By COLlive reporter
Chabad’s annual international gala is moving yet again.
Considered one of the largest events of its kind in New York City, the banquet concluding the Kinus convention of Chabad rabbis and laymen has been on a constant journey.
The Brooklyn Cruise Terminal located at Pier 12 in Brooklyn was a good fit for a few years, but then Hurricane Sandy hit the New York metro area just days before last year’s gala.
Widespread flooding and power outages quickly rendered Pier 12 unusable. Instead, 5,000 Shluchim and their guests dined in four different event halls in the New York Hilton in Manhattan, watching proceedings via simultaneous broadcast.
With the number of participants constantly growing, organizers from Merkos L’inyonei Chinuch have booked a 110,000 square-foot warehouse in the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal for Sunday, November 3, 2013.
The terminal is located along the Bay Ridge Channel in Sunset Park, which offers stunning views of the rugged skyline of Manhattan. The nearby park was described by the City’s Parks & Recreations Department as “one of New York’s hidden treasures.”
“The Terminal is spacious and will accommodate everyone under one roof, a key element in the camaraderie and energy of the highly anticipated culmination to the 5774 Kinus Hashluchim,” organizers said.
They said the new venue, “adjacent to Crown Heights,” would be transformed into “a magnificent banquet hall for the grand Gala Banquet.”
Rabbi Mendel Kotlarsky, a key Kinus coordinator, explained that this new location will not only be larger it also has better accessibility.
“The entrance to Pier 12 and the hall were some distance away, causing a longer transition as the crowd arrived and went through the required security checkpoints and registration,” he said.
“Now, the banquet hall will be just beyond the entrance, so that the 5,000+ expected guests can enjoy a nearly seamless onset to the evening. Additionally, there will be ample parking spaces for those who choose to arrive by car.”
Registration for the kinus opens Monday at MyChabad.org.
It’s amazing that somehow the Shluchim are fit into a school for dining during shobbos, yet they cannot fix this so it can be used for the big dinner??? Doesn’t the Rebbe want us to hold events in Crown Heights, to build the Crown Heights businesses and neighborhood??
this is the one time of year that I truly feel the Rebbe’s presence!! It’s so wonderful to see the shluchim hugging and kissing as they meet on the Avenue!
The togetherness is palpable and contagious!! The neighborhood is rejuvenated when the shluchim start arriving!! The amazing thing is that each shliach knows that he is something BECAUSE he is part of this – that they each need one another to accomplish this wonderful – giant and powerful ONE!!!
EV & JBL
cool
Think all the shluchim will have to carpool this year? 😉
It shows that “Hu BaChaim” through the display of “Zar’o BaChaim”!
who should i contact if i want to volunteer to help
Who are this years Speakers?????