Popack Donates Youth Guesthouses in Yerushalayim and Tzfas

Two new youth guesthouses were dedicated this week in Israel by Brooklyn philanthropist Reb Yossi Popack, to host weekly Shabbatons by ‘CTeens’ and ‘Chabad on Campus’ who merit to participate in a unique, spiritually uplifting, Chassidic experience.

At these Shabbatons, often the teens are keeping Shabbos for the first time in their life, they hear lectures, participate in workshops rich in content, leaving them with deep, life-changing impressions, as the shluchim of ‘CTeens’ and ‘Chabad on Campus’ frequently report.

At these Shabbatons, often the teens are keeping Shabbos for the first time in their life,

they hear lectures, participate in workshops rich in content, leaving them with deep, life-changing impressions, as the shluchim of ‘CTeens’ and ‘Chabad on Campus’ frequently report.

an intensive project of recent months was brought to completion, the building of Shabbaton guest houses for Jewish teens in Jerusalem and Safed.

This week, during the visit in Israel of the philanthropist Reb Yosef Yitzchok HaLevi Popack, an intensive project of recent months was brought to completion, the building of Shabbaton guest houses for Jewish teens in Jerusalem and Safed.

This need arose after the flagship guesthouse in Kfar Chabad was totally booked out, utilized to full capacity for seminars and weekend gatherings, and the demand is just increasing.

At these Shabbatons, often the teens are keeping Shabbos for the first time in their life, they hear lectures, participate in workshops rich in content, leaving them with deep, life-changing impressions, as the shluchim of ‘CTeens’ and ‘Chabad on Campus’ frequently report.

A different type of Shabbaton geared for the religious crowd, Yeshiva students alternating weeks with high school girls, who merit to participate in a unique, spiritually uplifting, Chassidic experience.

“The influence of these Shabbatons has exceeded all expectations, and leaves an indelible imprint upon the adolescents, and this is what motivates us to establish more and more of these guesthouses,” says Rabbi Moshe Shailat, Director of Chabad Youth in Israel projects. “Baruch Hashem, in addition to the broad base provided by Keren Meromim, Reb Yossi Popack, and his friend Reb Mendel Levin, enabled us, within a brief timespan, to establish two more guest houses for these youngsters, to spread Yiddishkeit and Chassidus at these seminars and ‘weekend getaways’.

“These guesthouses are situated in the most prime, sought-after locations. One is adjacent to the Chabad Center for Jewish Teens at the corner of Jaffa and King George Streets in central Yerushalayim, and the second is in the Old City of Tzfas, as part of Rabbi Gavriel Marzel‘s Chabad House, where the first floor have been converted to an elegant guesthouse.”

In the past few days, these guesthouses were inaugurated amidst much excitement. In Yerushalayim, the ceremony took place on Friday, in conjunction with the arrival of the first group of youngsters from Netanya, accompanied by the Shaliach Rabbi Chen Sudar.

Thereby the simultaneous chanukas habayis, enthusiastically Mezuzahs were affixed to the rooms of the guesthouse. The Mezuzahs were placed by the philanthropist Reb Yossi Popack, Rav Yosef Yitzchok Slonim, Chabad Shaliach and rabbi of Central Yerushalayim, the local CTeen Shaliach Rabbi Mendy Lebel, and the person who, thanks to his great advocacy, the project was accomplished successfully, Reb Menachem Mendel Levin.

Afterward, they all participated in an Erev-Shabbos farbrengen, and went to daven at the Kosel, together with the Chabad on Campus Yerushalayim students. During the course of the Shabbos, the newly-inaugurated guesthouse hosted meals and farbrengens, joined by many other local youths, in a happy, uplifting, atmosphere.

The second inaugural event took place in Tzfas on Tuesday, joined by Tzfas’ Chief Rabbi, Harav Shmuel Eliyahu. Reb Yosef Yitzchok Popack unveiled the plaque at the new guesthouse and had a look at the brand new, beautiful, rooms. One large ballroom was meticulously converted to guestrooms, and a luxurious tzimmer, all adjacent to the Chabad House. Renamed ‘Popack House’ alongside the Chabad House. Popack House will be managed by Rabbi Marzel’s sons-in-law, the shluchim Rabbi Shmulik Slavin and Rabbi Mendy Zilbershtrom.

Early-morning Friday, the philanthropist Reb Yossi Popack also personally visited the Midrashat Maayanotecha at Kfar Chabad to get a first-hand impression of the activities. There he met up with Sivan Rahav-Meir, an Israeli journalist, news reporter, and TV and radio anchor, as she was addressing the students who came to that week’s Shabbaton at Kfar Chabad. He was so impressed by what he saw, that he pledged his support for the expansion and development of the guesthouse in Kfar Chabad as well. Indeed, further development will soon begin which will allow more and more youth who are ‘knocking on the door’, seeking to be given the opportunity to join this wonderful, privileged group.