What an amazing first full week of leagues!  While the season has been short thus far, there have been so many incredible games, and as the standings show, most teams, if not all, are right in the thick of it!  Just today so many thrillers took place out on the courts:

Tzvika Septimus hit a game-winning 3-pointer to lead Team 22 to a shocking 2-point victory over team 6, and sustain their perfect record;

Shuki Weinstein scored a game-tying goal for Team Fork with 10 seconds remaining in the game to salvage the 1-1 tie and remain “undefeated”;

Rabbi Benovitz and his Team 17 eked out a 2-point win over Team 15 in a nail-biting double overtime victory.

As you can see, there has been no shortage of drama in the sports department, and we look forward to continuing what is already an awesome season.  Keep following for more updates on both our basketball and hockey leagues!

An amazing first full week of Kollel ended off with another incredible day today.

Having begun acclimating to its regular daily schedule, Kollel had no shortage of exciting events taking place this week.  NCSYers’ first Shiurim, Night Seder chavrusot, and league games were followed by an amazing full-day tiyul and an inspiring Yom Chesed.  The schedule was also highlighted by a variety of mini-tiyulim almost every day this week.

As we head into our first free weekend of the summer, Kollel is showing no signs of losing steam.  Morning Shiurim were in full force this morning, and the Beit Medrash was electric as NCSYers continued to see what Gemara Berachot has to offer.  The afternoon included continued Chaburahs and sports as intense as we’ve seen them all year, as teams begin to figure out their style and attempt to assert their dominance in the league.  The afternoon’s exciting activities also included a well-attended jeeping mini-tiyul in Ramat Beit Shemesh.

Regular Night Seder Chavrusot and Shiurim were preceded by a once-in-a-lifetime Mussar Seder from Rav Sobolofsky and were followed by an outstanding Thursday night Mishmar that made the perfect ending to the week.  The Beit Medrash was packed well past midnight with NCSYers looking to end the week strong, and needless to say, they succeeded.

Tomorrow, the NCSYers will head out for their first free weekend for a chance to relax, regroup, and head into next week fresh and ready to keep up the intensity.  We’re looking forward to another jam-packed week filled with excitement, enjoyment, and growth!

 

This summer marks Robbie Schrier’s third summer as a Madrich on NCSY Kollel. Like his last two summers, Robbie is again working on his signature mustache and goatee that makes him look uncannily similar to a Musketeer.

Robbie has an all-star Chaburah with a serious mission to understand the Sugyot that they are learning, ripping apart Robbie’s explanations in the process. Most of the Chaburah hails from Robbie’s hometown of Woodmere, New York. This includes Avi Skurnik, who attends Rambam Mesivta, Rafi Thalheim, who attends DRS, and Shmuel Aidelson who attends MAY. Eitan Kaszovitz also attends DRS and hails from Cedahurst, New York. Don’t forget Akiva Akerman who also attends DRS, hailing from West Hempstead, New York. Finally, the only member to come from a foreign state by the name of New Jersey, there is Meir Yaakov Sobolofsky who hails from Teaneck.

Robbie’s Chaburah has been studying the Sugyot that culminate in Matan Torah, including Shabbos and Amalek. They enjoy learning on such a high level, and find the Chaburah to be challenging and mentally stimulating.  Robbie is looking forward to defending his two-time Chaburah wars championship title this summer.

 

Wednesday’s break from our usual learning and the walls of the beit medresh was in no way a break from the amazing growth of the NCSY Kollel. If anything, today’s “Yom Chessed” lead to some extraordinary growth and learning in areas not usually explored. Splitting up into six different groups, the NCSY Kollel left its mark all over the country.

One group of NCSYers visited an army base in in Chevron, where they got to meet many soldiers – some American teenagers who volunteered for the army – and learned about what it means to devote your life to the Jewish people.

Another group of NCSYers volunteered in Yad Eliezer where they helped package boxes of food and supplies for families throughout Israel who are struggling financially.  The NCSYers enjoyed the challenge of packing as many boxes as they could in such little time, and felt a sense of accomplishment upon finally completing it.  Similarly,  a separate group of Chaburahs went to a pantry to package food to be sent to people in need.  They enjoyed preparing fruits and vegetables, as well as other foods, and packaging them, knowing that a family in need would be benefitting from their hard work.

A third group visited an organization called Leket Yisrael, an organization dedicated to the Mitzvah of picking fruit grown specifically for the purpose of sending to families in need.  The NCSYers picked around 1,700 lbs of apples, enough to feed over 200 families!  This specific trip this year had more meaning given the fact that it is currently a Shemittah year.  The NCSYers saw what it means to be so dedicated to Torah and Mitzvos that you entire fields lie barren since Rosh Hashanah.  After some words regarding Shemittah from Rabbi Sobolofsky, the NCSYers danced and sang in the fields about the beauty of Shabbos and the year of Shemittah.

The NCSYers that joined project JIVE (Jerusalem Volunteers for the Environment) helped to clean up a community in Jerusalem .  Project JIVE uses cleanups like this in an effort to turn the environmental and social values rooted in the Jewish tradition into the foundational building blocks of Israeli culture and society.

The final group spent their day in Shaare Zedek Hospital where, through singing and clowning, they were able to uplift some of the patients who were going through difficult times by putting a smile on their face.

These trips were deeply inspiring, but perhaps what was most inspiring, or at least equally inspiring, was the way we spent our night. After being out and about all day, many of us engaging in some tiring work, we all came back to Beit Meir for an amazing night seder. After being encouraged by so many different types of Jews all over Israel, and their commitment to Am Yisrael, we too showed our commitment to Am Yisrael in the NCSY Kollel beit medresh through our Torah learning.
Today’s experiences, both on the trips and in the beit medresh, showed us all what a commitment to Am Yisrael, Torat Yisrael, and Eretz Yisrael is all about.

 

Eliezer Feder is returning for his fourth consecutive summer on the NCSY Summer Kollel, and his third as a Madrich. His Chabura is comprised of six members: Akiva Fink from Woodmere, NY (DRS), Dovid Gelbtuch from Lawrence, NY (DRS), Tzvi Koenig from Spring Valley, NY (Heichal HaTorah), Jacob Minkin from West Hempstead, NY (DRS), Benny Persin from Passaic, NJ (Heichal HaTorah), and Tzvi Sabo from Bergenfield, NJ (MTA); all whom have shown tremendous growth and excitement for the learning so far.

Together, they are delving into the 6th Perek of Gemara Brachos, discussing the concept of making Brachos on food in general and different Brachos in particular. Faced with challenging questions and thought-provoking discussions, the Chabura together tackles each Gemara with much enthusiasm. The Chabura is finding the learning to be stimulating and engaging. One member in particular, Jacob Minkin, has risen to the challenge and has been soaking in all of the learning that he can get.

Besides the fun that the Chabura enjoys learning together with Eliezer, they are a mighty unit outside of the Beis Medrash as well. On Wednesday, when the entire camp split up to do different Chessed trips, the crew went with Eliezer to Shaare Zedek Hospital in Yirushalayim to cheer up the patients there. The guys dressed in bright and colorful clothing to make themselves look silly (for example, Benny Persin wore a neon orange t-shirt). They went from room to room turning frowns into smiles!

It was truly a rewarding experience. “I feel like a hundred bucks now!” Tzvi Koenig exclaimed after leaving the final room. Later, Dovid Gelbtuch eloquently explained that “the most precious think in the world is to make someone else smile,” and that is what they did so well today.

Before the trip, some members were hesitant about the idea. One such member, Tzvi Sabo, had such an amazing time that even after the group finished, he wanted to go back to a specific room which they had missed!

When moving through the halls, the Chabura was called into a room where the doctors were about to draw blood from a young boy. The boy’s mother heard the troop and called them in so to distract the boys during the shot. Akiva Fink knew exactly how to distract the boy by engaging him with a funny dance and skit.  The experience was truly an amazing one!

Eliezer is looking forward to an amazing continuation of the summer. It is only the beginning with so much more to come!

After an incredible Tiyul day yesterday, Kollel was right back to a normal, jam-packed schedule today.

As the NCSYers get more and more accustomed to the Kollel schedule, the excitement and fun continues to build.  This morning, the Beit Medrash was as loud as ever, as it was packed with morning Shiurim working hard in learning Gemara Berachot.  The day continued with amazing Chaburas, and the leagues began to pick up some steam.  With twenty four basketball teams and eight hockey teams playing today, the intensity, and more importantly, exceptional Middot, were on display on all six courts throughout the afternoon.

Prior to regular night Seder, each Chaburah had their first Mussar Chaburah of the summer.  Each NCSYer got together with his Madrich for a special fifteen minute Chaburah regarding a variety of Mussar and Machshava related topics.  Night Seder continued with regular NCSYer/Madrich Chavrusot as well as our fantastic lineup of night Shiurim.

Following night Seder, for the first time ever on NCSY Kollel, the pool was opened for a special night swim!

Tomorrow the NCSYers will be partaking in Kollel’s annual Chesed Day, in which Chaburahs embark on a variety of Chesed opportunities and trips.  We look forward to a day filled with a sense of excitement, fulfillment, and appreciation.

Isaac Shulman is spending his 7^th straight summer (3^rd as a madrich) on the NCSY Kollel. He has long been seeking to overthrow Binyamin Kaminetsky and Asher Becker as the longest continuous members the program. From Englewood, NJ, Isaac attended TABC high school, spent a year in Yeshivat Har Etzion, and has been in Yeshiva University for the last 4 years learning under Rav Rosensweig. Isaac’s sports preferences are eclectic, to say the least: his favorites are soccer, tennis, and ping-pong.

