By Libby Herz for COLlive.com
It was 2015, and three young Crown Heights couples were ready to settle down with their families.
After searching for homes, they discovered that it was nearly impossible to find an affordable home in the area. But they didn’t give up and after months of searching, they finally found affordable, spacious homes where they could see themselves living for years to come.
But there was a catch. The houses were not exactly located in Crown Heights. They were located on 91st Street in Remsen Village; a healthy twenty-five minute walk from 770. At the time, there were only two other Jewish families living in the area. Additionally, walking to shul meant a trek to and from Crown Heights for shacharis, mincha, and maariv.
The pioneers accepted the challenge. “People don’t like jumping into water,” said one of the men named Dovid, “But when people do, others follow.” The families didn’t expect to see other Jewish neighbors for another ten years, so they were pleasantly surprised when only four months later, another Jewish family joined them on 91st Street.
And it didn’t stop there. Every few months, a moving truck would pull up alongside a minivan holding another large Jewish family. Soon, the children were having playdates within walking distance from home. In just under a year, there were enough families to create their very own community minyan.
It was time to work on a shul. Yossi Blachman, Yehuda Shaffer, and Dovid Jacobs joined to form the board of Bais Avrohom Yitzchok – named after Jacobs’s brother a”h, and Moshe Pape’s father-in-law, a”h. The newly minted board members borrowed a Sefer Torah and for a year and a half, they held minyanim in Pape’s home.
By 2017, the minyan had doubled in size and the Pape home could no longer hold all of the men. The Jacobs family decided to hold the official Remsen Village minyan in their basement.
Today, Bais Avrohom Yitzchok boasts a women’s section complete with children and family programs. Over two hundred people attend their parties on Chanukah and Purim. The shul holds a family meal on Shmini Atzeres and Simchas Torah, and one family in the area sponsors peklach for all of the kids.
There is always a lively farbrengen on Simchas Torah. In two separate instances on the Yom Tov, all of the men in the shul created a “beis din” to decree that Hashem should bless a childless couple with children. In both cases, the couples were blessed with children that very year.
Every motzei Shabbos, the shul is alive with the sounds of boys learning with their fathers for Avos U’bonim. Bais Avrohom Yitzchok is also the original home of N’shei Chabad of Remsen Village which creates weekly shiurim and monthly programs for women in the area.
“The nice thing about the shul,” said Tzivi Jacobs, “is that people feel comfortable here. It’s full of all kinds of people who happen to live in the same area. It’s very inclusive and everyone is welcome.”
In fact, the shul is so welcoming that its congregants are practically spilling out of its current location.
“We really can’t fit anymore,” said Dovid Jacobs. “We want to have more kids programs during Shabbos davening, a larger women’s section, and a men’s mikvah in the shul building.”
The current board members – which now include Avrohom Bazes, Yossi Blachman, Shloimy Zellermaier, Dovid Jacobs, and Yankel Raskin – are actively searching for a house in the area so they can create a shul that is double in size.
Since its early days of floundering for a basement to hold the bare minimum of a minyan, Bais Avrohom Yitzchok has come a long way. The shul that welcomes all families in Remsen Village and beyond, is finally getting the expansion it deserves.
For more information and for donations please go to lubavitchrv.org.
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Cong. Bais Avrohom Yitzchok
270 East 91 Street
Brooklyn, NY 11212
Email: [email protected]
Cell: 347-439-9248
Daily minyanim:
Shacharis 7am (Sunday 8am)
Maariv 9pm
Shabbos
Friday night
Mincha at candle lighting
kabollas shabbos at dark
Shabbos day
Chasidus: 8:45 am
Shachris: 10:00 am
(10:30 shabbos mevorchim after tehilim)
Farbrengens every shabbos after davening and on yomo depagrah
Mincha at candle lighting time
Followed by seder nigunim and maamar by Rabbi Raskin.
Maariv bizman followed by Rebbe video
Shiurim are announced weekly.
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Our Shuls – profiles of the shuls of Crown Heights on COLlive.com:
Merkaz Sefarad on Crown Street
Hechal Baal Shem Tov on East NY Ave
Bais Shmuel on Eastern Parkway
Anshei Lubavitch on Albany Ave
Beis Midrash Eliyahu Nachum (Lefferts Shul)
The Mitzvah Center on Troy Ave
East Flatbush is no longer affordable thanks to a few greedy ppl. Friends , we do it to ourself ! Why are we outbidding our fellow hidden 150 k on an old house that. Needs to be gutted.
May be the sad reality of what’s unwillingly (and not purposely) happening. FACT is people are looking to buy houses and FACT is, demand drives prices up, this is closest and walking distance to Crown Heights and now getting supermarket delivery, School bussing etc.. with established Minyan etc. so obviously you will find lots of Jewish families bidding at a ‘open house event’ of a house released to the market.. that’s called ‘demand’ and that’s the nature of it, unless you want to organize like a community council waiting list or the like. What do you suggest? Looks like your… Read more »
You are 100 percent correct. It’s is based on supply and demand . And bidding is normal but to outbid close to 200k !!! More ruins it for every other person looking after you bought the house . These owners are no fool and if they hear one person bought for 950 so will they all sell for that price . Is that honestly fair ? At what point do we say it’s enough ?!!!
If I can afford to pay more to get something that is in demand, why not pay more, to secure its purchase and save me time, negotiations and the risk of being outbid? I should think about some possible effect it might have on some next buyer of some other house? Maybe there won’t be another house. Maybe there won’t be someone who can overpay so that house will sell for less. All maybes. This house is a definite – either get or not get for me. Definite outranks maybe. and if supply demand has the price moving up, go… Read more »
They have worked to create the most beautiful community that has out of town warmth in the middle of Brooklyn! Kol Hakavod! May you go from strength to strength and have nachas from your family and the community you have worked to build!
It takes great people to create such a beautiful community! Kol hakavod to Dovid and Tzivi Jacobs, who are too
humble to take the credit.
A dozen families just moved to Centerville Indiana. (Google maps will tell you that it is in the middle of nowhere). With Chabad Houses all over, it is easier for us than for them. I am not knocking Crown Heights, the Rebbe’s schunah, but every family needs to figure out what works for them.
Aside for the neighborhoods circling Crown Heights, there are loads of places in the states circling New York.
Its a wonderful area and shul! Way to go guys, you made and established a beautiful community..of course it could have never been possible without the work of the pioneers who saw the potential of the neighborhood. KOL HAKOVOD! Yirmi
..to walk the extra 8-10 minutes. This is a beautiful, young, Chassidishe community and close enough to have all conveniences of Crown Heights, Kosher deliveries, School buses, Mikvahs and babysitting when you need etc. together with the welcoming homey feel of a warm friendly and caring community. Some people may just be too ‘spoiled’ or closed-minded to not be able to have a grocery a block away or Kingston ave at their corner. I personally know people that currently live in the heart of CH but are looking to specifically relocate to East Flatbush solely because of the community atmosphere,… Read more »