By COLlive reporter
The Chabad Jewish Center of North Dakota, run by Shluchim Rabbi Yonah and Esti Grossman, celebrated the holiday of Shavuos with their tiny Jewish community in Fargo last week.
Rabbi Grossman was glad to get together after being unable to do so last year when the Covid-19 pandemic raged and people have been staying safe while isolating at home.
For Shavuos this year, when Jews celebrate the receiving of the Torah on Mount Sinai and the Ten Commandments are publicly read, the community received a boost in both numbers and spirit.
A group of yeshiva bochurim from New York, Postville, Iowa, and Twin Cities, Minnesota, made the trip to Fargo to spend the holiday with the community and make it a memorable one, sent by the Ufaratzta Circle program of Merkos 302. They also brought along a package containing Shavuos treats for the children.
One of them, Shlomo Feldman, served as both the chazan and baal koreh, joining the others in uplifting spirits. The group was led by bochurim Yosef Chaim Liberow and Mendel Carlebach, and included Leibel Zweibel, Dovi Feller, Shalom Ber Overlander, Benny Brown and Daniel Brown.
“We brought a lot of chayus to Fargo,” they commented. “It was an energy Fargo has never seen before.” They even met a local Jewish man and helped him put on Tefillin.
“Before the Shavuos program from Merkos 302, we would travel out of town for shavuos to hear the aseres hadibros,” Rabbi Grossman told COLlive.com.
”This program made it possible not only to have a beautiful shavuos ourselves, but to share the joy of the Yom Tov with others as well and work to fulfill the Rebbe’s request that every Yid hear the aseres hadibros on shavuos.”
Rabbi Grossman said he is now preparing for Merkos Shlichus visitation over the summer months.
There are a total of 500 Jews living in the midwestern U.S. state. Each summer, Merkos L’inyonei Chinuch in New York helps sponsor bochurim to travel around and pay home visits to these Jews scattered in cities and towns.
“Our role is to get to each Yid,” Rabbi Grossman stated. “Each Yid should have the opportunity to do one Mitzvah.”
THAT’S SUPER GESHMACK