In Isaac’s chaburah are David Ivry from Woodmere, NY, Yehuda Shetrit from Long Beach, NY, Adam Zahler from West Hempstead, NY, who all attend DRS high school, Zevi Eisenberg from Lawrence, NY, a proud member of YFR, and, last but certainly not least, Efraim Wiener who hails from Memphis, Tennessee and attends Cooper high school.

Together, Isaac and his Chabura are learning the first Perek of Bava Metzia, exploring the Halakha’s response to cases of disputed possession. They will explore the impact of physical control of objects, the potency of claims made in court, and the function of courts in cases of insufficient evidence, to mention just a few of the factors they will address. Though they hope to gain deep understanding of these specific factors, the primary goals for the chaburah are to kindle interest in a rigorous study of gemara, as well as to mold a specific form of analytic thinking that can apply to the broad spectrum of topics across Halakha.

Isaac’s chaburah is excited to have an amazing summer together as they grow closer as a chaburah and enjoy an amazing six weeks together learning and having fun!

Brandon Lurie is from Los Angeles, California, and while he is currently enrolled in McGill University, will be transferring to NYU this coming fall.  Brandon is excited to be joining NCSY Kollel for his first summer ever!  Brandon can’t wait to learn the ropes to the Kollel as well as have an amazing summer with his Chaburah as a whole.

This summer, Brandon is leading an all-star Chaburah, consisting of Yitzy Nissel from Passaic, NJ (Heichal HaTorah), Tani Finkelstein from Memphis, TN (Cooper Yeshiva High School), Dov Jacobson from Teaneck, NJ (Heichal HaTorah), Yosef Zimmerman from Northbrook, IL (Fasman Yeshiva High School), and Yonah Benscher from Beit Shemesh, Israel (Mitzpeh Yericho).

In Brandon’s Chaburah, their learning will be focused on the reasons for adopted Minhagim of Klal Yisrael.  Some examples include: Why do we say Kidush Levana?  Why do people hand out red strings at the Kotel?  Additionally, Brandon and his Chaburah will focus on some ideas in Machshava from the teachings of Rav Soloveitchick sprinkled throughout the summer.

It’s already looking unbelievable, and Brandon and his Chaburah know that this summer will only continue to get better!

Today was the first official Tiyul day of the summer, and what a Tiyul day it was!  NCSYers were given the option to choose between three amazing all-day trips: hiking through the “Black Canyon” trail of Nachal Yehudiyah, visiting the four holy cities, or enjoying a walk through Nachal Kibbutzim.

Nachal Yehudiyah was an intense, challenging, incredible hike through the beautiful mountains and canyons of the Golan.  The hike included unbelievable activities such as repelling down a waterfall and jumping thirty feet off a cliff into a body of water.  The seven hour hike was certainly not one for the faint of heart!

On the trip to the four holy cities, NCSYers were privileged to see each of the beautiful holy cities of Israel: Chevron, Yerushalayim, Teveria, and Tzfat.  The day began with Shacharit at the Maarat HaMachpeila, followed by some words from Rabbi Sobolofsky about the significance of drawing strength from our Avot.  Overlooking the Old City of Yerushalayim and Har Habayit on the Tayelet, Rav Schachter discussed Kedushat Yerushalayim and its importance to us.  In Teveria, the NCSYers enjoyed some swimming and water activities in the Kineret, and later visited the Kever of Rabbi Akiva.  Rav Schachter spoke about the different Tzadikim buried in the cities of Teveria and Tzfat as they headed to meet up with the other trips for dinner in Tzfat.

The third Tiyul enjoyed a more relaxed trip, as the waded through the waters of the beautiful Nachal Kibbutzim.  Following their enjoyable stroll, they headed to Teveria for water sports and banana boating, and later joined the Tiyulim in Tzfat as well.

It has been a long and invigorating day.  We hope to take that energy and channel it toward a strong week of sports, learning, and continued fun!

(Check back tomorrow for pictures from all of our incredible Tiyulim!)

 

What an amazing first day of leagues!!  To open the basketball season, Kollel was treated to a rematch of last year’s championship game, Andrew Israeli vs. Ben Zion Feld (of which Ben Zion’s team emerged victorious), “reffed” by Rabbi Benovitz.  Every team played their opening game, each one more exciting than the next.  The excitement included a double-overtime game, a few blowouts, and many nail-biting victories that came down to the wire.  Each hockey team played their opening game as well, most of which ended with a mere one-goal differential.  All the games were competitive and exciting, and Kollel can’t wait to continue what is sure to be an amazing season!  Follow our sports updates for more details on standing and game summaries