the store to oversee the buying process and ensure the skirts are compliant.”

When it comes to alterations, Mr. Zelcer is very hands-on.

“Hems can come down, buttons can fall off. That’s normal wear and tear, and we’re here to fix that,” Mr. Zelcer says. “Call me a seamstress, but I can actually sew darts, repair a hem, and I can rip out and insert a new zipper in a skirt in under four minutes.”

He explains that it’s part of growing up in a home that revolved around the uniform business. “We all learned how to sew, and my own family gets pretty lucky when I do alterations for them.” He has three sewing machines in the store and four at home.

Once, for Purim, the Zelcers all dressed up in school uniform. “I actually sewed myself up a pair of plaid pants,” Mr. Zelcer says. “And of course, we embroidered the shirts, which read Ah Fraylichin Purim.”

Though he’ll fix anything that rips or tears, Mr. Zelcer

Mr. Menachem Zelcer in his store

finds it hard to accept a return once an item was worn. Mr. Zelcer will ask those customers, “Would you like to buy a shirt that was worn by someone else?”

Fraylich’s unwavering commitment extends to critical moments, too. For example, it can happen that a home sustains a fire and the clothing is destroyed by the fire, smoke or water damage. This can happen during bedikas chametz or sreifas chametz, and often, the day after Pesach sees the store busy helping such a family acquire uniforms so their kids can return to school.

EASING

ACCEPTANCE

With school acceptance being a big hurdle these days, Mr. Zelcer works to make the challenge easier for families. He remembers a girl who was waiting to hear back from three different schools.

“I told her to take a uniform for each of the schools she had applied to,” he says. “Why make this parsha harder?” Once she knew which school she would be attending, she just exchanged the uniforms she didn’t need.

In Lakewood, where high school acceptance can happen at the last minute, Mr. Zelcer’s sister, Etty, is a key player. The askanim in charge of school placement have her number. “They’ll sometimes call her at midnight the day before school starts,” he says, “and she’ll gladly open the store for the girls who were just placed.”

But then you have customers who, as Mr. Zelcer says, “literally bang down the store, they need a school sweater now, orientation starts in a half hour.

“I just don’t get that,” he continues. “Would you get a gown the day of your sister’s wedding? You know school starts in September; why wait until the last minute?”

To prevent this, Fraylich encourages parents to buy uniforms before summer even starts. This avoids the usual headaches, long lines and backto-school anxiety. They even offer a generous four-month exchange policy for size changes, perfect for those growth spurts in July or August.

“And this year,” Mr. Zelcer adds, “we even have a uniform store in the Catskills, which I hope people will take advantage of.”

Fraylich’s dedication and commitment are stitched into every uniform. That’s why a Betty Z uniform is not just a good choice, but a seamless part of a student’s successful school year.

•

RAIZY FRIEDMAN

The blackboard, the chalk, the way they clasped their hands, the nuanced throw of hair over their shoulder — my cute young teachers captivated my junior self to the point where I wished they’d marry into our family. Of course, I assumed they slept in the teachers’ room, and never got hungry or angry, like regular people did.

Eventually, I learned that teachers did eat and sleep, and that they had a home away from school. I also learned to appreciate the experienced viewpoint that veteran teachers brought to our classes. Yet when it came to older teachers, I couldn’t rid myself of the certainty that they’d been born into the classroom; after all, they had been there ever since.

Then I discovered an interesting phenomenon. There are teachers who have joined the ranks straight out of seminary, and then stopped teaching. For a couple (or many) years, they lived stay-at-home-mommy lives, but then they transformed back into teaching superwomen.

Why did they go back? Why did they leave in the first place? What was the change like?

Here some teachers share insight on this curious fact.

Names have been changed.

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Rebbetzin Noe

Teaching gap: 15 YEARS

I got started when… I always dreamed of being a teacher. I applied for teaching jobs when I was still in seminary and landed a job teaching multiple grades at an outof-town day school. The next year, I moved to New Jersey and found a similar job, where I loved every single day of teaching for two more years.

