Sergey Kadinsky

In the “world’s borough,” every language can be heard, and for Jewish languages, the epicenter of this diversity is Rego Park. I experienced it in my youth, in which the barber spoke Bukhori, the baker spoke Hungarian, the rabbi spoke German, elders spoke Yiddish sprinkled with Romanian and Ukrainian words, classmates spoke Russian, and many other such anecdotes within a short walking distance.

The necessity of porch cameras speaks of the rise in crime, usually burglars seeking to steal packages or break into homes. This past Sunday, a Hewlett homeowner had his pro-Israel flag stolen and the act was captured on camera.

The mission of Sam Fried’s life began in childhood, instilled by the Zionist values of his family, community, and schools. From an early age, he dreamed of wearing the IDF uniform in service of Israel. Like many reservists abroad, the Hamas attack on Simchas Torah caught him by surprise and he rushed to catch the flight to Israel to reenlist. Last Sunday, he returned to his parents in Jamaica Estates and met with Rabbi Josh Goller, who invited him to speak at the Young Israel of West Hempstead on the impact of the support of prayers on the soldiers.

On the hundredth day after Hamas breached the Gaza border and murdered the largest number of Jews in a single day since the Holocaust, the Young Israel of West Hempstead hosted the volunteers who spent the past 15 weeks identifying the dead, comforting their survivors, and themselves.

The century-old mansion-turned-shul that is the Young Israel of Wavecrest and Bayswater was filled with lights this past Motza’ei Shabbos, matching the dancing and energy of the New York Boys Choir, as it expands to include participants from Queens.

For many couples living in West Hempstead, their careers have been established and they earned their home in the suburbs, but within themselves an emotional void developed, as work, parenting, and daily responsibilities leave little time for spouses to focus on each other. Perhaps that’s why, when the House of Torah shul recently hosted Rabbi Ben Zion Shafier of the Shmuz lecture series, the room was packed, and he was warmly welcomed by his talmid Rabbi Avichai Bensoussan.