At Machon Chaya Mushka, a leading educational institution of the Jewish Community of Dnipro for girls, a special farbrengen was held dedicated to the 6th of Tishrei – the yahrzeit of the righteous Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson, mother of the leader of our generation, the Seventh Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson, and wife of the eminent rabbi and Kabbalist Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson, who led the Jewish community of our city from 1909 to 1939.
The farbrengen, organized and conducted by Morah Chavi Engelsman and Morah Daniela Listengurt, consisted of three major parts, each of which helped the Machon students become more deeply acquainted with the personality of Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson, her life, her remarkable character traits, and the spiritual legacy she left to future generations of Jewish women and girls.
The first part of the program was a viewing of special video materials based on the memoirs and diaries of Rebbetzin Chana. Through them, the students were able to touch her personal story and see with what fortitude and self-sacrifice she passed through the most difficult trials, preserving boundless devotion to Torah, Judaism, and the holy work of her husband, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson.
A special guest of the farbrengen was Rebbetzin Dina Stambler, wife of the Chief Rabbi of Kamianske, Levi Stambler. She told the students the story of Rebbetzin Chana, paying special attention to her remarkable character traits. An important part of this meeting was a discussion about what a modern Jewish girl can learn from Rebbetzin Chana, and how the qualities manifested in her life can find their expression today in one’s own actions, attitude toward others, Torah, and mitzvos.
The third major part of the program was a fun interactive game conducted by Morah Daniela Listengurt. The girls were offered unusual and amusing questions, images, and various objects, by which they had to identify interesting facts connected with the life and personality of Rebbetzin Chana. This format allowed the students not only to test their knowledge but also to learn much that was new, and the serious content was organically combined with joy, excitement, and the active participation of the girls themselves.
The farbrengen took place in a warm and joyful atmosphere, and the combination of video materials, the guest’s personal account, and the interactive game helped the students form a deeper and more multifaceted understanding of the personality of Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson, and to see in her life’s path and qualities an example directly addressed to every modern Jewish girl.
“It is very important to us that the girls not merely know the facts of Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson’s biography, but understand what an example her remarkable qualities are for every Jewish girl, and how much we can learn from her for our own lives,” noted Rachel Milman, director of the Machon. “Thanks to the ongoing comprehensive support of the united and cohesive Jewish Community of Dnipro under the leadership of Chief Rabbi Shmuel Kaminezki, and the special attention to our Machon on the part of Rebbetzin Chana Kaminezki, we have the opportunity to raise Jewish girls in an atmosphere of Yiddishkeit, to give them a deep understanding of Chassidus, and to teach them to fulfill the mitzvos of the Torah with joy and great spiritual elevation, and to apply the knowledge they gain in their daily lives.”
