Mesivta News

 At the Lubavitch Mesivta of Chicago, the Chassidic musical art of neginah plays a vital role in connecting our students to their heritage. This year, our Nigunim Club, choir, and orchestra have become key extracurricular activities, which provide students meaningful opportunities to engage with traditional Chassidic melodies and express themselves creatively.

The Nigunim Club invites students to immerse themselves in the study and performance of Chabad nigunim—traditional melodies. These tunes, which are often wordless, are powerful in their ability to convey spiritual truths beyond verbal expression. 

As seen below, under the mentorship of Rabbi Daniel Goldberg, students explore the historical background and spiritual significance of the nigunim before, during, and after singing them as a group. Each session is carefully crafted to be both an educational experience and a moment of spiritual growth.

Additionally, the student choir and orchestra programs give teens a creative outlet amidst their rigorous studies. These activities allow them to explore their artistic talents and connect with Chassidic music in a meaningful way. Whether harmonizing with peers in the choir or mastering an instrument in the orchestra, students build confidence, develop discipline, and deepen their appreciation for our rich musical traditions.

At key points throughout the year, the students perform the Chassidic melodies they've worked so hard to master, bringing the music out of the classroom and into the community. Whether they’re singing in front of their peers, playing for their families, or bringing joy to residents in local nursing homes, the students report that they feel a deep sense of accomplishment. 

These accomplishments are the result of the generous support of the Ralla Klepak Foundation for Education in the Performing Arts, which has enriched our student body and the broader community in so many ways. 

 Join Us in Saving Lives: Your Contribution Makes a Difference

Every moment counts in a medical emergency.

That’s why Magen David Adom is proud to introduce our new Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Ambulance—a state-of-the-art vehicle designed to provide rapid and advanced care for the most critically injured and ill patients.

This Mobile Intensive Care Unit (MICU) comes equipped with the latest medical technology to offer life-saving support on the way to the hospital. Our paramedics and EMT drivers are highly trained to use this equipment, ensuring the best possible care for patients when every second is crucial.

We’ve upgraded to this new model to give our medical heroes more room to work and to carry all the necessary equipment. With this ambulance, we’re not just transporting patients; we’re bringing the hospital to them, providing interventions that can mean the difference between life and death.

But we need your help. Each new MICU costs $160,000, and we’re counting on your generosity to help us reach our goal. Your donation, no matter the size, will go directly towards saving lives.

How You Can Help:

• Donate Online: Click here to make a secure online contribution.
• Donate by Check: If you prefer, you can send a check. Please contact Al Levit at 773-203-0396 or email [email protected] for details.

Your support is vital. Together, we can ensure that when disaster strikes, Magen David Adom is ready to respond with the best care possible. Thank you for joining us in this life-saving mission.

DONATE HERE TO SAVE LIVES AND CONTRIBUTE TO THIS AMBULANCE 

Please note: The exact quantity of ambulances needed is still being determined, but every single unit we can add to our fleet will enhance our ability to save lives.

For more information or to discuss other ways you can support Magen David Adom, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Al Levit at the contact information provided above.

 It’s unusual for a 16-year-old’s accomplishments to be celebrated by a hall filled with his peers, teachers, family members, rabbonim, and lay leaders from across the Jewish community. 

But that is exactly what happened on Tuesday, Dec. 1, when the Pratt Ave. campus of the Yeshivas Ohr Eliyahu - Lubavitch Mesivta of Chicago filled with students and well-wishers, all to congratulate 16-year-old Mendel Zirkind, who had recently finished learning the entire Talmud Bavli, mostly on his own, for the first time.

Mendel dances together Rosh Yeshiva Rabbi Eliyahu Nosson Silberberg and his father, Rabbi Yisroel Zirkind. 

 Facing a Bais Medrash packed with festive tables lined by celebrants, Rosh Kollel Rabbi Dovid Zucker explained that he chose to devote an entire evening to the celebration because “this is a simchah for the whole city. There is so much kedushah that is added when a young bochur finishes the entire Shas. We all have an equal connection to this celebration.”

