Shiva Fund

Dear Friends,

On Wednesday of last week, our rabbi, Rabbi Mendy Wilschanski, lost his beloved father, Harav Shneur Zalman ben Refoel Wilschanski, OBM.

We are joining together as a community to send dinner to the Shiva house for Rabbi Mendy and the extended Wilschanski family mourning the loss of their patriarch. The meal has been ordered from a local caterer in Brooklyn, NY, where the family is sitting Shiva. It will be delivered tomorrow evening, Tuesday, April 2.

We invite you to join us in this Mitzvah and help us cover the cost of the meal.

Members of the community have also asked about assisting with Rabbi Mendy & Brocha's travel costs and other Shiva related costs. This fund will also go towards helping our rabbi cover these expenses.

We thank you for your graciousness of heart. May we share only in joyous occasions together.

To Rabbi Mendy and the Wilschanski Family:

 המקום ינחם אתכם בתוך שאר אבלי ציון וירושלים 

May God comfort you among the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem.

Sincerely,

The Sisterhood at Cong. Sha'arei Israel

PS.

Please feel free to contact Ms. Sariba Benjamin at [email protected] with any questions or concerns.

Dear Friend,

It's with a heavy heart that I am writing this message today. 

I am overwhelmed and so appreciative of the outpouring of messages of concern and condolences which I have received over the past few days after the passing of my dear father. 

I could spend a lifetime writing books about the impact that my father had on my personal life, let alone the 10’s of thousands of people which he had taught with love and care throughout his life.

My father was a man of Torah, he was a Rosh Yeshiva, a Rov (community rabbi) and a teacher all his life. He raised a family and generations of students who are Rabbis all around the world. 

There is a tremendous void in my heart and the world due to his passing.

In this week's Parsha, we read about the eternal flame that was on the Mizbeach (the altar), from which we learn that every synagogue should have an eternal flame. 

This eternal light is representative of the soul’s light and inner fire that never goes out. 

My father before he passed shared in his final words to my siblings and my mom the words "Tracht Gut Vet Zein Gut" Think good and it will be good, this and then he said Shema.

I had the privilege of teaching over the past few weeks a JLI course which couldn't have come at a better time. The Rebbe's teaching of how we view life is what gives me the strength to write this message today.

While it is extremely hard to keep on going, we fight through the pain and try to think good! We must keep the flame and memory alive through keeping the Torah and Mitzvot alive, this is how you make an eternal flame that burns forever! 

Within each one of us, there's an eternal flame that shines and is waiting to be nurtured and tended to and protected. 

Every single day, it is up to us to tap into that flame, by learning Torah and doing Mitzvot. 

My father took great joy and pleasure from seeing our beautiful community, every report that I gave him brought him such Nachas.

In his memory, I ask that we do another Mitzvah, and with Hashem’s help we will definitely continue to grow, with an even stronger and bigger fire every single day. 

Shabbat Shalom

Rabbi Mendy Wilschanski

Pictured: Rabbi Mendy Wilschanski with his father OBM at the wedding of Akiva Salamon, of Raleigh, NC