Over the last decade, the My Encounter with the Rebbe project has worked tirelessly to record, film, transcribe, and publish thousands of personal experiences with the Rebbe.
Thank G-d, they’ve seen tremendous success in their efforts and managed to reach over 1,400 individuals, each with unique stories to share. These stories continuously touch lives around the world. But one observation kept resurfacing: Why are there relatively so few interviews with women?
Here are the stats: Over the past decade, JEM has tracked down and documented the stories of over 1,400 individuals. But of that number, only 17% have been women.
How many of their memories are not reaching the masses? And how can awareness be brought to encourage more women to share their stories?
Meet the response: Our Story, a beautiful grassroots project conceptualized by a group of Beis Rivkah seminary students, spearheaded by Leah Goldman. The project aims to record hundreds of women’s stories, otherwise untold, and share them with the world. Passionate about their goal, they reached out to JEM and asked for guidance from Rabbi Yechiel Cagen, director of the My Encounter project. This got the ball rolling, and the Our Story project, in conjunction with JEM’s My Encounter with the Rebbe, has already launched in three high schools.
“It’s not just about documenting the stories of women for the record,” Leah explained. “It’s also about imbuing today’s girls with an appreciation for the Rebbe’s connection with their mothers, aunts, grandmothers, and neighbors. This is a connection that impacts them in their personal lives as well.”
Also involved in the project are Chaya Biegelman, coordinator at LGHS of Chicago; Gittel Sternberg and Shaindy Reinetz of Bnos Menachem; and the G.O. girls at Beis Rivkah. Special thanks goes to SGM SOCHER Inc for their support in the project.
Following the completion of the high school project, Our Story, under the auspices of My Encounter with the Rebbe, hopes to continue to reach out to women who have had an experience with the Rebbe and encourage them to share their stories as well.
My Encounter with the Rebbe, a project of JEM, will be holding an exciting campaign on Wednesday, February 21. You can join the campaign and become a partner at SaveTheStories.org
The Plan for the Our Story Project:
Lubavitch young women everywhere are being asked to get involved in every way they can, in 3 steps:
Ask: Ask a woman you know to share her story with the Rebbe.
Record: Record her speaking and WhatsApp the audio to 718.604.4690
Win: Be entered into a raffle for a chance to win some amazing prizes.
For more detailed instructions on how to set up your recording, please check out the PDF below.
Between the schools, Beis Rivkah and Bnos Menachem in New York, and Lubavitch Girls High School in Chicago, hundreds of girls have already accepted the challenge. But you can also participate if you go to a different school. Just follow the three steps above to be entered into the grand raffle to be held on Thursday, February 22.
Once the Our Story project coordinators have collected the recordings, five top stories will be chosen to be the first ones shared with women and girls around the world, as part of the Our Story project. If your story is chosen, they will contact you before sharing.
~ Email: [email protected] ~ WhatsApp: 718-604-4690
Good job Leah- I’m inspired!! Keep up the good work!
תלכי מחיל אל חיל
Kudos to Leah goldman for her insight and passion!!
What can be done so that the existing interviews with women, and the new ones to come, will actually be shown in shuls in our neighborhood where the powers that be have convinced themselves that it’s “untzniyus’dik” to do so?
I believe the whole point of the project is to record women of all ages about their experiences with the Rebbe.
Girls, be aware that almost every Lubavitcher woman, including BTs, over a certain age has stories she can share!
What about collecting miracle stories of the Rebbe today after Gimmel Tammuz now that’s extra inspiring!
There are older women who have many memories and interactions with the rebbe. Even when they get recorded by JEM they dont seem to get publicized like the ones from men