RPRY

Mazal Tov to our students who participated in our Torah L’Sinai program. They celebrated their commitment to daily learning by going on a trip to Bowlero and having a pizza and ice cream party! Those who learned every single day will also be receiving a special sefer to mark their accomplishment.

Torah l’Sinai is a learning program that encourages our students to learn for 10 minutes every day from Pesach until Shavuos, as preparation for Kabbalat HaTorah. It strives to convey the importance of daily Torah learning, as well as a love of learning, into each and every one of our students.

Join us for a fun and inspirational night as we celebrate RPRY!

DEADLINE to reserve your seats* for the Annual Dinner is June 14th - https://www.wizevents.com/rpry2024/

Honoring: Moshe and Susan Weisel, RPRY Alumni Sandy Getraer (‘07) and Liana Maza (‘15), and our esteemed Names Not Numbers ®️ Team: Mrs. Penny Kaplan, Mrs. Nitza Adler, Dr. Chaya Friedman, and Rabbi Nachman Lapa. We will also honor the legacy of Imre and Rachel Lefkovitz A”H.

*Ads may be placed any time until June 19

RPRY is proud of our distinguished Limudei Eretz Yisrael and Holocaust curricula. We are also extremely grateful to be celebrating 10 years of Names, Not Numbers® at RPRY. We are therefore pleased to introduce the Rachel and Imre Lefkovits Fund for Names, Not Numbers® and Israel Programming. This is a fitting tribute to two inspirational figures of our community and their dedication to our school and klal Yisrael. When you make your donation or reservation at

https://www.wizevents.com/rpry2024/,

you will have the option to earmark a portion to this fund.

Names, Not Numbers ® is a huge success at RPRY because of these four incredible honorees who have been involved since its inception at RPRY: Dr. Chaya Friedman, Mrs. Penny Kaplan, Mrs. Nitza Adler, and Rabbi Nachman Lapa.
Please join us as we honor them at the Annual Dinner on June 19 at 6:30pm. The deadline for reservations is June 11 and can be made here: https://www.wizevents.com/rpry2024/,

Read on to learn a little more about each of these extraordinary honorees!

Mrs. Chaya Friedmann holds two master’s degrees and a doctorate from Gratz College in Jewish Education and Administration. She has worked in Jewish education and leadership for many years, including as a Head of School and as a Director of Jewish Studies. In 2019, Chaya took over as NNN Coordinator from Penny Kaplan. In 2021, Chaya introduced an expanded unit on the Holocaust for the 8th graders, to complement the classes taught by Morah Nitza Adler and Rabbi Nachman Lapa.

Mrs. Penny Kaplan recognized the growing urgency of survivors’ testimonies in a world with an increasing need to be educated by Holocaust survivors able to relate their own accounts. She is the child of Holocaust survivors and has been involved in Names, Not Number ® at RPRY since 2015, first as coordinator and most recently a valuable advisor. RPRY has been an invaluable part of the growth of Penny’s children and grandchildren over an uninterrupted string extending more than 35 years. The school elicits in her a sense of gratitude for the many rewarding years as a long-time faculty member.

Rabbi Nachman Lapa has been a beloved Judaic Studies Rebbe to grades 5-8 at RPRY for the past 28 years. His degrees include a Bachelor of Talmudic Law from Tamudical Semnary/Denver and an Advanced Talmudic Certificate and Rabbinic Ordination from Beth Medrash Govoha.. In addition to teaching and facilitating the Names, Not Numbers program, he coordinates Torah Bowl, Chidon Hatanach, Pirchei Hasmadah and Mishnayot programs. Rabbi Lapa prepares the 8th grade boys for the Names, Not Numbers program by teaching the historical events that led up to and transpired during the Holocaust, and then guides them throughout the interview process..

Mrs. Nitza Adler holds a BA and Hebrew Teaching Degree from Stern College for Women. She grew up with both her parents being educators and she began teaching at RPRY in 1993. She became involved with NNN when it was introduced to RPRY a decade ago. Rabbi Gross recognized Nitza’s dedication as a teacher of 8th grade girls, particularly in Limudei Kodesh and Historia, as well as her passion for Holocaust education. Married to Russell Adler, a longstanding RPRY board member, they are blessed with children who have graduated from RPRY and now grandchildren who are part of the RPRY community.

Our students celebrated Yom Yerushalayim yesterday! After spirited dancing in the gym our younger students watched a flag performance by our eighth grade girls. Our lower school each colored in a piece of a puzzle when put together they created a beautiful work of art representing Yerushalayim.

Join us this Shabbat as we commemorate the 40th yahrzeit of Rabbi Pesach Raymon z"l.