I left the teaching field because…

My husband was in kollel, and even with some parental assistance, teaching did not cover our rent and bills. I was compelled to work at an office for many years.

What I missed most from the teaching field was…

Teaching and reaching! I missed it every day.

Eventually, after years of marriage, my husband left kollel and started working to supplement our income. He told me then that he hopes to earn enough money one day so I could “afford” to go back to teaching.

The reason I returned to the classroom was…

I followed my heart. My heart was in the classroom the entire time. I was good at my office job, but I felt no joy.

On my very first day back…

I was terrified. Would I remember how to do this? I felt the achrayus with a sense of pachad.

How many years I’ve been teaching this time around: 8 YEARS

I teach

Today

at: A BAIS YAAKOV HIGH SCHOOL IN MONSEY

The grades I’ve taught, then and now…

I started out teaching seventh grade, and then moved up to eight and ninth at the same school. Nowadays, I teach tenth and eleventh grade. I find the two ages worlds apart. Teaching seventh grade is nice as well as rewarding, but I love teaching tenth and eleventh graders. This age has become my specialty. I find the girls to be old enough to think deeply, and it is very rewarding to see them internalize the messages I teach.

The subjects I’ve taught, then and now…

I’ve only taught kodesh subjects. Back when I was young, I taught Chumash, Navi and Tefillah. Today I teach Chumash and Kesuvim.

My favorite sefer is Mishlei. Every time I open up sefer Mishlei, I learn something new about the world, about myself and about the Torah.

The highlight of going back to the classroom was…

I am so much more understanding of the girls now because I have children the same age. I now have a tenth grader of my own, and I know that there are some days when they’re just not their best.

I also have more patience today. If a girl can’t keep up or doesn’t get what I’m teaching, I’m much slower to react than I used to be. Young teachers have wonderful qualities — I had passion and fire back then — but I think the maturer version of myself has so much more room for my students.

In general, I think the girls like the young teachers who speak their language. But I’m not here for them to like me. At the beginning of the school year, the girls might be intimidated by me, but by Chanukah they come to appreciate my classes.

The difference in salary, then and now…

When I started teaching I was paid next to nothing. Today, well, it’s still not much. Considering the cost of living and the effort involved in preparation and marking, it’s not much of a difference. However, in high school, there’s an advantage of preparing once and teaching the same lesson to a few different classes.

A heartwarming teaching moment was…

I once attended a student’s vort, and another former student was there. She mentioned that she was upset with a comment I had made back in high school. I had told the class, as a side note, that “p’tcha” (calf’s foot jelly) doesn’t taste very good. She told me that she thought it was delicious. Clearly, I just didn’t know how to make it properly.

I told her that I would stand corrected, and during this vort she shared the instructions on how to make it properly. That week, I made sure to follow her directions and reported back to her afterward.

Teaching seventh grade is nice as well as rewarding, but I love teaching tenth and eleventh graders

Some final thoughts for those thinking of returning to the teaching field…

The difference in students’ behavior, then and now…

Over the years, I think the girls have become more afraid of hard work. Their instinctive reaction to any assignment is, “I don’t know how to do it!”

There is nothing like working in a school environment, where you know when it’s Rosh Chodesh, and where the rhythms of the year follow the Yiddishe calendar.

Also, going back is not the same as starting out; the life experience you have under your belt will only serve to your advantage.

Teaching gap: 17 YEARS

Mrs. Fulop

How many years I’ve been teaching this time around: 13 YEARS

I got started when… I started teaching as soon as I graduated high school. I taught different grades and various subjects over the next thirteen years.

I left the teaching field because…

My daughter was graduating elementary school at the time, and the following year, she was to attend the high school where I taught. I didn’t think it would be a good idea for me to teach there while she was a student. At the same time, the principal was unable to accommodate a specific request I made, and I also wanted to open a business of my own. All of these factors together influenced my decision.

Today I teach at: THE SAME SCHOOL I TAUGHT AT ORIGINALLY.

What I missed most from the teaching field was…

Everything. I loved teaching. I liked the atmosphere in the teachers’ room, I liked the connection with the girls in the classroom… I just liked teaching!

