by LechuVnelcha | Jan 29, 2015 | Belgium, Europe, General branch info
Mrs. Geminder, the director of LVN Belgium, immediately impressed me with her sincerity. As she described the special caliber of the girls that participate in her programs, it is obvious that they are all on the same page. The goal of all those who are involved in LVN is to benefit from the spiritual treasures that the shiurim have to offer. They have no need for splashy events, superficial hype or expensive accoutrements in order to get them interested. They just want to be inspired and Mrs. Geminder makes sure that that happens every time. The girls gather together each week in the central Agudah Hall for shiurim, with different community speakers coming to inspire the group. They eagerly draw chizuk as well from the periodic emails, divrei torah and articles that Rebbetzin Fink sends out to all global LVN members, in an effort to connect all the world-wide branches.
Every month, the Sunday before Rosh Chodesh, they have a special program. Whether it is musical entertainment or a special discussion panel, Mrs. Geminder tries to arrange something unique to add a special flavor to the schedule. For Rosh Chodesh Kislev, besides for preparing a special repast for the girls to enjoy, she also coordinated an intriguing chidon to challenge the girls and enliven the atmosphere. For Rosh Chodesh Shvat she plans to show the girls the special audio-visual presentation featuring Harav Mattisyahu Salomon, shlita, who imparts the important message regarding how vital LVN is for graduates of the Bais Yaakov system.
Lechu V’Nelcha is fortunate to have Mrs. Geminder at the helm in Belgium, where she is dedicated to providing the girls with exactly what they are yearning for. The inspiration to live their lives on a spiritual plane that will keep them growing and connecting to Torah and Hashem.
Tzippy Zager
by LechuVnelcha | Jan 29, 2015 | Cleveland, General branch info, New LVN Branch, North America
Mrs. Gerson was concerned. Her daughter, who had been in Mesores Rochel seminary in Yerushalayim, was coming back home to Cleveland. It had been an amazing year for her. A year of incredible inspiration, of spiritual growth and introspection. But now she would be leaving Eretz Yisrael and returning to America. What could be done to ensure that, though she would be leaving the land of kedushah, she would be able to maintain within her the kedushah that she had acquired in the last 10 months?
Unlike many of us who worry, sigh and then move on, Mrs. Gerson decided she had to do something. She realized that Cleveland is blessed with some very talented, articulate speakers, a resource which Mrs. Gerson was determined to tap into. She contacted them and discovered that they were very interested in helping her turn her dream into reality. She began assembling a team of orators who would each take a turn at the podium in a weekly rotation, each one in their own way carrying on the momentum that had been initiated for the girls in their year in seminary.
The project would be called Ohel Imahos, for that in essence was what she was creating – an ohel – a protection for the future Imahos of Klal Yisrael. But how to get the girls excited about this venture? Mrs. Gerson compiled a list of all the girls who had just returned from seminary and mailed them an invitation inviting them to a free orientation night, sparking their interest at a time when they were thirsty for a connection to something that was still so fresh in their minds and hearts.
And the girls came, eager to hear how they could reinforce what they had discovered in their year abroad. At the orientation, while enjoying pastries and catching up with their friends, the speaker that night presented the mission statement of Ohel Imahos – a program designed specifically for the girls with topics relevant to the girls, ideas they could take with them each day as they faced the struggles and challenges of the workplace, shidduchim, and interpersonal relationships.
The girls were given calendars which detailed the speakers and the topics for the shiurim of the coming month, something that ignited their interest even more. They were told that the speaker would address the topic for 45 minutes, and would then open the floor to give the girls a chance to voice their own concerns and questions about the topic that had been addressed. Being told beforehand what the topic of the evening would be, accomplished two objectives. It drew in a crowd of girls who were interested in hearing more about that specific topic and it gave the girls an opportunity to prepare questions on issues relating to that topic.
Ohel Imahos was a success! The girls loved every shiur and kept coming back for more.
And then, two years after Ohel Imahos had begun, Rebbetzin Fink called Mrs. Gerson. Lechu V’Nelcha had the same mission statement as Ohel Imahos and was linking up with similar programs world-wide. The goal? To create a network of girls with the same dream –continuing to be inspired to use the lessons that they had heard in seminary to create stepping stones towards becoming better people and ultimately better servants of the Ribbono shel Olam.
And so Ohel Imahos became another beautiful branch in the tree of spiritual growth that is called Lechu V’Nelcha.
Tzippy Zager
by LechuVnelcha | Jan 29, 2015 | Canada, General branch info, Toronto
When talking to Mrs. Heber, the director of LVN in Toronto, the devotion she feels toward her post-seminary girls is evident in every word. She doesn’t just cater to the spiritual needs of her girls – she makes sure that each and every one of her girls gets her own personalized menu of service. And Ma’ayanos, which is what the LVN Toronto branch is called, actually does just that.
When Mrs. Heber began describing her program to me, with all the minutia involved, I was amazed at how she managed to make the girls feel that what mattered to them really mattered to her too. First, there’s the shiurim – four series of shiurim in all! And each shiur fills a very specific need. There’s a va’ad on Monday for girls “fresh off the plane.” This shiur, ably given by Mrs. Wolman, focuses on helping the girls to acclimate from their seminary days, where they were cocooned in the walls of ruchniyus, to the world outside which they have rejoined. Then there’s a va’ad on Tuesday, given by Mrs. Heber herself, for girls aged 20 to 21. Their issues are different than the younger group since the culture shock of integrating into the “real world” has worn off, but their concerns and struggles are very real all the same. There’s also a va’ad every other Monday given by Mrs. Heber for girls over age 22 whose lives and challenges certainly require a different approach. All three va’adim focus on avodas hamiddos, though each group has its own twist for their participants and each speaker sensitively personalizes how the girls can deal with the situations that they currently face. Finally, there is a fourth shiur, open to all the girls, which is given by Mrs. Shira Lipner every Sunday on the topic of Nashim in Tanach, a topic which strikes a chord in the hearts of all Bnos Yisrael. And the highlight of these shiurim is the Rosh Chodesh shiur each month, which features a guest speaker and a delightful culinary spread.
