An amazing scene in the Beit Medrash tonight following night Seder, as Kollel, TJJ Ambassadors, TJJ Bus 4, and TJJ Bus 7 come together to dance and sing, ushering in the Shabbos and ending an amazing day!

We apologize for the lack of pictures tonight, but unfortunately we are facing some technical difficulties with the website.  Hopefully these issues will be resolved as swiftly as possible and we will continue to post pictures at the next available time.  Thank you for following!

What an amazing day!!! In what was possibly one of, if not the, most exciting days in Kollel history, so many amazing events took place, it’s hard to keep track of them all!

Beginning this morning, Kollel was once again joined by TJJ Ambassadors for the day.  During morning Seder, the members of TJJA were given a Shiur by Rabbi Benovitz himself.  Throughout the day, Kollel was privileged to welcome a myriad of executives from the NCSY, including International Director Rabbi Micah Greenland, Associate International Director Keevy Fried, Director of NCSY Summer Programs David Cutler, Director of Education Rabbi Dovid Bashevkin, and the Executive Vice President of the OU (and our very own Josh Fagin’s grandfather) Mr. Allen Fagin.  Kollel enjoyed the experience of having the directors join in and partake in our everyday activities, whether it be the learning, the ball, or anything else that we so enjoy on Kollel.  Mr. Fagin learned as part of Josh’s Chaburah for the day, and Rabbi Bashevkin gave a joint session for TJJA and a few Kollel Chaburahs on social interaction; top to bottom, it was a unique site to see them so enjoying the Kollel schedule that we are so familiar with.

Following Chaburahs, and before the joint festivities, Kollel had their own special sports tournaments.  All-Star teams of post-10th and post-11th graders, CIT’s, Madrichim, and non-Madrichim Staff played one another in some awesome games of basketball.  The staff faced off against the NCSYers in a thrilling game of hockey as well.  The change of pace from the usual leagues schedule was refreshing and incredibly fun, as NCSYers finally got to go head to head with some of their Madrichim.

Upon the conclusion of the Staff/NCSYer games, Kollel competed against TJJA, TJJ Bus 4, and TJJ Bus 7 in some “inter-camp” basketball games, as well as an intense Ultimate Frisbee matchup.  While both games did come down to the wire, Kollel would win out, maintaining their stellar record in inter-camp games.  Some pickup ball ensued between a number of Directors and NCSYers, with Rabbi Benovitz, Rabbi Greenland, Keevy Fried, and Rabbi Suffrin (the principle of YULA High School) playing a game of 4-on-4 with a bunch of NCSYers.  Rabbi Benovitz would ultimately lead his team to an exhausting victory.

The most significant, exciting events of the day took place on the courts when the balls were put down and the games had come to an end.  After hearing a few words of introduction from Rav Schachter, Kollel and the TJJ programs joining them partook in a joint Siyum, made by Yona Benscher of Kollel (on Masechet Sukkot), and a member of TJJA.  They each recited the final piece of their respective learnings, and recited the Kadish at the end.  The Kollel and TJJ’s joined together in singing and dancing around the courts to celebrate the tremendous accomplishments of their friends.  After a meat dinner in honor of the Siyum, Kollel was treated to yet another incredible surprise: the Zechut of hearing from the Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Dovid Lau, as he came to visit Kollel.  Rabbi Lau explained how great he thought this event was, and how significant the joining of Klal Yisrael truly can be.

Rabbi Rael Blumenthal kicked off the last night Seder of the first half of the summer with an insightful (and funny!) Sichat Mussar.  Members of TJJA and TJJ enjoyed a Q&A with Rabbi Sobolofsky, and learned with many Kollel Madrichim and NCSYers throughout the night.

Following night Seder, to close out an incredible week and an even more tremendous day, Rabbi Benovitz suggested that the groups sing a little together before the TJJ’s departed.  Together the members of Kollel, TJJA, TJJ Bus 4, and TJJ Bus 7 sang “One more day ’till Shabbos…” with excitement.  The energy was invigorating and the site was inspiring, the booming sounds rocking the Beit Medrash as they danced around and enjoyed an amazing end to the evening.

Check out the Beit Medrash rocking as NCSYers and Madrichim enjoy an amazing night Seder!

Meet Team “Spoon!”

Left to right: Dovid Lesser, Shmuel Aidelson, Binyamin Glanz, Mordechai Sheinson, Ezra Alyeshmerni, Steven Stein, Rabbi Joey Herschel*, Yoni Katz, Aaron Toledano

*Denotes Captain

Meet Team “Table!”

Left to right: Leo Rubin, Yaakov Hoffman, Shua Katz*, Leor Rapps, Shimmy Keller, Menachem Gans, Yosef Borochov, Aaron Koschitzki, Donny Rozenberg

*Denotes Captain

Meet Team “Knife!”

Top: (Left to right) Eli Englard, Yaakov Kaminetsky, Joe Baruch*, Adam Zahler, Dani Scheinman, Johnny Silber, Yehuda Shetrit

Bottom: Shaya Forman

*Denotes Captain

This has been a week with a steady stream of visitors from all directions.  NCSY Kollel has hosted other groups, educators from the US, officers and professionals from National NCSY and the OU, and quite a few parents and other relatives.