The reason I returned to the classroom was… I had opened my own business, as planned, but even as I interacted with customers, I felt like I was losing my brain and my touch. Although I kept up with the news and connected with people, I felt like I wasn’t using my brain as much. Also, my business had heavy Erev Yom Tov seasons and was draining my energy at the wrong times.

After a few years, I decided to close it down. I begrudgingly went to work for a similar business, where the headache wasn’t my own, but my heart wasn’t in it. When the school principal called to tell me that there was an opening for the upcoming school year, I felt a huge sense of purpose and relief.

I begrudgingly went to work for a similar business, where the headache wasn’t my own, but my heart wasn’t in it

On my very first day back…

I was nervous. I still feel nervous on the first day of school every year.

The grades I’ve taught, then and now…

I started out teaching eighth grade, but over the next few years, I moved to high school: first the ninth and tenth grades, and then the eleventh grade. I found my niche in eleventh grade.

The subjects I’ve taught, then and now…

The eighth grade teaching job had me teaching all subjects, since they were not yet divided and taught by multiple teachers. Over the next few years, I taught civics, vocabulary, current events and then American history. When I left the teaching field, I was teaching eleventh grade history, and now that I’m back, I’m teaching the same grade, same subject.

The highlight of going back to the classroom was…

The joy! It was like my neshamah had been waiting for me to go back. I work at a chassidish high school, and I belong to the same chassidus. Somewhere along my initial teaching journey, I’d heard that the former rebbe, zt”l, had said that he would repay all those who worked and helped his mosdos. Being part of the teaching staff in this school once again was a great feeling.

The difference in salary, then and now…

Back when I started out, elementary school teachers got paid a lot less than high school teachers. I think they still do. During my second year of teaching high school, I got a generous raise. Today, I feel like the school tries to be fair with their pay. They also offer paid babysitting, which I don’t take advantage of, but consider a wonderful bonus.

On a separate note, administratively, things have changed in general and have become more streamlined. Think grading, handing in papers on time, report cards, message reminders — things run very smoothly.

The difference in students’ behavior, then and now…

Students don’t respect their teachers (or their parents) today like they did years ago. There used to be an awe that surrounded the teacher. There is no inborn respect or admiration for authority figures today; everyone is on the same level. I still demand a certain decorum in my classroom, but I’ve adjusted.

Also, students used to sit and write notes. Teachers were mostly the “sage on the stage” who spoke while the students listened. Today there are sheets and fill-ins, shorter attention spans, and more exciting discussions. I

don’t make my students review the material at home before each lesson, like I used to. I also don’t give surprise quizzes anymore.

Additionally, when I started out, I was young and popular. Now I think my age works to my disadvantage. The students see me as a “bubby,” not as relatable, cool and friendly as their younger teachers. Some students write me off as old because “she already taught my mother!”

A heartwarming teaching moment was…

I had one specific student who acted up in class. I tried the standard disciplining path, but one day, I had an epiphany: What if I spoke to her directly? I called her over and asked her to give my class a chance. She was surprised, but made a 180-degree turnaround. At the end of the year, she wrote a nice note on her test paper, thanking me for my work, and added, “I was amazed to see how you accept change for the better at any time.”

Some final thoughts for those thinking of returning to the teaching field…

The teaching schedule is great for a Yiddishe mamme — it gives you time off when you need to be off, and it’s so heartwarming to meet your students years after they graduated; they stay yours forever.

Mrs. Grunstein

Teaching gap: 6 YEARS

How many years I’ve been teaching this time around: 19 YEARS

Today I teach at: A CHASSIDISH BORO PARK HIGH SCHOOL

I got started when… I went to teach as soon as I graduated and taught for four years.

I left the teaching field because… I had my first baby and wanted to be a full-time mother. My husband was working, and our rent was $600 (!), which his paycheck covered, so we didn’t need my income at the time.

What I missed most from the teaching field was… I missed the connection between teacher and student. Even as I was busy being a full-time mother, I found myself grabbing opportunities to substitute. At one point, I was subbing through almost an entire school year, so I knew it was time to go back to the classroom.

