Who are the Rebbetzin’s Girls?

They’re on Mivtzoim, running the local n’shei, hosting college students, planning programs, tending the sick, teaching kallahs, cooking for the infirm, writing inspirational articles, and giving chizuk to their peers.

They’re lecturing, editing, counseling, mothering… Building Jewish homes, changing the world, and bringing moshiach.

They’re in Asia, Africa, America
They’re in Israel, Indonesia, Italy, Iraq They’re in Peru, Petoria, Paris, Poland
They’re in Melbourne, Mexico, Minsk, Minneapolis
They’re in Syria, Sydney, S. Paulo, Slovakia

One of them might be your mother, your wife, your neighbor, your daughter, your daughter-in-laws mother, your principal, your shlucha.

They are of the tens of thousand handpicked by the Rebbe to study in his mother’s school.

They had left all behind to study in Machon Chana, the school that the Rebbe chose to carry the Rebbetzin’s name.

They are of the thousands that the Rebbe called, on one of his yearly visits to the dorm bought in his mother’s honor, “my daughters”, when he thanked the dorm parents – Rabbi Itche Gansburg a”h and his wife, Gita: “a dank for hadeven meine techter.”

Today marks 36 years since the famous Vav Tishrei farbrengen/dinner that was held at the Rebbe’s direction, and that raised the entire $90,000 to buy 1367 President Street as a home for the Rebbetzen Chana’s daughters.

Only a few months later on Tu bshvat 5734, the Rebbe held a surprise farbrengen after which he paid a visit to see the building. Besides the dollars he gave to Rabbi JJ Hecht for the gashmius, and to Mrs. Sara Labkowski for the ruchnius needs, seforim were brought as a chanukas habayis. Among them is the siddur and tehillim that Kallahs use till this day before their weddings.

Once on the seder night, after visiting other Mosdos, and approaching Machon Chana, the Rebbe was asked by Rabbi JJ Hecht, “Since it’s your mother’s home, when is she there?” The Rebbe’s famous answer was: “Since the girls are following in her footsteps, her presence is always there.”

36 years later, Rebbetzin Chana’s 20,000 daughters have changed the Jewish world and the landscape of Lubavitch. Many of them are shluchos and running mosdos, in addition to having established beautiful chassidishe homes, and their children have doubled the attendance in yeshivos throughout the globe.

With the creation of Machon Chana the Rebbe has not only reinstated the importance of the education of women, who are the anchor of the home and bearers of the torch of Judaism, but has legitimized baalei tshuvah, and added pride, spiritual stature and academic status to this title. In ensuing years, many organizations have followed the Rebbe’s example and baal tshuvah outreach and yeshivos have become the “in thing” and are sprouting around the world.

But there are still thousands of young women who would love the merit of living and learning in Rebbetzin Chana’s home and to become a member of her family.

Commemorating this 36 year milestone, Machon Chana is by putting up a Rebbetzin Chana Donor Wall for all those who want to help more young women join Rebbetzin Chana’s family.

With just $360 one can honor a loved one with a plaque, or with less, become a partner in helping a new group of young women merit to be daughters of Rebbetzin Chana and follow in their sisters’ footsteps.

To find out more, please call us at 718 735-0030 ext 106, or visit our website www.machonchana.org.

Rebbetzin Chana’s daughters – the Machon Chana alumna who made the term tshuvah real, the journey easier and the path a trodden one.

It’s hard to imagine what the world would look like without them.