In honor of 75 years since the histalkus of the Rebbe’s father, all visitors to Alma Ata for Chof Av will be provided first class accommodations including lodgings, food, and ground transportation, free of charge.
The Rebbe’s great affinity for those who visited the kevarim of his family members is well known. Although for much of the Rebbe’s nesius it was virtually impossible to travel to Alma Ata, once the Iron Curtain collapsed such visits became possible.
In the winter of 5739 (1978–1979), when someone gave the Rebbe a photo of his father’s resting place, the Rebbe cherished the picture to such an extent that he wrote on the back in ksav yad kodsho, “Alma Ata – choref 5739.”
In the summer of 5751 (1991), the shluchim in Europe gathered for a regional kinus during which they traveled to the ohalim of the Rebbeim in Russia and the Ukraine, which had been all but inaccessible until that point.
When being told that the itinerary included a visit to Alma Ata on Chof Av, the Rebbe instructed that the group remain there for the entire day, to enable them to daven all three of the daily tefillos at his father’s resting place.
In honor of Reb Levi Yitzchok’s seventy-fifth yahrtzeit, the expenses of all visitors to Alma Ata for Chof Av will be covered from their arrival until their departure. Travelers need only pay their own airfare.
An entire hotel will be rented out to provide lodging for the many visitors, all food and transportation will be supplied, and a program complete with shiurim, tefillos, and farbrengens will be arranged. Additional amenities include a twenty-four-hour tea room.
During difficult years in Russia, numerous Chassidim would make the arduous trip to Alma Ata to daven at this special place, and many stories are told of the wondrous brachos they witnessed soon after.
For more details about Chof Av 5779 in Alma Ata, please visit www.chofav.com or email [email protected]
