JTNews | The Voice of Jewish Washington

A year after the attack in Mumbai, India, and the brutal murders of the keepers of the Chabad there, Gabi and Rivkah Holtzberg, a number of tributes have been written in their memory. Some, like the one we ran in our paper here, were from people who had met the Holtzbergs in their travels. Others, such as this piece written by Rochie Farkash at the Eastside Torah Center in Bellevue, came from the view of someone who actually knew the Holtzbergs, and how they have worked to make sure the young couple did not die in vain.

In that year thousands of letters were written, detailing how Gabi and Rivkah touched lives. Over five hundred new born babies and many new Chabad centers were named in their honor.
...
When we look at the lives of Gabi and Rivky and hear the many stories about their giving and generosity, we are touched and inspired.

It’s always hard to lose a friend, but when it’s such a young couple who meet such a violent end, that makes it all the worse. It will be interesting to see how the legacy of these two sustains itself in the coming years, for the Jewish community overall and for the Chabad movement in particular.

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Kudos for Kavana

By Joel Magalnick

Posted April 7, 2009 at 3:28 pm • Jewish Washington

You’ll have to stay tuned for the story coming out next week, but here’s a glimpse of what’s to come:
The Kavana Cooperative has been named by Newsweek Magazine as one of America’s 25 Most Vibrant Synagogues.

Congregations are listed geographically and are chosen based on the following criteria:

* Social and Community Engagement
* Growth of Membership
* Outreach to Young People
* Diversity of Programming
* Programmatic Innovation
* Dynamism of Religious Services
* Success of the Rabbi

That’s nice and all that, but even bigger is Kavana’s rabbi, Rachel Nussbaum, being named as one of five Avi Chai Foundation fellows. According to a press release sent by the foundation:

The AVI CHAI Foundation occupies a singular spot in North American Jewish life, defining its goals as fostering high levels of Jewish Literacy; deepening religious purposefulness and promoting Jewish Peoplehood and deeper connections to the State of Israel. Each of the AVI CHAI Fellows has demonstrated a track record of commitment towards these ends and although the award - $75K per fellow per year - will go towards their proposed activities, the purpose of The AVI CHAI Fellowship is to advance and promote the individual winners as important forces in building a vital American Jewish future built upon these values.

It's here!