Queens Jewish Link
Connecting the Queens Jewish Community 
On Monday, US Rep. Grace Meng (D-Queens), a member of the House Appropriations Committee, once again encouraged houses of worship and nonprofit organizations in Queens to apply for funding to improve the safety and security of their properties.
On Tuesday, March 23, the Queens Borough Safety Patrol-Shmira unveiled a fleet of three vehicles that will now be used to monitor our communities. A sizable crowd stood for the ceremony and ribbon-cutting in Forest Hills. “Your presence today attests to the value and significance of Queens Shmira as a community service,” said founder Hiski Meirov.
On Monday, March 15, Shevach High School was privileged to have noted inspirational speaker Rabbi Meir Simcha Sperling address its students. In his captivating manner, Rabbi Sperling took the well-known signs of kosher animals and gave everyone an interesting insight and a new appreciation of this mitzvah.
A Tribute on His Passing
Our rabbis teach us that while it’s a transgression not to bury a dead person right away, if the burial is postponed to bring greater honor to the deceased, it is not a transgression (Sanhedrin 46a).
The Yeshiva of Central Queens (YCQ) family is eagerly looking forward to Sunday, May 2, when the Yeshiva will celebrate its 80th anniversary as one of the premier yeshivos in Queens, it was announced by YCQ President Joel Wein. The theme of the event will be “Ben Sh’monim LiGvurah” (Pirkei Avos 5:21), which is so apropos to the Yeshiva’s dynamic and proactive response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Torah commands us to count the days from Pesach to Shavuos in order to connect the Exodus on Pesach with the Giving of the Torah on Shavuos. The days of S’firas HaOmer are a time to rectify character attributes. Rav Moshe Feinstein explains that the name Shavuos, literally Weeks, so beautifully conveys this idea, since the holiday of Shavuos is an outcome of the weeks that precede it. For this very reason, the date of the holiday of Shavuos is determined by the 49 days of S’firas HaOmer, and not the date, because the 49 days prior, which are used to prepare, are essential to the holiday, and are required in full (see Shem MiShmuel, BaMidbar 5675).
