NCSY Turns an unfortunate event into a unforgettable learning opportunity
When Midwest NCSY found itself with a posul, unusable, Sefer Torah at its annual winter Shabbaton, they turned an unfortunate situation in to an unforgettable learning opportunity: the chance to welcome a new Sefer Torah to the Jewish people—a Sefer Torah that was partially written by the NCSYers themselves.
Last December, as the Midwest NCSY advisers read the Torah portion from the Sefer Torah at its early minyan for staff members, they noticed that one of the letters was missing in the third aliyah. The Torah had been borrowed from a local Chevra Kadisha [burial society] that hadn’t noticed the error.
The posul Sefer Torah quickly became a topic of conversation for the Shabbaton. Advisers used the opportunity to explain the importance of each letter of a Sefer Torah and how even just one tiny mistake can invalidate an entire Torah scroll. The message to the NCSYers was clear: every Jew is important, regardless of affiliation or background, and that each small action, both good and bad, can have a huge impact on the world and the Jewish community.
“We were all curious what would happen and we were looking to the rabbis for guidance,” said Nala Slobodyanyuk, a junior at Bais Yaakov High School of Twin Cities. “They addressed what was going on and calmly explained the situation. After that, we knew everything was going to work out.”
During Shaleshudus, the third meal of the Shabbaton, the idea of MidWest NCSY having their own Sefer Torah was brought up. Within minutes, donors and lay leaders pledged more than $50,000 to pay for a new Sefer Torah.
“We are fortunate to have donors and lay leader who care so passionately about the total experience that NCSYers have through our programs,” said Rabbi Donny Schwartz, Regional Director of Midwest NCSY. “It was inspiring to see how quickly our guests joined together to help NCSYers have a Torah to call their own. At that moment, our donors and lay leaders recognized the opportunity they had to make an impact on current and future NCSYers and they did not hesitate.”
Moreover, this Sefer Torah would be special, since the NCSYers would be able to write a letter in it themselves fulfilling one of the hardest mitzvoth in the Torah: the commandment to write one’s own Sefer Torah.
“An opportunity like this is truly unique,” said Rabbi Moshe Isenberg, executive director of Midwest NCSY. “From what at first seemed like such an unfortunate error, a beautiful and fortuitous event was born. It’s the perfect metaphor for the NCSY message/ Just like every letter matters in the Torah, so to does every individual matter in Klal Yisroel.”
Since that weekend, Midwest NCSY has also worked to raise money for scholarships in honor of the upcoming Hachnasas Sefer Torah [welcoming the Torah]. “It has been an incredibly special project,” said Ari Shabat, Chairman of Midwest NCSY. “Since December we’ve raised over $180,000 in total for the writing of the Sefer Torah and scholarships for NCSYers.”
Rabbi Micah Greenland, international director of NCSY, commended the project. “The money raised for the Sefer Torah not only ensures that Midwest NCSY will have their own Torah scroll, but the money raised will be used for NCSY programming and scholarships to ensure that the single letter that the NCSYers write is the first letter in a long journey towards a deeper connection to their heritage.”
“It means a lot that people from all different communities have stepped up to pay for this Sefer Torah and to help NCSYers,” said Akiva Garfinkel, a junior at Ida Crown Jewish Academy in Chicago.
NCSYers themselves have also been involved in raising money. Garfinkel, who serves on Midwest NCSY Regional Board, helped organize a group of his fellow teens to raise money for the cause as well. Together, the teens raised around $1000 in one evening. “It was touching that fellow NCSYers wanted to take the time and help fundraise for this event,” he said.
Midwest NCSY has also ensured that as many teenagers as possible are able to participate in the mitzvah.
“We’ve taken the final klaf [parchment] to cities throughout the region,” said Shabat. “Teens in Minneapolis and Kansas City [among other cities] are all celebrating in the same mitzvah together. They’re learning and participating in the writing of the Torah.”
“I’d never seen a sofer [scribe] write a Torah,” said Slobodyanyuk, who was at the writing in Minneapolis and will also be at Fall Convention. “It was new to all of us and opened my eyes to how real a Sefer Torah is.”
Over 250 NCSYers, a majority of them public school students from across the region, are expected to attend Fall Convention, October 23-25 in Chicago, where they will celebrate the Hachnasas Sefer Torah together with the Chicago Jewish community. “The event will be the central focus of the entire weekend,” said Rabbi Schwartz. “The NCSYers will leave on Sunday with a deeper understanding of the centrality of Torah in their lives and feel that they have a unique connection to it, one that not everyone has a chance to truly experience.”
Rabbi Schwartz continued, “This Torah will be their legacy as much as it is ours.”
To participate in this unique opportunity, contact NCSY at 847-677-6279 or visit www.midwestncsy.org/torah.
The words of this author reflect his/her own opinions and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Orthodox Union.