Connect with current and former Yachad members, alumni and staff at the Friends of Yachad Rocks inaugural gala. Featuring NYNY Dueling Pianos, guests will also enjoy a premium open bar, hors d’oeuvres, a smorgasbord and raffle prizes while simultaneously supporting the important work Yachad provides to the community. The event will take place at Location05, 509 West 34th Street between 10th and 11th Avenues on Thursday, May 22 at 7 p.m. The event will be chaired by Yvette Braunstein and Yehuda Charm.
Ms. Braunstein began her involvement with Yachad as a high school student at the Yeshivah of Flatbush in 1998. She went on to become a coordinator for Senior Yachad’s Brooklyn chapter and met her husband, Ari Braunstein (also a former Yachad coordinator), as a counselor for Yad B’Yad East Coast in 2002. She currently works as a renal social worker at Mount Sinai Hospital. Yvette and Ari live in Teaneck, NJ with their two children.
Mr. Charm’s first Yachad Shabbaton was with Senior Yachad in 2000. He has since served as an advisor, coordinator, and program director (Seniors and Yad B’Yad). Yehuda currently lives in New York.
Says Dr. Jeffrey Lichtman, international director of Yachad, “What’s incredibly meaningful for us is seeing the second generation of former volunteers and staff who are now active with Yachad in their own right. Inclusion, accessibility and bringing Yachad to the forefront of the Jewish community was the foundation in the homes they grew up in. This generation of Yachad participants focuses on the abilities of each individual. Friends of Yachad gives us and the community the means to further connect with each other and to connect with Yachad.”
Eli Hagler, Yachad’s associate director, shared, “Inclusion is more than a catch phrase, it’s a way of life. Yachad is shaping the future of the Jewish community and that means everyone needs to be included. That is what we will be celebrating at Yachad Rocks.”
Says Naftali Herrmann, director of community outreach and engagement at Yachad, “Thirty years of Yachad translates to thousands and thousands of individuals and families who have been affected by Yachad, and that’s not even mentioning all of the individuals with special needs (Yachad members) who have benefited from our services.
“The launch of Friends of Yachad was designed to reconnect former volunteers, staff and alumni who were once involved with our organization. The inspiration behind our upcoming inaugural event, Yachad Rocks: An Evening of Music and Memories, and the reason we chose music, is because music is the great connector that transcends all barriers and boarders. Our hope is that Friends of Yachad will enable us to reconnect with our past, while simultaneously developing new connections to pave the road and shape our community for the future.”
Keeping with the occasion’s musical theme, sponsorships are available in the names of rock stars such as Ray Charles, Sir Paul McCartney, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, and Billy Joel, ranging from $500 to $5,000.
To register, go to yachad.org/yachadrocks/. Business attire requested. Admission is $100 in advance, $115 at the door.