Community Magazine April 2013

Team Yachad Jerusalem Reaches Finish Line “Hand-In-Hand” TeamYachad Jerusalem members, 214 strong, reached the finish line on Friday, March 1, at the Jerusalem 10K, Half-Marathon and Marathon, exemplifying Yachad’s mission of inclusion for those living with disabilities. Participating with Team Yachad Jerusalem was Dr. Jeffrey Lichtman, national director of Yachad/The National Jewish Council for Disabilities (NJCD), who also ran the ING Miami Half-Marathon in 2010 with Team Yachad, which he established four years ago. Yachad/The National Jewish Council for Disabilities (NJCD), an agency of the Orthodox Union, is dedicated to enhancing the opportunities of individuals with disabilities, promoting inclusion and independence through various integrated activities and by ensuring their participation in the full spectrum of Jewish life. Each team participant committed to raise $500 for Yachad/ NJCD’s Israel Chapter. “Team Yachad members truly exemplified its motto of ‘Running Hand-in-Hand,’” Yoel Sterman, co-director of Yachad Israel, said, “especially as two groups of three or four runners ran alongside team members in wheelchairs.” Team Coach Chaim Wizman described his experiences working with TeamYachad. “I have coached many runners from all different walks of life in my coaching career, but rarely have I been so privileged to be associated with such an idealistic and enthusiastic group. What the Team Yachad runners have accomplished was far more than simply going the distance in one challenging race. They have embarked on what is hopefully a lifelong commitment to going the extra mile both for themselves and on behalf of the countless others they will help and inspire through their efforts.” In an “only in Israel” experience, a goat befriended Yoel Sterman during his run, and stayed beside him all the way from the Old City of Jerusalem to the finish line. Newly-ReleasedDorashDovidNowAvailable A new English work has been published on the Jewish holidays. The two-volume Dorash David by Rav Dovid Hofstedter, shelita , provides new insight and meaning into many different aspects of Pesah, Shavuot, Bein Hametzarim, Rosh Hodesh and Shabbat. It offers extensive, enlightening coverage of the holidays, focusing especially on the practical, contemporary messages of each Yom Tov. The work contains over 40 essays on Pesah, and an additional 60 essays on Shavuot, Bein Hametzarim, Shabbat and Rosh Hodesh. Each essay begins with a list of questions, and then develops an in-depth approach that enables one to truly grasp the messages imparted by the Torah and our sages. For example: Why do we invite the poor to come eat with us at the seder ? By the time we sit down at the table and recite ha lahma anya , isn’t it too late to invite guests? And besides, even if there are those who do not have a place for the seder , how would they even know they are being invited? And why does the Haggadah state that the reason we eat matzah is because Bene Yisrael ’s dough did not have time to rise at the time of the Exodus, if they had already been commanded to avoid hametz before the Exodus? Questions on Shavuot include, why didn’t Bene Yisrael wake up early on the day they received the Torah? On Bein Hametzarim: How can a lack of feeling joy in serving Hashem result in destruction and exile? Rav Hofstedter masterfully addresses these and many other questions by delving into the inner meaning behind the mitzvot based upon an analysis of the teachings of Hazal and later scholars. In this work he displays an uncanny ability to develop difficult concepts in a clear and concise fashion, shedding new light and adding layers of meaning to the mitzvot of every Yom Tov. Rav Dovid Hofstedter is founder and Nasi of Dirshu, the worldwide Torah movement with well over 100,000 participants representing all segments of Torah Jewry, who take exams on the material they learn, thereby raising the standards of their learning to new heights. He also founded Acheinu, the outreach arm of Dirshu, that works to draw our fellow Jews closer to the beauty of Torah observance. – Chaim Gold Community Chest 100 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE