Bais Rivkah Purchases Dormitory For Out of Town Students

By COLlive reporter

Bais Rivkah High School in Crown Heights, which up until now has not had one central dormitory for its out of town students, has finally purchased a new building for that purpose.

“Until now, sending a student from out of town has had the added difficulty of needing to find room and board for that student,” said Rabbi Moshe Pinson, the school’s director of development.

That meant many Shluchim or others who lived out of Crown Heights and wished to send their daughters to Bais Rivkah High School had to find a basement or home for their daughter, along with roommates or a family to board with, which added a lot of extra work, expense and worry.

“When our eldest daughter was getting ready for high school, with tremendous effort, we were able to secure a spot for her into the one small home dormitory Bais Rivkah has on Crown Street,” Rabbi Mendy Uminer, Shliach in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, told COLlive. “But when our next daughter was ready for High school a few years later, we tried as well, but there was no room this time around.”

Rabbi Uminer says that other Shluchim’s kids were stuck without a place as well, so he teamed up with two other Shluchim to rent another location.

“At a great personal expense, we opened another dorm,” he says. “We had to arrange the renting of the place, and furnish it ourselves. It was a big challenge.”

When that dorm filled to capacity, they rented a full house, and soon Bais Rivkah High School students were divided into three separate dorms in the neighborhood, which is less than ideal, since each dorm has its own expenses, and needs a dorm counselor and dorm mother.

“Also, with the girls split up like this, it wasn’t the best atmosphere, like other school and Yeshiva dorms,” Rabbi Uminer says.

To eliminate the extra work for parents, Bais Rivkah has recently purchased a 6 story building on East New York Avenue which will serve as a dorm for girls attending the High School. The project became a reality through the hard work and dedication of the Bais Rivkah Board and Rabbi Sholom Goldstein, administrator, along with a group of supporters.

Located directly across the street from Bais Rivkah Campus Chomesh on Lefferts Avenue, its close proximity will enable the use of the school’s kitchen, gym and outdoor space. The newly constructed building can accommodate 65 students and will offer a space to make the girls feel at home and provide them with a secure, safe and warm environment. The school will also be providing security for the building to make sure the girls are safe at all times. It is planned for opening for the next school year.

Shluchim whose daughters will be attending Bais Rivkah High School next year are thrilled and grateful for the new dormitory which will be available for the students.

“This is so crucial for the girls and their families,” says Rabbi Uminer. “Shluchim who live far away sacrifice so much to send their children away from home, and for them not to have a proper place to send them to was heartbreaking. This is way past overdue, and I am so grateful to Moshe Pinson and the vaad for their hard work. The fruit and reward of this endeavor will certainly be way greater than any investment that it takes to get it done.”

“The appreciation that we feel toward Bais Rivkah is immense,” said Rabbi Yosef Spalter, Shliach in Montville, NJ. “For going above and beyond in accommodating and investing in our children not only educationally, but also for their physical and emotional well-being.”

For sponsorship and dedication opportunities, contact Rabbi Pinson at www.bethrivkah.edu.