Join us for the last RPRY Ima & Me for the school year this Sunday!

https://tinyurl.com/ImaandMeRPRY

In celebration of finishing their study of the Amidah our third grade students created a beautiful carnival for the second grade. Each booth represented one of the brachot in Shomonei Esrei. The second graders are excited for third grade and learning the Amidah.

Calling all RPRY Alumni!

Check out the extraordinary alumni that are being honored at this year's Annual Dinner: Liana Maza and Sandy Getraer! Show your support by buying tickets and/or submitting ads here: https://www.wizevents.com/rpry2024/

Who do you recognize in these class photos? Tag yourselves or your former classmates in the comments!

RPRY was proud to March in the Celebrate Israel Day Parade. We had fun spotting RPRY families supporting us and Israel as we marched. Am Yisrael Chai!

Please join us in honoring Susan and Moshe Wiesel at the RPRY Annual Dinner on June 19 - https://www.wizevents.com/rpry2024/

The deadline for dinner reservations is June 11.

The Wiesels, who married in 1975, have lived in Edison for 36 years.

Susan (Susie), daughter of Imre and Rachel Lefkovits, was raised in Detroit, Michigan and then in Brooklyn, New York. After attending Yeshiva University for Girls in Brooklyn (Central) and seminary at Machon Gold in Jerusalem, she earned a degree as a Hebrew teacher from Teacher’s Institute and her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Brooklyn College, Susie then earned a Master's degree as a Reading Specialist from Fordham University. She taught both secular and Jewish studies from elementary school to high school. She worked as a Resource Room teacher and Supervisor for many years. She then transitioned as Controller of the Payroll/Human Resources in the family nursing home business.

Moshe was born in Ashkelon, Israel, to Rivcah and Yehoshua Wiesel. He moved to New York in 1969 and attended Kaminetz Yeshiva and Brooklyn College, where he received a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Economics. Later, he earned a license in nursing home administration at Long Island University. After working in accounting for two years, and then at Edison Estates, Moshe later became the Administrator of Cedar Oaks Care Center. As a teenager, Moshe left Israel before he was old enough to serve in the Israel Defense Force, so he was thrilled when he was finally able to realize his dream of serving in the IDF at the age of 34. With three children at home and Susie’s full support and encouragement, Moshe went to Israel and served as one of the first lone soldiers.

In the summer of 2002, while in Israel, a horrific terrorist attack occurred. The Dickstein family was ambushed on their way to spend shabbat with friends, and the mother, father and 9-year-old son were killed. The Wiesels felt compelled to pay a shiva call to the nine remaining orphans, whom they did not know.

This visit was so life-changing that Susie and Moshe made a neder that they would help these children in any way possible, until each was married. As of today, all nine orphans are married and have families of their own; and Susie and Moshe, who have been intertwined with the Dickstein family for 23 years, consider the 26 Dickstein grandchildren as their own.

Susie and Moshe have a long history of volunteerism and philanthropy within Edison/Highland Park. In addition to serving as past candy man at Ohr Torah, Moshe also served on the Finance Committee and is integral to all operations at the shul, including special events, kiddushim and shalosh seudos logistics. At RPRY, Moshe served on the Board of Directors and was involved in the Annual Scholarship Breakfasts and Annual Dinners. Susie has volunteered for Bikur Cholim and the Ohr Torah Shiva committee. Among the fundraising projects she initiated were Purim baskets through the Keren Aniyim/HASC program. In 2021, Susie and Moshe coordinated an effort to dedicate a United Hatzalah ambucycle from the Edison/Highland Park community. The campaign was so successful, that our community was able to dedicate two ambucycles.

In 2006, in honor of her parents’ 80th birthday, Susie arranged a graduation ceremony at Middlsex County College for her parents and 35 other Holocaust survivors to receive Honorary Lifetime Achievement Degrees, despite being deprived of a formal education due to the Holocaust.

After attending a Names, Not Numbers program, Susie and Moshe immediately recognized the significance of the program and the importance of bringing it to RPRY. Susie hoped that through the Names, Numbers program – she would be able to convince her mother, who had not yet felt ready, to share her story. The Wiesels are so grateful to Rabbi Shraga Gross for prioritizing the Names, Not Numbers program for RPRY’s eighth graders beginning in 2014.

Rachel did finally share her story, and was featured in NNN programs three times, at two different schools where she was interviewed by four of her great grandchildren. Rachel agreed to participate because she could not believe that in her lifetime, people were already denying that the Holocaust happened.

