18 years ago, Rabbi Shlomo Gestetner and Rabbi Kasriel Shemtov founded the Mayanot Institute of Jewish Studies. Mayanot was founded to provide a serious option for those looking for text based study in the capital of the Jewish world.
Since then, Mayanot has become so much more. Mayanot has revolutionized Jewish education in Jerusalem and has become an important part of the lives of more than 60,000 young Jewish people.
On Erev 5 Teves, the #MayanotChai campaign succeeded in showcasing Mayanot’s effect on the lives of so many. The Charidy campaign, generously matched by Ryan Shapiro, David Schottenstein, Isadore Schoen, Adam Weinstein, Elie Brender and a Mayanot executive board member, had posted an ambitious goal of $1,800,000 in 24 hours.
As the campaign launched, the gifts began to flow. From all corners of the globe, Mayanot alumni and friends came together in support. In addition to the gifts coming in from around the world, devoted Mayanot alumni quickly offered their services and homes to call and host callers to help reach the goal.
Thanks to our alumni, call centers, significant traffic from COLLive, email campaigns and a full-court-press Social Media blit, by the campaign’s end – the biggest such campaign ever in Chabad – Mayanot had raised $2,307,044. The final numbers were tallied after the largest bonus round in the history of fundraising platform, Charidy.com. Gifts from 1,880 different donors or, as one Charidy.com executive put it, “one donation every minute and a quarter!”
Mayanot call centers and gatherings were hosted in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Sydney, Melbourne, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Monsey, Miami, Pittsburgh, Boston, Baltimore, New York and Jerusalem.
Mayanot’s Director Alumni & Special Events, Rabbi Moishe Silver, who did a great job rallying the support of alumni across the globe, put together a call center where dozens of alumni and friends gathered to make calls, watch the live updates and celebrate the future of not only Mayanot, but the Jewish people. A very special thank you goes to the Shluchim Office for making the New York call center a reality!
In Jerusalem, three call centers were set up; at the Mayanot Women’s & Men’s Programs and at Mayanot’s Birthright Israel office, where Susie Muller, Mayanot’s Executive Assistant pulled together an incredible team of devoted Mayanot fans and friends. Callers we’re active for nearly the entire 24 hours across the globe!
#MayanotChai Marketing Director, Levi Margolin, set up shop at the Birthright Israel : Mayanot office as well. Levi spent 24 hours managing the campaign’s online presence and PR to ensure maximum exposure. With over 10,000 clicks from Facebook, it’s safe to say, #MayanotChai went viral!
As one Mayanot student said, “Imagine everyone you know lives in the same building and someone posts something in the lobby. Then everyone you know copies it posts it in their room so that everywhere you go you see the same announcement. THAT’S what Mayanot did on Facebook yesterday!”
NY Headquarters celebrates
Jerusalem Headquarters celebrates
If you missed out on the opportunity to join the campaign, you can still donate today! Visit www.mayanot.edu/donate.
Go Yossi Gestetner
keep up the good work!
very nice
🙂
Anyone who know some the alumnae of Mayanot knows that it is one of the most successful institutions in Chabad. And of course you have that kind of support. Because you have touched so many people on such a deep and life-changing level.
Hi moishie Ekman!