The reason I returned to the classroom was… I wasn’t fully fulfilled with only mommying. I wanted more, and I knew where to find it.

On my very first day back…

I loved every second. I felt like I was picking up right where I had left off earlier. The first year back felt like a long first day. I learned about the high school culture, and how it’s different from elementary school.

The grades I’ve taught, then and now… I taught fourth grade when I was younger, and today I teach tenth grade.

The subjects I’ve taught, then and now… Originally, I taught all of the general studies subjects to my fourth grade students. Today I teach biology.

The highlight of going back to the classroom was… I reconnected with my younger self. I felt like I was fresh out of school once again. It was also great to switch to high school; teaching tenth grade that first year was an exhilarating experience.

The difference in salary, then and now…

Elementary school paid bobkas. After paying for simple prizes and some candy for students, there was nothing left. High school pay is a bit more commensurate for the work I invest, but it’s nothing spectacular.

The difference in students’ behavior, then and now…

Human nature never changes. The world changes, expectations change, but the heart of a child stays the same. Everyone wants to be good. But students today have more expectations, they like being spoon-fed information, and they expect more fun. The girls today also have shorter attention spans than they had in the past.

In terms of how my students perceive me, an older teacher does garner more respect. As a young teacher, I had to learn to respect myself, and to demand that my students respect me as well. Today, it’s a matter of course. But the students’ ability to show respect — that’s not a given anymore.

A heartwarming teaching moment was…

A student once wrote on her test paper, “A kodesh teacher once told us that a single sentence from an English teacher can have more of a hashpa’ah than an entire kodesh lesson. Mrs. Grunstein, I think she meant you!”

TOYS4U SHARES WHAT BACKTO-SCHOOL SEASON IS LIKE

It’s that time of year again. The world smells like new shoes and crayons, and — for once — kids are actually thrilled at the thought of school. (The broken erasers and dog-eared papers will come later.) To acquire everything needed to fill those smart backpacks, shoppers of all stripes descend upon Toys4U.

I catch up with one of the saleswomen before the crush begins so she can give me the lowdown on the stuff kids buy to fill their backpacks. How does the back-to-school season play out at Toys4U?

CHANA GLUCK

SCHOOL-SUPPLIES SHOPPERS SHOW UP

AS EARLY

AS...

The end of the school year. Families who go away for the summer or who are making a simcha come at the beginning of the season to stock up. At the other end of the spectrum are those who pick up the previous Pesach’s afikomens at our Chanukah sale…

WE ARE STOCKEDFULLYFOR SCHOOL...

At the end of the summer, when most of the back-to- school shoppers come in.

THE SEASONBUSIEST AT THE STORE IS...

Chanukah. For school-supplies shopping, it’s the week between day camp and school, when everyone is there for school supplies, activities and crafts. During that time, we’re also kept busy filling bulk orders for playgroups and preschools.

EXAMPLES OF SUPPLIES SCHOOLS REQUEST ARE...

We carry everything needed for school, but if a school requires something super specific, they’ll need to let us know about it so we don’t run out of stock.

Some high schools ask for folders in specific colors so they can color-code according to grade and make it easier for the teachers who teach multiple grades.

Last year, one school asked for sheet protectors divided in three horizontal sections for G.O. That’s a less typical item, for example. There have also been requests for seat pockets and electric timers.

WE

NEED SCHOOL SUPPLIES LISTS...

Earlier than we usually get them. While you’ll find me holding lists from a bunch of different schools, we don’t actually get them directly from every school, but from mothers who come in. This helps us know what to order. It’s also helpful for us to have several copies on hand in order to assist those who come in to shop without their list.

THE GRADES WITH THE LONGEST LISTS ARE...

First through fifth grades generally require the most school supplies. The older the grade, the less specific the lists tend to be.

ITEMS THAT ARE JUST AS GOOD FROM GENERIC BRANDS ARE...

