Weekly Chasidic Story #1323 (5783-30) 26 Nissan 5783 (April 17, 2023)

"To Russia with Love"

My wife and I spent a few years in California, had a baby, and settled into our traditional lives. But I wasn't really happy. I knew there was more for me out there.

Connection: The fifth verse of the first half of this week's Torah reading, Tazria, presents the Torah commandment for circumcision (in contrast to G-d's personal instruction to Abraham in the Torah section of Lech Lecha, 500 years earlier).

Story in PDF format for more convenient printing.

To Russia with Love

I [Chayim Danziger] am from Canada originally, and never had any connection to Russia growing up. When I look back at what brought me here, it's almost amusing. I was in yeshiva in Israel, and my roommate was planning on spending his summer volunteering at a camp in Russia. At first, I had no interest in going - I already had my plans in place to spend my summer in California. But after much cajoling on my roommate's end, I gave in and agreed to join him.

It was 1998. We landed in Crimea - and neither of us spoke even a word of Russian. Just two 18-year-old boys, planning to run a camp for kids with whom we couldn't even communicate.

We had a bit of a rocky start, but eventually we found our groove. I remember a week into camp, a young boy came to me and asked for a bris mila (circumcision ceremony). Naturally, I was taken aback.

"Go... play some basketball," I said. "Your friends are all on the court."

A couple of days later, he came back with the same request. Again, I panicked. "There's candy, over there in the dining room!" I told him. "Go get some before it's all gone!"

But when he came back a third time, I realized this was something I couldn't ignore. So, later that night, I brought up the issue at a staff meeting. The head counselor wasn't surprised.

"We have a mohel (a trained circumciser) come every year," he said. "Whoever wants a bris mila gets one on the last day of camp."

I was shocked. I couldn't imagine what that would look like. Groups of young boys, most of whom have never even heard of matzah or menorahs, all getting circumcised? I couldn't imagine someone developing such a strong connection to something they barely understood. But, lo and behold, on one of the last days of camp came, the Mohel arrived and performed a bris mila on many of the boys right there in camp.

That summer was my first real experience with shlichus (Chabad missions). I watched young men completely abandon the lives they came from for a much more spiritual one. I felt attached to these kids. I felt responsible for them. I called them up every week before Shabbos to ask about their journeys. I felt I was their only connection to Torah Judaism, and I couldn't imagine walking away.

I tried to return to my life in Canada, but I found that those boys were always on my mind. It was then that I made the decision to return the following year. But, somehow, that still didn't feel like enough. I was watching them turn their backs on 70 years of communism; on their parents' and their grandparents' lives. I watched them learn about Torah and Tanach (the 24 books of Jewish scripture) with such joy - it was inspirational.

These kids were gaining so much, after only getting a little jumpstart from camp. I wondered what things would be like if we made them a camp similar to the caliber of Jewish camps in the States. It was this thought that inspired me to start Camp Yeka.

'Yeka' was modeled to enrich the lives of Jewish children, both spiritually as well as physically. We planned fun adventures, daytime trips, and overnights, as well as Torah lessons and prayer. I gathered the best staff I could and poured my soul into this project.

It was never easy, but I know it was worth it. Yeka changed the lives of these children. Every summer was spent planning new ways to inspire and enlighten these young minds.

I truly felt these children were my calling - however, when I got married, my wife didn't feel the same. She preferred to settle down somewhere a little more stable, with a Jewish community and plenty of kosher food.

My wife and I spent a few years in California, had a baby, and settled into our traditional lives. But I wasn't really happy. I knew there was more for me out there.

One day, I got a call that there was no Rabbi in Rostov and the Jewish community was looking for someone desperately. My wife and I discussed it and she agreed to go visit and see what it was like.

We spent Shabbos there and davvened (prayed) in the communities 150-year-old shul. The shul was built by Cantonist soldiers who felt rejected by the Jewish community after returning from 25 years in military service that started when they were young boys. The community found them ignorant and disconnected, due to their large gap in Torah background and knowledge. But these men felt passionately about serving Hashem and decided to build a shul of their own. At one time Rostov had 12 synagogues but sadly they were all confiscated or destroyed. Interestingly, the Cantonist Shul is now the last one standing.

The few days we spent visiting Rostov were inspiring. We encountered countless individuals desperate for connection to Judaism. They felt so blessed to have us join them and begged us to stay long-term. When my wife and I eventually left for Israel (where we were continuing to after Russia) we both knew we had to go back.

"This is an incredible opportunity to really do something great," she said. "We need to go back to Russia. It is our calling."

That week, we sold our belongings in Pasadena, drove across the country to JFK, and boarded a plane to Russia. It's been 13 years since then - and we've never looked back.

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Source: Excerpted and edited by Yerachmiel Tilles from "IllumiNations" #11 [a weekly publication of DollarDaily.org, dedicated to publicizing the breath-taking work and sacrifices of Chabad emissaries around the world.

Connection: The fifth verse of the first half of this week's Torah reading, Tazria, presents the Torah commandment for circumcision (in contrast to
G-d's personal instruction to Abraham in the Torah section of Lech Lecha, 500 years earlier).

Yerachmiel Tilles is co-founder and associate director of Ascent-of-Safed, and chief editor of this website (and of KabbalaOnline.org). He has hundreds of published stories to his credit, and many have been translated into other languages. He tells them live at Ascent nearly every Saturday night.

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