Community Corner

Hatzolah of Queens and Great Neck held its annual members appreciation event over Chanukah at Congregation Ner Mordechai in Kew Gardens. The lavish celebration, befitting the organization’s life-saving work, featured vibrant live music and moving words of gratitude from Hatzolah of Queens and Great Neck coordinators, including Rabbi Binyomin Kessler – Menahel of Yeshiva Ketana of Queens – and Sruly Lowy.

On Monday, December 30, Rabbi Yossi and Dina Blesofsky of Chabad of Northeast Queens brought the community together for their annual grand menorah lighting. As the senior shaliach of all Queens' shluchim, Rabbi Blesofsky has been a guiding force in bringing the joy and light of Chanukah to neighborhoods across the borough. This year’s event, originally planned for Sunday, December 29, was rescheduled due to inclement weather, but the festive spirit was as vibrant as ever.

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced the closure of an unlicensed cannabis shop that operated at 103-17 Queens Boulevard in Forest Hills, blocks away from a public park and a junior high school. More than 30 pounds of marijuana, with a street value of approximately $38,200, were confiscated, as well hundreds of packages of cannabis product, following a search of the premises.

On Thursday, December 26, Whitestone celebrated a historic milestone with its first-ever menorah lighting at Francis Lewis Park. Nestled under the Queens approach of the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge, the park provided a scenic and symbolic backdrop for an event that highlighted community unity and the spirit of Chanukah. I attended on behalf of Queens Shmira and was pleasantly surprised at the crowd enjoying the program.

On Motzaei Shabbos, January 11, Young Israel of Hillcrest hosted its second annual Game Night, Playing for Our Land, to raise funds for essential equipment for the chayalim serving in the IDF. The event brought together over 80 community members for an evening filled with games, food, and camaraderie, all to support a meaningful cause.

Joint Statement from Assemblyman Sam Berger And Councilman James Gennaro

Assemblyman Sam Berger (D-Kew Gardens Hills) and Councilman James Gennaro (D-Queens) issued a joint statement last week announcing New York City Department of Transportation’s revocation of recently imposed parking changes in front of Wasserman Supermarket, located on Main Street in Kew Gardens Hills.