Every winter, Mrs. Chaya Naparstek and her husband, Rabbi Levi Naparstek, who direct CKids at Chabad Côte St-Luc in Montreal, reach out to families who attend their Hebrew School, and one by one, invite them to join the CKids International Shabbaton.
“We get a lot of no’s,” Naparstek said. “And hopefully, we get a few yeses.”For Naparstek, the Shabbaton offers something she can’t replicate at home: an action-packed Shabbos program with families from around the world, combined with the chance to bring her community to the Rebbe.
“The speakers are incredible, the programming is amazing, and the kids have a blast,” she said. “But for me, the driving force is bringing them to the Rebbe.”
It’s a value she learned at home. Her father, Rabbi Mendel Raskin, Director of Chabad Côte St-Luc, has made bringing groups to the Rebbe central to his shlichus. For over forty years, he brought busloads on many occasions, including the last Shabbos the world merited a farbrengen, and a bus of children from his Montreal camp every summer since.
“The Rebbe had tremendous nachas from the groups,” Naparstek said. “He would say l’chaim to them, encourage their singing, and even deliver special sichos in their honor. Once, the Rebbe began singing Hoaderes V’hoemunah with the group. Another time, he spoke to them in French.”
This legacy shapes her own approach to shlichus. “Over forty years, my father brought—and continues to bring—busloads of people to the Rebbe,” she said. “It’s not an add-on. It’s the pinnacle of our Shlichus.”
This year’s CKids Shabbaton, set for March 20-22, will bring together over a thousand children and parents from more than twenty-five countries for a Shabbos in the Rebbe’s Daled Amos. “With the Shabbaton in Crown Heights, I get the opportunity to bring the families to 770 and the Rebbe’s room. It’s all part of the program,” Naparstek said.
Getting Montreal families across the border takes persistence, and getting them on an eight-hour bus ride takes even more. The Naparsteks call each family individually, working through the hesitations one conversation at a time.
“Every family is a win,” she said. “We speak to each one personally. We call, we explain, we try to encourage them.”
What helps is that the children have already done the work. JewQ participants spend months mastering foundational Jewish knowledge and taking tests. “These kids earned this,” Naparstek said. “They studied for months, they took the tests, they put in the work. The Shabbaton is their celebration.”
The Shabbaton delivers on that promise. Over the weekend, children experience lively davenings, meals, and trips alongside kids from cities as far apart as Buenos Aires and Melbourne. On Sunday, the energy peaks at the JewQ International Championship, where finalists compete on stage and thousands more watch from communities around the world.
“It’s incredible for the kids, but honestly, it’s just as meaningful for the parents,” Naparstek said. Special programming and lectures run parallel to the children’s activities, giving parents their own Shabbaton experience.
To bring more families on board, the Naparsteks get creative. Their top Hebrew school scorer receives a sponsored Shabbaton ticket. Raffles and discounts help families on the fence.
Since her first year with CKids, the Naparsteks have shared the same goal: a full bus from Montreal, fifty children and parents.
It hasn’t happened yet. But each year, a few more families from Côte St-Luc say yes, and the bus gets a little fuller.
“The Rebbe took children seriously and trusted them as ambassadors for Yiddishkeit,” said Rabbi Mendy Kotlarsky, Executive Director of Merkos 302. “A weekend like this strengthens them and their families, giving them the confidence to carry that message back to their peers.”
