Machon L’Yahadus Welcomes Students from South America

While the winter is upon us in the Northern Hemisphere, down in South America these months spell summer. For a number of young Jewish South American women, this equals the opportunity to come to Machon L’Yahadus for an immersive Torah learning experience.

Over two dozen young women from Argentina and Brazil have already arrived and been welcomed into the Machon L’Yahadus family, eager to absorb what they can in their short stay. Some of the young women are here for just two weeks, while others plan to stay for up to 3 months. One contingent of students just completed High School and has chosen to arrange their graduation trip to Crown Heights. They are joining classes each morning and exploring what the vibrant local Jewish community has to offer in the afternoons. They also participate in dinner and evening programs at the dorm including Tuesday night Chavrusa and this year’s Team Torah and Team Mitzvos Color War.

Full-time student Ariella Melincoff comments, “I think it’s amazing that such a large group of women choose to spend their summer break coming to Crown Heights to learn in a seminary very special to the Rebbe. Machon L’Yahadus has taught me so much and I’m so glad they are able to experience the amazing teachers and classes with us.”

Even if some of these young women speak mainly Spanish, they are determined to glean what they can from the classes – including a smattering of English. They join classes from 8:30 am – 3:00 pm every day, with some of Crown Heights’ foremost teachers, including Rabbi Shloma Majeski, Rabbi Yossi Paltiel, Mrs. Chana Nemni, and many others. They are given the choice to join track 1 or track 2, depending on their level of knowledge and skill in Jewish studies.

“Many young women wish they were able to commit to a full year of learning, but the impact of a few short weeks or months cannot be underestimated. For the South American students who come to study in Machon L’Yahadus, complete immersion in Torah even for a short period yields powerful results, as we have seen, time and again,” Rabbi Shlomo Majeski, principal of the school notes.

A new program, Majon Neshama, is an immersive three-week Torah learning program for young Latin and South American women. The brain-child of and directed by Rabbi Tobi and Mrs. Shuly Shmukler, Majon Neshama is working in conjunction with Machon L’Yahadus to provide a well-rounded program for the participants. This includes classes at Machon L’Yahadus’ Eastern Parkway campus and a number of special classes by Machon L’Yahadus teachers that will be simultaneously translated into Spanish. As well, some of the participants registered in advance to join Machon L’Yahadus classes when Majon Neshama’s two-week program ends.

Some South American students identify so much with their experience at Machon L’Yahadus, that the only way forward is to simply come back again! One such student is Sofi Rochweiger, who is now returning for her third summer. Upon returning last year, she brought along her sister, Vicky. She couldn’t withhold an experience that had been so life changing for her. In that same vein, this year she brought along not only Vicky, but another friend as well.

Sofi says, “I keep coming back because I find that Machon L’Yahadus is a “growth-guaranteed” place. It also has the most homey and welcoming environment, which is created by the girls and all the staff at Machon, especially Rabbi Majeski and Mrs. Cohen, who look after each individual girl with so much warmth and kindness. The sisterhood that’s created, no matter our differences of culture, shows me what Ahavas Yisrael looks like in real life. And what better place is there to experience all of this but in our Rebbe’s neighborhood?”

The results of the time spent in this environment can be long-lasting and life changing. Mrs. Rochel Benchimol, Shlucha to the Upper East Side of Manhattan, is one such example. She was one of those young women who came from Venezuela with the intention to visit for just three weeks. But the three weeks turned into three years. The impact speaks for itself.

Mrs. Benchimol reflects, “My experience there completely changed my life. It not only taught me the meaning of being a Jew and the depth of Torah and Mitzvos, but it empowered me to be a Shlucha, to empower others, which I have been for the last 30 years. I was given all the tools I need to fulfill my mission of bringing the light of Torah & Mitzvos wherever I go.”

For more information about joining the studies at Machon L’Yahadus, which is under the auspices of the NCFJE, visit the school’s website at womensyeshiva.org, call 718-552-2422, or email Mrs. Yehudis Cohen at ycohen@womensyeshiva.org or Rivkah Luchins at info@womensyeshiva.org.