Sheet protectors. Customers often think that only a certain company is good, or that only the thickest sheet protectors will work, but really, unless they’re the really thin ones, which we don’t carry, they’re all good. Dividers as well; high school girls often have very specific ideas of which companies are good and will spend lots of time debating the different types.

QUALITY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR BASICS ARE...

POPULAR ITEMS THAT GO INTO MOST CARTS ARE...

Plastic snap envelopes, sheet protectors, Expo markers, mini spirals and sticky notes.

Newer on the market: poly portfolios — twopocket folders with a clear display cover.

Kum makes the best sharpeners. Darice makes quality supplies too. Crayola makes the best crayons, and it doesn’t pay to quibble over the few cents you’ll save by buying cheaper quality crayons. I’d also only recommend play dough from the PlayDoh company.

A DETAIL TO LOOK OUT FOR WHEN SHOPPING FOR BACKPACKS IS...

A water bottle pocket, if you live upstate. City girls can do without this because NYC water is high quality and most people drink from the tap. Upstate kids need that water bottle for school, but not all backpack styles include the pocket for it.

ADVICE FORSHOPPINGMOTHERS FOR SCHOOL SUPPLIES WOULD BE...

Try to make shopping for school supplies a fun outing. Come into the store, and be involved in the excitement. Decide what needs to be bought while you’re still home so you can avoid quarrels and scenes in the store, and let your child choose her supplies because she’ll be the one using them. It’s okay if she’s

THE BEST PART OF MY JOB IS...

When customers are happy. I love finding those independent kids who shop by themselves and helping them make their shopping quicker and easier. Sometimes older shoppers will hand me their entire list and ask me to get them everything. However, since I’m there to service all customers and I am not a personal shopper, I can’t fulfill such requests.

A

MORE HANDS-ON APPROACH IS NEEDED WHEN...

A MESSAGE FOR BACK-TOSCHOOL GIRLS WOULD BE...

Don’t be afraid to ask for help; that’s why we’re here. Your mothers can send you to shop on your own, and we’ll help you find whatever you need.

A customer has a hard time reading English. If that’s the case, I’ll go through the list with them, item by item, and help them find what they need.

A NEW ITEM IN TOYS4U I'D RECOMMEND...

Not in the school supplies section, but Playmags has just released jumbo magnetic cubes that are perfect for toddlers.

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!

D P G H S A T O A O

B I U L U F R R E M

T C C U B

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:

The Williamsburg View also welcomes photos of your child’s toy creations!

Send your colored page to The Williamsburg View to enter a drawing for a chance to have your artwork featured in our pages and win $10 at Toys4U! Four lucky winners will be announced each week.

To enter the raffle, email your colored page with your full name to comments@thewview.com or

Feel free to photocopy this coloring page for the entire family.

CONGRATULATIONS

TO THE WINNERS OF COLOR ME PRETTY!

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

Lazer Gumbo

Shaindy Fried, 10, Satmar

Faigy

Gluck, 10, Vien

Lebovitz, Viznitz

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PARAS

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Great opportunity to manage your own business from home. No experience needed, no computer necessary. Huge potential to grow big. Call: 438.529.1216

WORK FROM HOME

Let your extra time bring you some extra cash. You’ll absolutely enjoy it and feel fulfilled! For more about this wonderful business and how it works Call 929-318-7969 or text signup to 347-525-7071 to get you started! Hatzlucha!

EXPERIENCED SALESPERSON

For Electrical & lighting supplies co. No car necessary, commission only. Top $$ paid, male or female, work from home, partnership opportunities available. Call: 212.662.1300

PERMANENT SUBS

The Hamaspik School is looking for permanent subs for the upcoming school year. Please call 718-408-5444 ext. 5301

SEIT P3

Excellent SEIT P3 opening in Williamsburg full time, excellent pay potential. Email: scaplan@yeled.org Or call: 917.968.2292

VACATION PROPERTIES

Luxurious vacation properties for short-term rentals in the Monsey area. Some with POOLS. can accommodate 18 to 150 guests, ideal for large families, Shabbatons, and more.. Great Minds 845-5203250.