Mrs. Heber wasn’t satisfied with just addressing the spiritual needs of her girls. She was concerned with their social and emotional needs as well. She wanted to empower them with their abilities, while giving them a chance to socialize and enjoy each other’s company. So she launched mini-courses, which cover the gamut of skills, ranging from computers to photography, food decorating and hair design. She began exercise classes as well. All so that her girls could be productive and enjoy the experience too.
All this programming, held in rented facilities, comes at a cost. Mrs. Heber devised two payment options to make it affordable. Girls can either choose twice-yearly membership, which entitles the members to free access to all shiurim, 1 free exercise class each week and reduced tuition for all the mini-courses. The other option is for the girls to pay each time they choose to attend a shiur.
When Mrs. Heber began setting up the groundwork for Ma’ayanos, she wasn’t so aware of how global Lechu V’Nelcha really was. But when Rebbetzin Fink approached her, prior to the program launch, to inquire if she would be interested in joining the LVN network, Mrs. Heber jumped at the chance. She felt that being part of LVN would give her girls more avenues for inspiration and camaraderie, and if there was a way to make her girls feel more involved and connected, then she wanted that for them. So Toronto became another proud beacon in the light of Lechu V’Nelcha.
Tzippy Zager
by LechuVnelcha | Jan 29, 2015 | Baltimore, General branch info, North America
Mrs. Hoffman began her post-seminary program focused on one ideal. This organization was going to be “by the girls, for the girls.” She wanted to structure a program that would reflect the interest of all her girls, and listening to her describe all that is going on in Maalot Elite, the Baltimore branch of Lechu V’Nelcha, you get the feeling that she has more than accomplished what she set out to do.
Of course, there is a weekly group shiur, this year focusing on Megillas Rus, given by Mrs. Yael Weisbord, a dynamic speaker who attracts a solid group of girls regularly. But in addition to the mainstay regular shiur, there are the more intimate chaburos, seven in all. Led by dedicated mechanchos in the privacy of their homes, the different age groups are given specialized attention and direction with the personalized touch that can only happen with a small group in a more discreet setting. The topics for each chaburah vary, and range from Nefesh Hachaim to seforim written by Rav Shimshon Pinkus. Who decides what will be the course study for the group? The girls themselves do, the very first week that they meet. This ensures that their interests will be served and that they are committed to attending week after week.
The social programming is varied and enticing as well. The year began with a bang – an opening event that attracted the attention of all the girls in the community and captivated their interest for the year ahead. Maalot Elite holds melaveh malkahs too, where the food, ruach and different activities, in addition to a meaningful shiur, give the girls a chance to mingle and connect on a social level as well. Twice yearly a yom iyun panel is arranged, where three Rebbetzins come together to lead discussions on timely topics that pertain to the girls’ current concerns. There is a Chanukah event, a leil hisorerus, and the list goes on and on. The highlight of the year for the local Baltimore girls is the end-of-year Shabbaton, a weekend that invigorates this wonderful group who has been devoted the whole year to maintaining their ideals in a very confusing world.
This program is financially very affordable too. Yearly membership covers all the shiurim for the year, or the girls can opt to pay per shiur with a slightly higher fee for guest speakers. The private chaburos are given at no additional cost to the girls, which speak volumes about the incredible caliber of the mechanchos leading them.
What impressed me so much about Mrs. Hoffman’s Baltimore LVN program is the concern that she has to make sure that no matter where any girl falls in the spectrum of age, there is sure to be some aspect of the program that will satisfy her thirst for clarity and growth. Which is why Ma’alot Elite in Baltimore is another jewel in the crown called Lechu V’Nelcha.
Tzippy Zager
by LechuVnelcha | Jan 29, 2015 | Chicago, General branch info, North America
Mrs. Mannes is so unassuming about all that she has accomplished for the post-seminary girls in Chicago, that it took a few minutes conversing with her to begin to comprehend what she has achieved. She is the principal of the Bais Yaakov High School in Chicago, and in that role, she realized that the alumni of her school were experiencing a void upon their return from seminary. So she decided to give a weekly shiur for the girls. At no charge to them. And she has continued to do so for more than 14 years. She used to give the shiur every Sunday, but in her very self-effacing way, she switched to Tuesday when somebody else began giving a weekly shiur on Sunday, because she felt that that shiur might benefit the girls as well.
Like Rebbetzin Fink, her shiurim were based on Mesillas Yesharim for many years, though this year she has begun teaching Tefillah, using Rav Shimshon Pincus’s sefer on tefillah as the text. The high school arranges a yearly melaveh malkah for their alumni, a sure way to keep the girls connected socially as well as spiritually. This year Mrs. Mannes agreed to join the LVN network because she saw the value in making a connection for the Chicago girls, a connection to something larger than themselves. And so, Chicago is now another proud landmark on the map of Lechu V’Nelcha.
Tzippy Zager
