2000 Teens Take In Crown Heights

By Karen Schwartz, Chabad.org
Photos by Bentzi Sasson, Mendel Benhamou & Bassie Vorovitch

Hanna Briskin, 17, is one of the nearly 2,000 participants and chaperones from 23 different countries participating in the annual CTeen International Shabbaton this weekend in New York City.

The high school senior from Gaithersburg, Md., is spending 3 days of learning, touring, socializing and soaking in the atmosphere of all that the Chabad-affiliated organization has to offer.

In conjunction with this Hakhel year of Jewish gatherings, large and small, a focus is being made on Torah, learning and mitzvot.

And in the wake of recent terrorism, particularly in Israel and France, the theme of the Shabbaton is “unite with light”—transforming darkness into opportunities of light and goodness.

The program includes Shabbat meals and services in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, N.Y., along with a chance to visit Lubavitch World Headquarters at 770 Eastern Parkway, as well as the Ohel, the resting place of the Rebbe in Queens, NY.

Also on tap: a double-decker bus tour of Manhattan; a traditional Shabbat experience, with meals, prayer, and educational and entertaining aspects to the day; and a Havdalah ceremony and post-Shabbat Jewish celebration in Times Square, complete with musical performances. The weekend concludes with a banquet at a larger venue this year—the Brooklyn Expo Center—to accommodate the size of the group.

This is Briskin’s fourth time attending the Shabbaton.

She was especially looking forward to a leadership breakfast in which she is participating and a learning track at New York University: “It’s going to be a really amazing experience—not just to visit the city as a tourist, but actually to visit the school as a Jewish girl.”

Making friends is easy, she says, explaining that she’s met people on Facebook through CTeen and looks forward to interacting with them offline. “I’m in a thousand group chats that are always active, and plenty of us Skype.”

She wants to come away with “more friends, hopefully some incredible memories, and definitely a better appreciation and awareness of the Jewish spark inside me.”

With college right around the corner, she says she also wouldn’t mind acquiring added tools for this next stage in her education. “I have no doubt that Chabad on Campus will be a huge part of my life,” she says. “I can’t imagine going to a school without a Chabad.”

The CTeen Network is inspired by the Rebbe, whose belief in the power of youth transformed the teen years into a time of purpose and self-discovery. As such, a global organization was created to reach teens in public schools, from unaffiliated backgrounds and in places where few other Jewish families reside to empower them as Jewish individuals and leaders.

“Our mission is to provide a nurturing environment where teens can learn about themselves through giving to others, identify with individuals who share the same faith, and be part of a group that focuses on building core values and stresses positive character development,” explains Rabbi Mendy Kotlarsky, executive director of Merkos Suite 302.

“CTeen helps produce a transformation from the reflection of ‘Who am I?’ into a solid character built on values, virtue and character.”

Through their participation in their home communities and at the annual Shabbaton, these young men and women begin to see the world around them through the Torah’s perspective, learning Jewish values in intuitive and creative ways.

“This solid Jewish foundation outfits teenagers with the capacity to make better choices as they grows to adulthood,” says Kotlarsky, “especially as they transition from high school to college, where they can be active with Chabad on Campus, and continue to build on their Jewish knowledge, involvement and practice.”

For Maddie Met, this year’s event is a bit bittersweet. It will be her fourth and final CTeen Shabbaton before she heads to seminary next year.

The 17-year-old high school senior from Mequon, Wis., who has been very active with CTeen at the Peltz Center for Jewish Life there, is attending with a group of 20 students.

“I love to see and experience the immense sense of spirit that fills the streets of New York as these proud teens gather together for this amazing weekend,” she says.

“It is so special to watch the achdus [‘unity’] of all the different groups, especially in this year of Hakhel.”