Today, we added to that list with a most special guest.  Rav Avraham Levi is a prominent community Rav in the town of Elad.  Among his many congregants are the members of the Yifrach family.  Eyal Yifrach, one of the three boys tragically murdered last June, had a seat in Rav Levi’s shul.  That seat was turned into a makeshift memorial last summer, and has since been set aside more formally in Eyal’s honor. 

Rav Levi himself played a vital role in consoling and guiding his community and the people of greater Israel. 

Today, Rav Levi spent time consulting with Rav Schachter, Rav Sobolofsky, and Rav Kaminetsky, speaking with NCSYers, and addressing our staff.

NCSY Kollel will always feel a deep connection to the events of last June.  The timing of their abduction and the ages of the boys strengthen that link.   Rav Levi’s visit was a welcome reminder of the strength and resolve that emerged from the shadow of tragedy, and of the everlasting bonds and commitments we share.

After another amazing Tiyul Day, Kollel went back to its regular schedule with a renewed excitement.

The morning began with another day of incredible learning during Morning Shiur and Chaburahs, followed by yet another sports period of the same excitement and intensity as the very first day.  This was accompanied by a meaningful mini-Tiyul to Kever Rachel, where NCSYers connected to the feelings of the 9 days and were then able to enjoy some free time in Malcha Mall.

Mussar Seder brought an exciting twist to the day’s learning with the first Super-Chaburahs of the summer.  NCSYers got to hear from Madrichim other than their own, which made for an interesting change of pace and set the tone for another fantastic Night Seder.  Night Seder was followed by two amazing guest speakers: Rabbi Elly Storch, the assistant Menahel of DRS, and a special staff shiur from Rav Levi, the Rav of El’ad.

We are looking forward to an exciting end to our week as we welcome back TJJ Ambassadors for the day tomorrow!

While today was another amazing Tiyul day on NCSY Kollel, it was a very different Tiyul day than any others would prove to be.

As we are currently in the period known as the nine-days, during which we mourn the loss of the Beit Hamikdash, the Tiyulim options had more of a serious tone than usual.  While none of the Tiyulim may have included water sports or intense hikes of any sort, they were no less exciting and incredible than our normal Tiyulim.  The Tiyulim today included Rabbi Gordon’s world famous Torah Tour of Israel, a living history of the Shomron, an “underground” tour of the Old City of Jerusalem, and hiking and history of modern Israel.

On Rabbi Gordon’s Torah tour, NCSYers traveled to Bnei Brak to visit a variety of Talmidei Chachamim and Gedolei HaDor, as well as many amazing cites that play prominent roles in the world of Torah greatness.  The Torah Tour was privileged to hear words of Chizuk from the former Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rav Yisrael Meir Lau, Davened Mincha by one of the Gedolei HaDor, HaRav Chaim Kanievsky, visited the incredible institution that is the Yeshiva of Ponevezh, and heard from one of the Roshei Yeshiva of Ponevezh, Rav Gershon Eidelstein.  The trip concluded with a visit to the cemetery in Bnei Brak in which a countless number of previous Gedolim and Talmidei Chachamim are buried, including the Stippler Gaon, Rav Elazar M.M. Shach, Rav Eliyahu Desler, and the Chazon Ish.

Other NCSYers experienced a truly unique experience in touring the Shomron.  They learned a tremendous amount about the area so often the center of conflict, and gained a new understanding of the significance of the land that they toured.  The Tiyul made an emotional stop to observe the Fogel Family home, the site of the horrific tragedy that befell the Fogel family only a few years ago.  After the Shomron, they visited Shilo, the site of the Mishkan, and were given a virtual tour explaining to them the detail of the Mishkan that once rested on the very spot they were visiting.  It was an amazing experience to be able to connect the Biblical significance of the land to their modern day experiences in the land of Israel.

As part of the Tiyul to Jerusalem, NCSYers got to see Jerusalem from a whole new perspective – underground!  They partook in two spectacular underground tours in the Old City: Chizkiyahu’s water tunnels, and the Kotel tunnel tours.  Wading through shallow water and observing the massive walls of the Kotel plunging deep into the ground, it was amazing to discover this less-seen view of the Old City and the Kotel itself.

The final Tiyul visited the Gush Katif museum and the Ya’ar Kedoshim (Forest of Martyrs).  In the Gush Katif museum, the NCSYers learned about the disengagement that took place from the settlements of Gush Katif around ten years ago.  In the Ya’ar Kedoshim, the NCSYers traveled through a forest comprised of six-million trees, one planted for each of the victims of the Holocaust.  The trip was impactful and certainly set the mood for the period of the nine-days (of course, the stop at the Ben and Jerry’s factory later certainly raised the spirits of the trip!).

After an awesome day of Tiyulim, the NCSYers returned to Beit Meir to gather in the Beit Medrash to hear a speech regarding Gush Katif.  Rav Ari Katz, father of Kollel’s very own Evyatar Katz, and former resident of Gush Katif, addressed the entire Kollel about the disengagement from the area which took place ten years ago from the coming month.  Rav Katz spoke about his experience, the significance of giving away land in Israel, and how we must understand that in the end, all that Hashem does is for the best.  The speech was moving and inspiring, and left the NCSYers feeling a sense of community and the greater Klal Yisrael.