Rosh Kollel Rabbi Dovid Zucker explained why the celebration belonged to the entire city and to the entire Jewish nation.  

Mendel’s father, Rabbi Yisroel Zirkind shared the secret to his son’s accomplishment:  “It took many early mornings of hard work. When I’d wake up in the morning at five thirty, I’d see Mendel learning, And I’d thank him for the kol Torah.”

He also pointed out that the day of the celebration coincided with the anniversary of the passing of Rabbi Meir Shapiro of Lublin, in whose merit countless Jews had completed the Talmud multiple times.

Speaking directly to Mendel’s fellow students, Mesivta Dean Rabbi Moshe B. Perlstein encouraged them to increase their learning. “Learning Shas is something we can all aspire to,” he said to his audience, the youngest of whom are just 14 years old, “not necessarily over three years or two years. It can take five years, or more, but this is the goal we can all have in mind, as something we can—and must—do ourselves. Mendel found the times in the day that are free, the early morning before seder begins, lunch and supper breaks, and he used them all for learning.”

Dean Rabbi Moshe B. Perlstein and Av Bais Din Rabbi Yonah Reiss in discussion with Mendel. 

After finishing the final words of Meseches Niddah and reciting Kaddish Derabanan, Mendel drew parallels between the opening lines of Berachos and the closing words of Niddah, contrasting the mitzvah to recite Shema twice daily and the general obligation to study Torah, which applies equally at all times.

Following his speech, the students broke out into song, linking arms and dancing in place, each one joyous for the accomplishment of their friend, feeling it as personal and exciting as if they themselves had completed the entire Shas.

 Students sang and danced as if the celebration was their own–as indeed it was.  

They were then served a fleishige dinner, which was enjoyed with live music and a choir provided by a group of talented Mesivta students.

The crowd then heard from Av Bais Din Rabbi Yonah Reiss who attested that “my excitement is genuine. The Maharshal says there is no joy greater than a siyum, and certainly when it comes to a siyum on all of Shas. I am inspired by Mendel Zirkind!”

The final speaker of the evening was Mendel’s grandfather, Rabbi Dovid Thaler, Menahel of Yeshiva Ohr Elchonon Chabad in Los Angeles, who dug deep into the auspicious date of the Siyum, 7 Cheshvan, when the final Jews had come home from spending Sukkos in the Bais Hamikdash.

On a personal level, he pointed out that it was the day the Kovno Ghetto was liquidated and the day his mother-in-law Mrs. Chaya Sarah Rochel Lisbon was saved from death by a Jewish policeman. “In the confusion she had separated from her mother, and wanted to run and join her, when a Jewish policeman shoved her away, telling her that she belonged in the other line, with those who would be taken to work.”

Her miraculous survival allowed her to start a family, which led to dozens of descendants, including many rabbis, communal leaders, teachers and others, each of whom is perpetuating her memory and forming a living memorial to those who did not survive.

When the 9th grade students of Yeshivas Ohr Eliyahu Lubavitch Mesivta of Chicago returned home for bein hazemanim, they each went with something special: mastery of Meseches Sukah.

Most of the bochurim were tested by Rabbi Meir Lichtman, Menahel of Yeshivas Meor Hatorah, and Rabbi Hirsch Unger, Veitzener Rosh Kollel.

According to Maggid Shiur Rabbi Levi Stern, the students began learning the Mesechta during afternoon seder in the beginning of the school year and concluded the 55-folio tractate just before Purim.

“The students come to the Mesivta from a wide range of educational backgrounds,” says Rabbi Stern. “Some have several years of Gemara experience, and others come having just scratched the surface. This intensive learning program is a great opportunity for everyone to dive into the world of Gemara learning and become familiar with the syntax, rhythm, and depth that can be found on every daf of every Mesechta.”

To mark the milestone, the entire class was invited to a celebratory melava malka with the Rosh Yeshiva, Rabbi Eli Nosson Silberberg.

They then began an intensive review period during which they relearned all the material over the course of seven weeks.

To test their proficiency, the students underwent an exhaustive two-part written test that comprised of 200 questions covering the full gamut of the subjects covered.

