QJCC
Nearly 1,000 people gathered in the heart of Rego Park-Forest Hills, Queens for a grand Lag Baomer celebration organized by Rabbi Yaakov Horvitz of Chabad Youth Queens (ChabadYQ.com) in partnership with the QJCC.
65th Avenue near 99th Street, chosen for its central location near seven public schools and hundreds of Jewish families, was lined with signs about Jewish observance and pride, and about Moshiach. There were also huge Jewish symbols like tefillin, mezuzahs, shabbat candles and more.
The street was closed to traffic with help from the 112th precinct — special thanks to Community Affairs Officers Touhey and Desantis and the entire team, and to Shmira of Queens helped with the safety, notably, Shabsie Saphirstein, Avrohom Pinchasov and Daniel Winchester.
Before the event opened to the public, JIQ’s elementary school had their own special Lag Baomer rally and fun on site.
As attendees arrived at the event, they were greeted by volunteers Elliote Malakov and Arianna Yashayev—both students in Forest Hills High School who attend the Jewish Club with Rabbi Horvitz at the school every week.
The event had lots of inflatables, a rock-climbing wall, and rides. It also had a full petting zoo, and the kids got a chance to feed the many animals and learn about Kashrut. The Chabad Yeshiva, which used to be in Queens, came with all types of educational carnival games and even a Jewish photo booth, and of course Tefilin and a Ot B’Sefer Torah.
The Doira Zann Entertainment played at the event—a full circle moment, as the DJ attended Chabad’s teen programs when he was younger. Levy Percussion wowed the crowd with traditional Middle Eastern and Central Asian music, playing on the doira and darbuka, transforming the event into a vibrant celebration of immigrant culture — sponsored by the NYC Cultural Affairs.
Throughout the event many Jewish kids who are enrolled in public school and their parents learned about the different Jewish programs that Chabad has in the neighborhood, most notably the Release Time Jewish Hour program.
The highlight of the event was when the kids all received Tzivos Hashem parade flags with Mitzvos and paraded down the street, right to the stage. There, the kids gathered and said the 12 pesukim with great enthusiasm, marking their 50th anniversary. Pens with the pesukim on them were distributed to children who participated nicely, and every child received a pesukim booklet.
After hearing about the significance of the holy day of Lag Baomer, Rabbi Horvitz asked the kids to raise their hand if they are in a Jewish school, and then to raise their hand if they are in public school. At that moment, one kid ran to the stage because he had something to share, “Rabbi, right now I am in public school but very soon I am changing to a Jewish school!” he exclaimed. Applause erupted spontaneously.
In connection with Lag Baomer, when bonfires are customarily lit, the event finished off with an astounding fire and bike show by Joe Janicki who in the past has performed in 770 and at many Chabad events. The kids were mesmerized by the show.
Positive feedback for the event poured out on social media platforms and more, with people remarking, ‘need more stuff like this’ and ‘this event was OFF THE CHARTS’.
Special thanks to the many sponsors of the event, among them: EMU Health (lead sponsor), K and Law, Apple Bank Elmhurst—Gary Chernivsky, Crown Torah Truck, and many more.