The Charlotte Jewish News -January 2007 - Page 8
For Emissaries in a Crowded Field, Friendship Circles Become Popular
Charlotte Jewish Day School Grad Serves as Manager of Friendship Circle International
By Sue Fishkoff
Palo Alto, CA (JTA) — In the
old days, a young Chabad couple
“going out” on shlichus —
becoming outreach emissaries —
usually would be sent to a new
city or college campus to set up a
Chabad center.
As Chabad outposts proliferat
ed in the late 1980s and into the
’90s, however, the playing field
became quite crowded.
Larry Horowitz, CLU, ChFC
Financial
5950 Fairview Road, Suite 608
Charlotte, NC 28210
(704) 556-9982, Fax (704) 369-2918
Helping in the CREATION, PRESERVATION &
DISTRIBUTION of your Estate
eoniwetioii la tha
ewisk
ommimUy^..
www.mattimovescharlotte.com
Whether cross town or across the country,
let me be the Real Estate, agent to
help you move into the home
of your dreams.
1 have a proven record of
results since 1985 in assistir^
people buy and sell their homes. _ ^
^ r Ordan Reider
Call tor a jMHIb Specializing In
. Service Since 19851
personal ^
relocation * ' t
package!
704.904.7250MaU4
Some young couples still can
find virgin territory for their
rebbe’s message, but more often
these young Lubavitch rabbis and
their wives are signing on now as
second or third couples at estab
lished Chabad centers. They fill
positions such as preschool
teacher, for her, or adult education
director, for him.
“The face of shlichus is chang
ing,” says Rabbi Ben Tzion
Groner, a native of Charlotte who
graduated the Charlotte Jewish
Day School, and manager of
Friendship Circle International,
which set up operations a year and
a half ago at Chabad-Lubavitch
headquarters in the Crown
Heights section of Brooklyn.
“Twenty years ago it was one
rabbi doing everything in a city.
Now you can have a youth rabbi,
an education rabbi. There are so
many specializations. It’s defi
nitely the new thing.”
One popular choice for a young
emissary couple is starting a
Friendship Circle.
Until last year, says Levi
Shemtov, who with his wife,
Bassie, sister of CJDS director,
Mariashi Groner, founded of the
flagship Friendship Circle in West
Bloomfield, MI, Friendship
Circles popped up slowly, organi
cally, “as we responded to peo
ple’s interest.”
A year ago there were 25. Then
one of Shemtov’s big donors told
him he “wanted to see 100 by
2010,” so Shemtov says he started
promoting the idea actively to
promising young emissary cou
ples.
Today there are 59 registered
Friendship Circles, Groner says.
Some are not yet operational.
Can
Dentistiy
l^Comfortdle I
At McKee Dental, we believe that creating smiles should be comfortable, Our knowl
edgeable and experienced team combines modem technology with a human touch
to create smiles every day...
(877)4-MY-SMILE
www.McKeGDental.com
—-""Aar ■CmU.UM"
Yltitrli L. Mill DM( & Ryii C. WiWtii (MU
McKee Dental
5672 International Drive, Suite 217
Charlotte, NC 28270
(704) 442-1991
We are happy to help with moM Insurance plane.
Long term payment plans available through Capital One Healthcare.
Ben Tzion Groner
some have just two or three volun
teers, but they’re growing fast.
And more young couples are
interested in the circles, which
serve special-needs children.
“I met with three couples yes
terday who are going out, and I
gave them all the brochures and
information,” he says.
Just as often, though, Groner
fields calls from emissaries
already in the field who want to
add to what they offer by opening
a Friendship Circle.
The process is becoming more
regulated. Instead of Shemtov and
fellow veteran Zalman
Grossbaum, director of the sec
ond-oldest Friendship Circle in
Livingston, NJ, fielding all the
calls from Lubavitchers interested
in setting up a new program, they
can refer these requests to Groner
and his staff.
Anyone who wants to start a
new circle must attend a national
conference, “so we know they
know what they’re doing,”
Shemtov says.
There’s a trend toward setting
up regional circles that can pool
resources. That’s what’s happen
ing in Chicago, Pittsburgh and the
Washington suburbs.
In larger cities, a Friendship
Circle can be a full-time job for
husband and wife. Until recently,
Shemtov says, very few of the
husbands devoted themselves
exclusively to Friendship Circle
work.
“They did other things and ran
Friendship Circle as a hobby,” he
explains.
Nechama Schusterman started
the Friendship Circle in Palo Alto,
CA, with a girlfriend three years
ago when she was living at home
before her marriage. Now she and
her husband, Ezzy, run it from the
Kehillah Jewish High School,
which allows them to recruit vol
unteers from the student body.
“Some Friendship Circles run
as a project of a larger Chabad
House, and a young couple comes
to run it,” Ezzy Schusterman says.
“It’s really a ftill-time job. This is
what I do. We need to be able to
cover our budget and run it on our
own.”
Sometimes there isn’t enough
work for both spouses while a new
Friendship Circle is growing.
Miryum and Peretz Mochkin
opened their Friendship Circle in
early November in San Francisco,
soon after they married and
returned to the city where Miryum
Mochkin grew up.
“All summer we laid the
groundwork,” Miryum Mochkin
says.
She now has nine families,
some referred by her mother,
Chabad emissary Hinda Langer,
who runs the Shalom preschool,
and others sent by the Bureau of
Jewish Education. This will be her
full-time work while Peretz teach
es adult education through Chabad
of San Francisco.
In December, her first group of
teen volunteers will go for training
with Nechama Schusterman,
Miryum Mochkin’s childhood
friend.
“She told me how incredible
her program is,” Miryum
Mochkin says, “and I knew I
wanted to do it.”
Israeli Coffee House
Last month, the Levine JCC
held another Israeli Coffeehouse,
and once again the evening was a
magnificent success. In fact, it
was obvious that few people
wanted to leave by the end of the
night. As many began to pick at
the assortment of typical Israeli
cuisine like hummus and
babaganoush, the Rappaports
kicked off the evening with a
moving Havdalah service fol
lowed by a special Havdalah
dance.
Although most came to enjoy
conversation with friends, others
focused on the various activities.
There was a brief slideshow on
Israel accompanied by a breath
taking photo exhibit of “Israel
from a Bird’s Eye,” an Israeli
sing-along and even some Israeli
board games. Those feeling espe
cially festive joined in the per
formance of Israeli dance, while
others couldn’t get up from
Sheshbesh and Rummikub.
Some were content to end the
evening with Turkish coffee and
baklava while many warmed at
the idea of karaoke and belted out
their best versions of some oldies-
but-goodies, forcing many to ask,
was that the real Shlomo Artzi or
“The Boss” Bruce Springsteen?
Whether it was dancing, eating
or singing in typical Israeli fash
ion, the event brought the commu
nity together. As people filtered
out saying one final Erev Tov,
everyone wanted to know one
thing: When are we doing this
again?
To find out more, contact Tair
Zaeh or Aree Pearlman at 704-
366-5007.
Israeli dancing at the community
coffee house.