A Chain Reaction in Cuba

By COLlive reporter

Chabad Friends of Cuban Jewry (CFCJ) has recently welcomed back its multiple groups from Cuba, which were sent to the entire island, one of the world’s last remaining communist regimes.

Aside for their constant presence in Havana, the organization has developed a personal connection with, and provides year-round spiritual and physical assistance to the 23 cities and towns in a 900 KM strip across the island.

Among the locations Rabbi Shimon Aisenbach is in touch with are Matanza, Cienfuegos, S. Clara, Remedio. Caibarien, S.Epitritus, Ciego de Avilla, Camagüey, Holguin, Antilla, Banes, Bayamo, Mantzenillo, Palma Soriano, Santiago Guantánamo and Campichuelo.

The organization gave Jews on the island the opportunity to celebrate the grand holiday of Chanukah in delight, with multiple events and activities, in addition to the much needed humanitarian aid.

Interestingly, the representatives in Havana, were a couple: R’ Katriel and Esther Ravel. Esther is one of the girls from the organization’s Student Placement Programs, indeed a climactic facet of the CFCJ.

“The emissaries were very successful in there multiple missions,” noted Rabbi Aisenbach. “Every Jewish home in this 900km strip was personally visited via our emissaries.”

Mendy Turk and Leibel Shuchat, the bochurim who traveled Cuba, helped arrange 17 Brisim in 48 hours. The youngest was 2 years-old and the oldest was 26.

One evening, Shuchat stepped out for a quick purchase and suddenly met an Israeli tourist that could not believe there was Chabad in Camaguey, about 500 KM from the capital Havana.

“He came over to our house as well to light the Menorah, and it was with admiration saw all the suitcases with the abundance a food (for distribution), we sat and far-brenged with him late into the night,” Shuchat said.

The following morning, the Israeli returned to don Tefilin, and spent the day with the bochurim visiting the Jewish families’ in the city.

One of the homes we visited was of an elderly Jew, 70 years of age, that told them that he was very young when his parents, originally from Turkey, passed away. As such, he never had a bar mitzva.

“I have never donned Tefilin!” he said with emotion, words which deeply moved the Israeli who could not believe that he is experiencing a special bar mitzva, on a 70 year old, in Cuba.

The Israeli began to explain the man the great significant of the Mitzva of Tefilin. “This is what the Jews do,” he said and went on explaining him the importance of donning the Tefilin on daily basis.

He went on to tell the elderly man that he himself had not donned Tefilin for a long time and just the day before he met a young Lubavitcher and all this brought him fond memories of his bar Mitzvah.

At that point the elderly Jew took out an old yarmulka from his closet, signed his name and gave it to the Israeli, “this is for you so that you always remember this Bar Mitzva” and went on to put on Tefillin for the first time in his life.