A Shabbos like no other brought thousands of young shluchim together with their peers in Chabad houses around the world. It was a break from their regular responsibilities as children of community leaders, giving them the chance to recharge with a true Chassidishe Shabbos experience alongside fellow young shluchim who share their unique lifestyle.
“Some of our kids don’t see other children their age from summer camp through winter camp each year,” says Mrs Freidy Brackman, Shlucha to Oxford, UK, who hosted 18 Young Shluchim from across Southern UK together with their counselors for Shabbos Tzuzamen at Chabad of Oxford. “Lots of important skills are developed over this weekend. From davening with chayus to making friends with other kids.”
Meanwhile, over 4500 miles away in Robbinsville, NJ, another 18 young shluchim traveled to join Rabbi Yaakov and Chaya Chaiton, together with two MyShliach staff members, for a memorable Shabbos experience with friends. Learning Chassidus together in Shabbos morning, brotherly farbrengens, and connecting with young community members they rarely see, the weekend proved a refreshing uplift from their shlichus routine.
“This was an incredible experience,” said Mrs Chaiton. “Our kids live in a small town Shlichus, and Shabbos is a very lonely day for them. To have a Shabbos like Shabbos Tzuzamen and connect with other kids just like them was so beyond special!
Guiding the Shabbaton in Robbinsville and 110 other locations across the globe was a “Shabbaton in a box” designed by the MyShliach team at Merkos 302. Complete with song sheets, original games, farbrengen templates, and more, the box packs everything the volunteers and hosting shluchim need to give the kids an uplifting time. “The box was so well thought out, every detail made sure the boys had an awesome experience and gave them so much chayus to take back to their shlichus,” another Tzuzamen host reported.
“Young shluchim shape communities,” said Rabbi Mendy Kotlarsky, executive director of Merkos 302. “By serving a community as a family unit, Shluchim model a healthy, admirable, Torah-true lifestyle for their community members to learn from. While this means a challenging journey for many Shluchim’s kids, programs such as these help them stay grounded in their mission and feel part of their own international community of young shluchim.”
Uniting the community of young Shluchos as well, the following Shabbos saw girls traveling by car, airplane, trains, and ferries, across all four corners of the globe. From Thailand to Tasmania, Little Rock AK, to Leicestershire, UK, they were all part of the same family for Shabbos, and part of the same global family of Shluchim they remain.
Seeing each other on Zoom for yeshivas erev, mishnayos ba’al peh, ach/achos sheli, and many more programs, the boys’ and girls’ communities remain active throughout the year. In-person meetings may be few and far between, but the young shluchim remain steadfast in their mission, connected by their lifestyle of devotion to the Rebbe’s teachings and, of course, connected on myshliach.com.
MyShliach at Merkos 302 would like to thank the wonderful team that worked on every detail.
Shmuli Simpson, Boys Coordinator
Mrs. Tehila Deutch, Girls Coordinator
Rabbi Dudi Ashkenazi,
Ms. Risa Brikman, Games and Box Content
