By Rabbi Yitzchok Wolf – Dean, Cheder Lubavitch Chicago

Allow me to share a true story about how Seymour Abrams OBM became involved with Cheder Lubavitch and why that moment continues to shape our mission to this very day.

Seymour served as President of Brickyard Bank. What distinguished him was not merely his title, but his philosophy of leadership. His desk was positioned in the center of the bank lobby not secluded behind the closed doors of a private executive suite. Every person who entered was greeted personally.

For Seymour, leadership was not about distance or hierarchy; it was about presence. It required visibility, accountability, and above all, genuine human connection.

I had banked at Brickyard long before Seymour assumed the presidency, even before he purchased the institution. One day in 1989, as I walked in, he stopped me and said, “I know you in Chabad are involved in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. I have an extensive Judaica collection, and I am looking to acquire a Torah from that region. Can you help me obtain one?”

In that instant, an idea crystallized.

“Yes,” I responded. “I will have a Torah for you directly from Russia and will have it for you before the bank closes today.”

It was a bold promise.

Several weeks earlier, I had enrolled two five-year-old twin boys who had just arrived from the USSR, Chanoch and Eliyohu. They were among the first wave of Jewish families emerging from decades of Soviet repression. I called their parents and asked if I might bring the boys home after school, with a brief stop along the way. They were honored that the Dean himself would take them home.

That afternoon, I drove the twins to Brickyard Bank. We walked together into the lobby and approached Seymour’s desk.

“Seymour,” I said, “here are the two Torahs you asked for. Living Torahs, recent arrivals from the Soviet Union.”

He looked at me, and then at the boys.

Though he was a strong and composed man, his eyes filled with tears.

In that moment, Torah was no longer parchment and ink adorned with silver crowns. It was embodied in two young children, living testaments to Jewish endurance. They had emerged from a society that sought to suppress Jewish identity, yet here they stood openly, proudly, vibrantly Jewish. The abstraction of collecting Judaica was transformed into the urgency of rebuilding Jewish life.

We believed in Chanoch and Eli from the outset. Extending scholarships to their family was not an act of benevolence; it was an expression of principle. At Cheder Lubavitch, we operate with a clear conviction: every child is a jewel in the making. Financial limitation does not define spiritual capacity, intellectual promise, or communal responsibility.

Today, the story has come full circle. The children of both Chanoch and Eli are proud students at our Cheder. The living Torahs have raised the next generation of living Torahs. What was once fragile continuity has become flourishing growth.

This is the work of Cheder Lubavitch.

As we embark on our Million Dollar CHARIDY Campaign, we are not merely seeking to meet a budgetary goal. We are investing in living Torahs. We are ensuring that no child is denied a Torah education because of financial hardship. We are committing ourselves to polish every jewel entrusted to us until it radiates its fullest brilliance.

I invite you to partner with us in this sacred responsibility. Your support is not simply a donation, it is an investment in Jewish continuity, in leadership, and in the generations that will follow.

Together, let us continue to build.

Our school’s 48 Hour CHARIDY campaign will assist over 400 students receive scholarships.

You can donate now at www.charidy.com/cheder