Last week over fifty shluchim from ten western states caught flights to Minnesota for a regional Kinus. Over Shabbos, they reconnected, shared divrei Torah, swapped stories, and inspired one another in spirited farbrengens.
Rabbi Moshe Feller, Rabbi Mendel and Mrs. Nechama Dina Feller hosted the Kinus in Lubavitch House in S. Paul, Minnesota. They kicked off Friday morning with sessions exploring the Rebbe’s teachings and practical halachic topics. A special session gave shluchim the tools to help Ukrainian refugees who arrive in their cities. Former US Senator Rudy Boschwitz addressed the conference, speaking about his many encounters with the Rebbe and Chabad.
Three senior shluchim were on hand to share personal instructions and stories with the Rebbe from the early days of Chabad’s outreach efforts. With decades of experience, head shliach of the Upper Midwest Rabbi Moshe Feller, Rabbi Asher Zeilingold, the Rabbi of Adath Israel Synagogue, and special guest Rabbi Shmuel Lew of London shared highlights from their shlichus throughout Shabbos.
The grand Shabbos meals quickly morphed into farbrengens as every shliach shared a dvar Torah or a shlichus experience. Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky, vice-chairman of Merkos L’Inyonei Chinuch, and person the Rebbe entrusted the responsibility of organizing Kinusim and Rabbi Yossie Shemtov of Tucson, Arizona, led the Friday night farbrengen until the wee hours of the morning.
For many shluchim who serve small Jewish communities in the American interior, the Regional Kinus occasioned a chance to greet peers in person and rekindle friendships old and new. Lubavitch House’s picturesque campus combined with the sumptuous spreads procured by local shliach Rabbi Meyer Rubinfeld gave the Kinus a retreat setting.
After Shabbos, the shluchim came together for a Siyum Harambam. “The chance to celebrate the Siyum Harambam together in grand fashion was a highlight for many of us,” Rabbi Mendel Feller said.
“Every shliach has a gold mine of knowledge and inspiration to share,” said Rabbi Kotlarsky, “Especially when you have shluchim who serve similar communities but are geographically distant, it’s invaluable when everyone comes together.”