Over the past 10 years, our entire community has benefited from the Names, Not Numbers program, which has been attended annually by hundreds of people. Its significance is greater each and every year as we have fewer survivors remaining to tell their story.

Susie and Moshe are very grateful for and proud of their three children and their families. Tzippi (RPRY ’93) and her husband, Josh Posner, live in Woodmere and have four children – Riki, Dani, Yoni and Kaylie. Eli (RPRY ’95) and his wife Chani, live in Edison where Chani is a second grade teacher at RPRY. Eli is active on the RPRY Finance Committee and at Ohr Torah. Their children are Alyssa (RPRY ’19), Dovid (RPRY ’22) and Zahava (RPRY ’25). Avi (RPRY ’97) and his wife, Frumie, live in Woodmere and have four children - Yehoshua, Max, Gavriel and Benny.

The Wiesel family, with their spirit of activism and chesed, is an inspiration to the entire community and we are grateful to be able to share their story.

Our first graders had a special aleph- bet breakfast this morning!

Our students had a great time in the park for our annual Lag B’omer celebration. Thank you to Mrs. Bick, Morah Bonnie and Coach Dvir for making the day such a success.

Please join us in paying tribute to Imre and Rachel Lefkovits A"H at the RPRY Annual Dinner on June 19 - rpry.org/dinner.

Rachel Goldenberg-Chajmovich was one of six siblings raised in the small village of Dolha, Czechoslovakia. In April 1944, the Jews of Dolha were rounded up. Rachel turned 18 during the three-day cattle car ride to Auschwitz, marking the last time she saw her mother, brother, sister, nieces, nephews, grandmother, and aunts.

After the war, Rachel was nursed back to health in a hospital and then in a DP camp. Returning home, she found that three of her brothers and a cousin had also survived. With one brother and her cousin, she embarked for America, sailing on a HIAS boat for orphaned children. She settled in Detroit with a foster family.

Imre, born in Debrecen, Hungary, was the eldest of nine siblings. He left school in 5th grade to apprentice as a tailor, aiding his father in supporting the family. It was because he was short changed from receiving a true schooling experience that education became one of his passions. When the N***s invaded, Imre, recognized as the best tailor, gained the rare privilege of traveling after curfew to serve SS officers in Budapest. One night, he was alerted that a few Jews had overtaken the Swiss embassy and could provide false papers. Insisting on papers for all 400 Jews he worked with, Imre secured their escape from Hungary.

Imre arrived in Detroit in 1944 and later brought his family after the Hungarian revolution. In 1950, he met Rachel, and despite language barriers, they married and raised three daughters, Susie, Judy (A”H) and Debbie. After Imre and Rachrel moved to Brooklyn, they helped build the New Hope Community, a predecessor village to HASC. Imre served as co-president of Rambam Yeshiva and was instrumental in building their new facility.

In 1993, Imre and Rachel relocated to Highland Park to be near their daughter Susie, her husband Moshe, and their three grandchildren Tzippi, Eli, and Avi. They became members of Congregation Ahavas Achim. The couple devoted themselves to fulfilling their promise to Hashem to rebuild all that was lost. They supported educational and charitable causes, including the writing of multiple sifrei Torah, rebuilding Ahavas Achim, dedicating the RPRY Beit Midrash and the Chaim V’Chesed House at RWJ .

Rachel, initially silent about her Holocaust experiences, eventually shared her story through the Names, Not Numbers program. She participated 4 times, being interviewed by 3 of her great-grandchildren. Imre passed away in 2010, and many of his stories from the Shoah will never be told. Rachel passed away in 2023.

Their legacy lives on through their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, who continue their commitment to faith, resilience, and rebuilding.

RPRY would like to say thank you to our wonderful legislatures. Thank you to Assemblyman Karabinchak for supporting the NJ Student Support Act. We hope that Senator Diegnan and Assemblyman Stanley do the same. Thank you for representing our wonderful school and community.

Teach NJ

In honor of Pesach Sheni, yesterday, our students were able to enjoy some delicious matzah.

The RPRY gym was packed last night as hundreds of community members joined us for the Names Not Numbers screening. The movie, recorded and edited by our eighth grade students, was both moving and emotional. We are very proud of our students for showing so much maturity throughout this process. We are honored that this was our 10th year in bringing this great project to our school. We hope that you will join us on June 19th as we honor the Names Not Number team at our annual dinner.

Please join us tomorrow night, at 7:30, for our Names Not Numbers Screening.

We are so proud of our faculty, board members, parents, Rabbanim, alumni and especially two of our eighth grade students for advocating on behalf of Israel and Jews around the world at the recent NORPAC mission. Kol Hakavod!