Over the course of the last few weeks, they were tested by Rabbi Lichtman and Rabbi Ungar, who joined the Dean of the Yeshiva, Rabbi Moshe B. Perlstein in quizzing the students.  

“I actually enjoyed it very much,” said Rabbi Unger. “It was nice to see how the bochurim were ready for a bechinah from someone they were not familiar with. Even those who were not being tested followed along attentively. It was a very impressive occasion.”

 “The bochurim did a superb job,” attests Rabbi Stern. “It was clear that the visitors enjoyed questioning the boys and seeing how well they had learned, and the bochurim seemed to enjoy it as well.”

The 20th Anniversary Gala and Dedication will, G-d willing, take place on June 21st, the 15th of Sivan. At the Gala, the Lubavitch Mesivta of Chicago will be formally dedicated by Dr. Yosef and Shira Malka Walder and renamed as Yeshivas Ohr Eliyahu - Lubavitch Mesivta of Chicago.

Chicago Torah Visionary Award 

Dr. Yosef and Shira Malka Walder have blazed a unique path that blends their passion for Torah and compassion for their fellow man in a way that is as avant-garde as it is traditional. To the great benefit of Klal Yisrael, they are ardent supporters of Jewish education at all levels, and have actualized their vision with many novel initiatives and innovative projects.

In 1987, Dr. Walder founded Integrated DNA Technologies (IDT), a company that manufactures synthetic DNA. But IDT is more than a scientific enterprise.

Since opening a modest satellite office in Lubavitch Chabad of Skokie with three employees in 1994, the Illinois branch of IDT has given honorable employment to hundreds of Torah observant Jews in an environment rich with Torah ideals, and mitzvah observance.

With a deep interest in Jewish affairs, the Walders support dozens—if not hundreds—of institutions around the country, in Israel, and throughout the world. They are the driving force behind the Chabad Early Childhood Education Network which provides resources and support to several hundred preschools across the country.

Closer to home, their visionary generosity has impacted the entire Chicagoland community through the myriad of programs and mosdos in which they play a pivotal role. A few notable examples include: The Kehillah Fund for Jewish Education which was established by Dr. Yosef Walder in 2004 and currently provides over $850,000 per year in financial support to Jewish Day Schools in the ATT system; the Walder Education Pavilion of Torah Umesorah, which provides invaluable resources to educators all over the world; and Walder Science Center.

At the 20^th Anniversary Gala and Dedication, Dr. Yosef and Shira Malka Walder will be presented with the Chicago Torah Visionary Award on the occasion of the dedication of the Yeshivas Ohr Eliyahu – Lubavitch Mesivta of Chicago, as well as in appreciation of their visionary Torah leadership in Chicago and around the world.

 Joseph and Fay Rosenberg 
Lev V'Nefesh Award

In the two short years since their return to Chicago, Rabbi Shalom and Chana Bergovoy have established a name for themselves as leaders in the community. Coming from Morristown, N.J., where Shalom had been learning, they made the decision to move to their hometown and “make a difference.”

Shalom’s connection to the Mesivta runs deep. Following his older brothers—one of whom was in Mesivta’s pioneering class 20 years ago—he learned in the Mesivta during what he fondly refers to “one of the most special periods of my life.”

In fact, he attributes his current success in sales to the confidence he gained on the weekly tefillin route he developed in his Mesivta years.

Despite his many business and community obligations – he is involved in the ongoing success of Chabad at University of Illinois, Chabad at UIC, Libenu and the Mesivta – Shalom makes it a point to learn regularly, including a treasuredchavrusa with Rabbi Perlstein.

A registered nurse, Chana Bergovoy is active in a number of organizations in the city. She is a founding committee member of the Chicago Women’s Circle and gives freely of her time and smile to the teens at risk she mentors at Madraigos, where she is a basketball coach.

Together, they truly exemplify the name of the award they so richly deserve: Lev V’Nefesh – heart and soul.

