Many questions surrounded the future of the Chabad-Lubavitch branch of Hasidism after the death of its seventh and final leader—“the Rebbe,” Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson—on June 12, 1994 (3 Tammuz, 5754). Schneerson had no children, and no successor was named. But 20 years later, Chabad is not only alive and well, but increasingly receiving the so-called highest form of flattery: imitation. more

A large map of the New York–Long Island area linking photos of Israeli soldiers and their home communities hung on a wall of the Sephardic Temple in Woodmere. In Israel, these are the Lone Soldiers; in the Five Towns they are a source of pride. More than 500 supporters of the Israel Defense Forces came to the Long Island Chapter of Friends of the IDF at its third annual event on May 28, raising $350,000 for FIDF. more

On June 1, when Achiezer hosts its sole annual fundraiser, our Far Rockaway-Bayswater/Five Towns community will join together in support of an organization that operates 24/7, 365 days a year, an organization that serves every need, of every community member; because every person matters. more

Singing, dancing and 300 celebrants welcomed a new Torah scroll to Valley Stream on Sunday, dedicated by Shlomo Cohen in memory of his parents Sara and Tuvia Cohen to Chabad Outreach Center. more

As part of his whirlwind tour of New York’s Jewish organizations and institutions, Rabbi David Lau, Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel visited Orthodox Union headquarters to learn about OU Kosher and to be the guest of honor at a luncheon. Rabbi Lau is in New York for a week, in his first official visit as Chief Rabbi. more

A chronicler of American Jewish history, a talmid muvhak of Rav Joseph B. Soleveitchik and a teacher of thousands, Rabbi Aaron Rakeffet-Rothkoff, will speak this Sunday at the Young Israel of West Hempstead. more

The community turned out in force — 1,600 strong — to the 33rd annual Hatzalah Barbecue on Sunday at the Sands at Atlantic Beach. more

A personal trainer at a gym saw the posted flier offering CPR classes and called Malky Tropper, EMT and CPR instructor and asked to learn. The woman took the class and Tropper got a call from her eight months later. “I was in Williamsburg,” said the non-Jewish woman excitedly, “and I saw a Jewish boy with the long curls choking on a hard candy. He fell unconscious and I saved the boy by doing what you taught me! I beat the Jewish ambulance!” she exulted. more

While the crisis in Ukraine continues to unfold, Jews in Crimea have been caught in the middle. “The main action in Crimea was taking place right across the street from our synagogue,” said Rabbi Yitzchok Meyer Lipszyc, who has been a Chabad-Lubavitch emissary in Simferopol, the capital of Crimea, for more than two decades. more

“To assist the State, the army and to give back to the community.” These are the goals of every Israeli soldier, including that of Lt. Tova Abebe, one of the representatives from the Israel Defense Forces greeted and lauded by the 1,400 leaders who attended the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF) national Gala Dinner at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel last week. The dinner raised $20 million. more