At the world’s largest summit of Hebrew School families, CKids debuted the first-ever immersive exhibit introducing parents to the Rebbe’s Ten Mitzvah Campaigns—ten essential touchpoints designed to bring timeless Torah values into everyday life.
This past weekend, over 1,000 parents and children gathered for the largest global summit of Hebrew School families, a milestone moment for CKids International’s flagship Shabbaton. Representing 250 communities across 26 countries, these families—many of them raising the only Jewish child in their school or town—came seeking something deeper: comradere, clarity, and strength.
Friday’s program in Parsippany, NJ, boasted beautifully curated Mivtzoim exhibits, presenting the Rebbe’s ten mitzvah campaigns immersively. Led by Shluchim and Shluchos attending the Shabbaton with their Hebrew School families, parents walked into interactive booths to learn all about Tefillin, Mezuzahs, Taharas Hamishpacha, Kashrus, Shabbos, and more, hallmarks of Jewish life.
It was the first time many parents were introduced to these mitzvos through the same experiential tools their children had encountered in Hebrew School—demonstrating how children are often the spark that reignites family connection.
“As Chassidim of the Rebbe, we have clear guidance on how to introduce the beauty of Yiddishkeit,” said Rabbi Zalmy Loewenthal, director of CKids International at Merkos 302. “The ten campaigns the Rebbe launched gave us the perfect entry point for people to learn about and begin to introduce into their daily practice, at whatever religious stage they are at.”
Each booth featured interactive activities to bring the Mitzvos to life. The Ahavas Yisroel booth included a colored candle demonstration. While the wax of each candle looks different from one another, should you close your eyes, the light they each produce is the same. “When we value one another for our souls, the precious spark of G-d within each and every Jew, we realize we are all the same,” explained Mrs. Sarah Bezencry of Manhattan Sephardic to the eager participants.
Throughout the afternoon, the Kashrus cooking show proved to be a big hit. Pitting couples against each other to create a kosher dish against the clock, Rabbi Eli Goodman, of Chabad of The Beaches, Long Beach, NY, entertained an eager crowd while inserting a wealth of kosher facts into the narrative. “People had the opportunity to see how hands-on keeping kosher is—and how accessible it can be—in a fun, engaging way,” he said.
Meanwhile, across the hallway, Rabbi Moshe Kramer, Director of the West Boca Hebrew School, hosted a demonstration of how Tefillin and mezuzahs are made, in a booth modeled after a sofer’s office. After masterfully explaining the virtues of wearing Teffilin and the spiritual protection installing a mezuzah brings one home, participants had the opportunity to get hands-on. Quills in hand, parents delighted in writing their own names on parchment.
“The Rebbe believed deeply in the power of children—and how entire families can have their Jewish practice uplifted thanks to their children,” said Rabbi Mendy Kotlarsky, executive director of CKids’ umbrella organization, Merkos 302. “This Shabbaton is the ultimate Jewish response. A response to a world growing louder in its hate, by raising children louder and prouder in their identity. And by giving parents the tools to stand with them.”
For Mivtza Chinuch, a game show entitled “Are you smarter than a JewQ Champion?” quizzed parents on their Jewish general knowledge, ahead of the JewQ International Championship Finale, where many of their children would showcase their knowledge on Sunday. The laughter in the room was matched only by the pride—watching children become teachers, and parents become students.
Shortly before Shabbos, Rabbi Mendel Raskin, the visionary young leader spearheading JewQ at Merkos 302 shared the story behind the revolutionary program—highlighting how the Rebbe encouraged channeling a child’s natural competitive drive into a force for good. By turning that energy toward mastering Torah concepts and sharing them proudly, JewQ was born. Now in over 250 communities across 26 countries, the program has transformed what could have been monotonous study into a gamified, high-energy, international celebration of Jewish pride—one that uplifts not only the student, but the entire family and community.
“The weekend was a wine tasting of Judaism—everything was there for those interested in learning about it. If you wanted to sip, you could sip, and if you wanted to chug, you could chug!” summarized Michael Cohn, attending the Shabbaton with his two children from Chabad Orange County, NY Hebrew School.