You may place an ad in the gala journal and make reservations by clicking here.                                                                       

Chicago Uniting Through Torah 

In the two decades that the Lubavitch Mesivta has been serving the Chicago community, it has made a powerful impact in numerous ways—above all by rallying the Jewish people around its most precious possession: Torah.

“When the Mesivta students come to our shul, I hold them up as an ideal for others to emulate,” says Rabbi Elisha Prero of Young Israel of West Rogers Park, where the Mesivta students are welcomed guest-speakers during shalosh seudos and other occasions. “Often I find myself deeply impressed by their mastery of the material and their ability to connect to the tzibur through Torah. I remember a particularly accomplished young man who had a wonderful and deep way of explaining the Torah thought he was teaching. I asked him how old he was and he simply said ‘shiur gimmel,’ I thought he meant that he was in his third year of beis midrash, when in fact he was still in the third year of mesivta.”

The Mesivta bochurim are also regular visitors at other Torah centers.

For fourteen years, they have been steadily building Torah bonds with their peers at the Fasman Yeshiva High School in Skokie. “Over the years, we’ve developed a friendship,” says Yoni Brown, a Fasman senior, who has been learning with the Mesivta boys since he was in 9th grade. “Ourchavrusah sessions are among the highlights of my week.”

Although the bochurim come from different backgrounds, they find a common language in the age-old words of Abaye and Rava, Ravina and Rav Ashi, and the Alter Rebbe and the Rebbe whose words they study with devotion and reverence.

To many Chicagoans, Mr. Marc Geller’s conference room has become synonymous with Torah learning downtown. A diamond merchant by trade, Mr. Geller is famous for hosting a Minchah and Torah shiur that attracts business people yearning for a bit of spirituality in the midst of the busy work day.

After a full week of hearing divrei Torah from rebbis, roshei yeshivah, and other accomplished scholars, Mr. Geller tops it all off by exchanging Torah thoughts with the Mesivta students who visit his office every Friday.

“This is what I take with me into Shabbos, and what I most often will repeat at my own table,” attests Mr. Geller, “Everyone knows that I love hearing a devar Torah, and I especially love hearing it from theseyungeleit, who are the future of our people, our next leaders.”

“It’s not easy for them on a Friday afternoon, racing against the clock, going from door to door,” observes Mr. Geller. “I see it as a two-way street. I gain from their Torah knowledge, and I believe that they gain by having the opportunity to be welcomed in and listened to.”

While the Mesivta has changed the face of the community through thebochurim it produces, it has also attracted a world-class team ofmechanchim, whose classes and guidance have benefitted the entirety of Chicago.

“Just having these talmidei chachamim in our shul has been a tremendous asset to our baalei batim,” declared Rabbi Baruch Hertz, marah d’asra of Congregation Bnei Ruven. “The very fact that a person knows he can approach someone with a question in learning and receive an answer that is clear, broad, and deep is invaluable.”

Many Mesivta staff have regular chavrusos with individuals and also give ongoing shiurim in Bnei Ruven and other area shuls.

“It was 22 years ago that we began our hashkamah minyan in KINS,” recalls Mr. Hillel Shapiro. “At that time, we wanted to make sure that it would be a way to enhance people’s learning on Shabbos, and not just a shortcut to get to the cholent by 9:30. We therefore instituted that theminyan be followed by classes with an emphasis on halachah lemaaseh.Besides for our rav, Rabbi Perlstein has been the single presenter who has been with us all this time. His broad knowledge and open give-and-take format has made for classes that are enlightening and lively.”

And indeed, the Mesiva’s presence is felt in too many ways to be fully captured in words. To quote Rabbi Daniel Raccah, “the Lubavitch Mesivta creates a total ben Torah, who is an integral part of a community.”

Eliyahu Pinchas Ne'eman Z"L                                           

The Lubavitch Mesivta of Chicago is proud to be dedicated as Yeshivas Ohr Eliyahu, memorializing the life of Eliyahu Ne’eman

Eliyahu Pinchas Ne’eman was born in Haifa, Israel, in 1984, the third child in a family that would grow to include six children. When Eliyahu was just 13 years old, his mother died in a car accident. His father, who was badly injured, was left unable to care for Eliyahu and his sisters.