P3 PROVIDER

Looking for male P3 providers to work in a Cheider. Pls email Providerconnectors@gmail. com

SERVICES

LIGHT ALTERATIONS

Please Call: 718.450.4700

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

CLASSIFIEDS

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.

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

VAN FOR RENT

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

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

NEW WEBSITE?

Get your new beautiful website done hassle free!

Affordable pricing! Satisfaction guaranteed! Email: sales@ stratadigitalgroup.com

PROFESSIONAL COACH

Heal your life. Heal your body. Heal your past. Experienced. Successful. Personable. Expertise in anxiety, panic and trauma. Mrs. Esty Frank 7188518636

THE CRACKER DIET

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

AYIN BEAYIN

In case people stare, we guard your streak. A weekly shprech, A peaceful week! Call Today 718-400-AYIN (2946)

CUSTOMIZED

PHOTO BOOKS

Baby albums - Simcha albums - Any customized album. Call or text 347916-8098 Email Info@ myeverafterbook.com

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

KITCHEN

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

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

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 SERVICE

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

GEMACH

Breastpump Gemach 718599-0721

Lights for your simchas. Minimal fee 718-854-2404 Twin carriage 718-522-3891 “the organizer” 917-232-8614

Nice new ladies clothing to givaway to needy ladies only call 718-974-9428

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 347-701-8061

LOST

Diamond earrings 347-9625223

Gold bracelet/bangle before Shavuos 347-962-5223

lady hanging earring July 13, most probably on Bedford ave 925-548-3020

r.t Tefilin about a year ago pls text 3473859204

Sansa with card 158 Skillman 929-409-4113

Evening bag Lag Bomer in Pardes Tzvi 929-561-1445

Rain cover for bugaboo Flushing corner Wythe 718675-6874 lv msg

FREE GIVEAWAY

Brochos cards for Moshiach’s arrival at moshiachbrochoscards@ gmail.com. Endorsed by Gedolei Yisroel

About us

After 28 years of powering possibilities for businesses and institutions worldwide, Fidelity under a new name: Sola. As one of the largest electronic payment providers in North America, Sola offers advanced processing tools for business owners across all channels — in-person, online, and mobile. We deliver customizable end-to-end technology solutions across various business verticals, bridging connections in the global marketplace.

LOCATIONS

Brooklyn Navy Yard, Brooklyn, NY 141 Flushing Ave, Suite 501, 11205 Howell, NJ 465 Oak Glen Rd, 07731 Boro Park, Brooklyn, NY 4013 13th Ave, 11218

Open Roles

Customer Service Representative

Boro Park Office Location

• Work the customer service queue, monitoring and answering incoming calls and emails daily, generating trouble tickets in Sola’s Customer Assistance and Ticketing System and contacting the clients with follow-up and resolution.

• Pricing Analysis Representative Williamsburg Office Location

Act as liaison between agents and internal departments to communicate, research, and investigate client issues while driving the ticket towards resolution.

• Analyze financial income, profit & loss statements from financial funding institutions

• Provide a detailed profit & loss analysis from the statements

• Meticulous attention to detail needed to provide an accurate data analysis and excellent mathematical analysis and application skills required to crunch the numbers

Deployments Representative

Williamsburg Office Location

Chani Saks

P (718) 782-2823 x426

E csaks@solapayments.com

For more information or to apply, send your resume to: Visit us at solapayments.com

•

• • Work with our inventory management system to deploy and fulfill accounts/equipment and orders

Set up & Troubleshoot and rectify issues to ensure complete customer satisfaction

• Must be able to communicate clearly and efficiently both over the phone and in writing

Must be able to work independently with minimal supervision using pre-set company policies, procedures, and standards as well as contractual agreements as guidelines for interaction and activity

• Blooming Grove area

• 4 min drive from Supermarket

• Close to Shul and Mikvah

• Beautiful Grounds

• 5 Bedrooms, 17 Beds

• Fresh Linen and towels included

• Full Kosher Kitchen (hot plate, hot water, candles, havdala) Email: Serenestays7@gmail.com Whatsapp/call/text

Tescher

FOOD

Wercberger

CREATIVE