The three younger girls were taken in by their older sister, who was already married at the time. But Eliyahu faltered. With no one to help him process his horrible trauma, Eliyahu struggled in school and spent several of his high school years “in the streets” living in homeless shelters.

In time, through their charitable work in Israel, Dr. Yosef and Shira Malka Walder became acquainted with the younger Ne’eman girls, whom they informally adopted as their own.

The bond grew so strong that Dr. and Mrs. Walder walked the third and fourth girls down the aisle at their weddings. It was at one of those weddings where the Walders met Eliyahu and were immediately taken by his fine character and pleasant demeanor. Even though he had spent much of his youth on his own, he had managed to overcome his challenges. With Yiddishkeit and his siblings as his anchor, Eliyahu persevered with remarkable dedication and incredible simchah.

As Eliyahu continued to thrive, he met the lovely young woman who would become his wife.

The couple got married, Eliyahu enrolled in law school, and they were blessed with a delightful baby daughter. A talented vocalist, Eliyahu loved to entertain and inspire those around him.

Everything seemed to be looking up for the young Ne’eman family, but Hashem had other plans.

In the spring of 2012, after complaining of headaches and suddenly collapsing, Eliyahu was rushed to the ICU and placed on life support.  He had contracted bacterial meningitis and his moments were numbered. Dr. Walder flew to Israel to be there with Eliyahu, but it was too late. On Rosh Chodesh Nissan, Eliyahu’s pure soul returned to its Maker.

The Walders felt like they had lost their own child.

To perpetuate his name, Dr. and Mrs. Walder will be dedicating the Lubavitch Mesivta of Chicago as Yeshivas Ohr Eliyahu.

 
Dr. Yosef Walder

Dr. Walder explains: “For many years we have been proud supporters of the Lubavitch Mesivta of Chicago, a school where every child is noticed and cared for. In my travels, I often meet people who – when hearing that I am from Chicago – comment on the wonderful reputation the Mesivta has as a premier school, where students are inculcated with a love for Torah learning. What makes the Mesivta outstanding though, is not just the level of their Rebbeim and students, but the attention that is given to each student’s spiritual, emotional and intellectual growth, to assure that no student will ever fall through the cracks.

“We strongly feel that by dedicating the Mesivta in memory of Eliyahu, we will fittingly honor him, through the generations of students that will be given the opportunities which he missed out on.”

The dedication will G-d willing take place at the Mesivta's 20th Anniversary Gala, on June 21st - 15th of Sivan at the Weston O'Hare.

 
Preparing 2800 Menorah Kits!

For weeks before Chanukah, the students of the Mesivta's Joseph & Fay Rosenberg Shluchim Mentoring and Leadership Program were busy making calls, sending emails, ordering supplies, packing menorah kits, and arranging schedules. 

They were preparing for a week of high-energy outreach, when Mesivta students fan out across Chicagoland to bring the light of Chanukah to Jewish people all over.

 
Shlomo Zev Friedman regales the crowd with the story of Chanukah and its relevance to us today.

In addition to their regular rigorous studies, the twenty-year-old student organizers are also responsible for an extensive network of weekly outreach and holiday programs benefiting nearly every segment of the Chicagoland Jewish community. Known as the Shluchim, they organize programs and even raise the necessary funds to cover expenses. 

"I had never directed anything of this scope before,” said Mendel Bergstein from Oak Park, Illinois, “so this was a real challenge and a great learning opportunity for me.” Bergstein was responsible for arranging the many locations in Chicago and its suburbs where the 130 Mesivta students held Chanukah parties for seniors, lit Menorah with elderly people in their residences and distributed Menorahs in public areas. Other Shluchim organized transportation and raised funds for the menorahs and party supplies. 

 
Students Shmuel Glaser from Chicago and Mendel Kaplan from Maryland light Menorah with a resident at the CJE Swartzberg House.

All told the students brought light and joy to 420 residents in 15 senior housing and nursing facilities and a record 2,800 Menorah's were distributed over the 8 days of Chanukah!