I spent a long time in the Ohel writing my pan. I explained everything to the Rebbe - what we’d accomplished thus far, our current situation, and my doubts. I knew there were only two possible outcomes: either there would be a miracle, or I’d return home empty handed, and our shlichus would be at an end.
Just outside the Ohel, I bumped into an old friend. “How are things going?” he asked, with a smile. I grimaced in reply. “That bad, huh?” he replied, sympathetically. “I recently began a fund to help new shluchim as they start out. What’s your monthly budget?” I gave him a number that would cover our rent, utilities, and basic expenses, and he nodded. “I’ll cover that amount for your first year,” he said. “Hatzlacha rabba!”
I couldn’t believe my ears! Again, I’d been granted the answer I sought: Yes! Even though we could no longer receive a direct response in the Rebbe’s own writing, it was clear that the Rebbe wanted us on shlichus in Tallahassee.
At the beginning of our shlichus, we made sure to visit the Florida State Capitol. I wanted to make our presence official and inform the governor that we’d arrived. Unfortunately, he wasn’t there at the time, but I asked the receptionist if there was anyone Jewish in the building.
“Actually, I do know someone who’d like to meet you!” she responded, excitedly. She called her friend, Karen, who came rushing down to the lobby. Karen was very close to the governor and held an important position on his staff. She’d attended Chabad in Miami, and was thrilled to hear we’d be opening a branch in Tallahassee. She called her husband to come outside to visit our Sukkah mobile, bentch the lulav and esrog, and make a bracha in the sukkah.
This was the start of a long and fruitful friendship. A few months later, just before Chanukah, Karen helped us arrange a menorah lighting in the governor’s office! It’s a tradition we’ve continued throughout the years.
Karen’s influence helped us meet and form relationships with many government officials. Before each yom tov, I bring packages to the capitol, sharing our culture and community with our government officials.
One of the biggest challenges we’ve faced on shlichus is the lack of chinuch for our children. In the early 2000’s, we joined the first iteration of Shluchim Online School with daily phone calls for our young children. Needless to say, it was extremely difficult.
We sent one of our children to Orlando, dropping them off on Monday, and making the four hour long drive back on Thursday to pick them up.
For another child, we opted for the slightly closer school in Jacksonville. It’s three hours - each way - and we made the commute every day for a month before we were able to find a driver. During that month, I had very little time for anything else. Most of my day was spent in the car! Even though it was Tishrei, the busiest time of year for a shliach, I told myself that this was my shlichus. Everything else became second tier. My children’s chinuch was my top priority. Incredibly, in that month, I saw tremendous brachos in our shlichus. Things happened without needing as much effort from me!
We sacrifice a lot for our children’s chinuch, and are so proud of the amazing men and women they’re becoming.
Tallahassee is home to Florida State University, so there’s a large student population that we serve as well.
When Dylan* first started coming to Friday night meals, we were taken aback. His hair, tied in tight dreadlocks, trailed down his back, and he seemed to view everything from a distance, as if his mind was somewhere else. It was hard to imagine that he was getting anything from us other than a hearty home-cooked meal.
Despite our reservations, Dylan continued to return, week after week. He even stayed for the farbrengen after the meal, and really enjoyed niggunim. Every week, I’d teach him a niggun and he would close his eyes tightly and sing, straight from his neshama.
“Rabbi, guess what?” he shared one Shabbos. “I started wearing a kippah on campus this week. Sometimes, it was really hard. Whenever I felt like it was too much and I wanted to take my kippah off, I’d close my eyes and think of the video I saw of the Rebbe singing Tzama Lecha Nafshi. I’d replay that video over and over in my mind. It gave me the strength and courage to continue wearing my kippah proudly.”
Dylan’s path continued to weave about for a while. Today, Dylan is a dayan in a large Jewish community, and it all began singing niggunim at our Shabbos table.
When I first met Jason*, he was dating a non-Jewish girl. After coming to our Chabad house a few times, he decided to break up with her. He then met Rachel*, who’d also just broken up with her non-Jewish boyfriend, and they began dating.
IllumiNations
I challenged Jason and Rachel to take on shomer negiah for the month of Tishrei as a special hachlata. They were nervous, but finally agreed to it.
On Simchas Torah, we had a large group of students sitting around and farbrenging. Jason spoke, perhaps louder than he intended to, about how his month was about to come to an end, and how he couldn’t wait to resume the status quo with Rachel. I quickly got up and poured a cold cup of water over his head.
“I saw a fire!” I said, almost jokingly. “I needed to put it out.”
Jason later admitted that the teasing reprimand had been exactly what he’d needed.
When Jason graduated college and began working a 9-5, he’d come to the Chabad house every morning before work to learn with me. We studied Tanya together, and it made a lasting impact on him. The next year, Jason enrolled in Maayanot, a yeshiva for baalei teshuva, and completely turned his life around.
He is now a proud husband and father, raising a Jewish family according to Torah values.
We were very close to Nathan* throughout his years of schooling here, and stayed in touch even after he graduated. He attended a yeshiva and began living a Torah true life. He met a girl from Los Angeles, and, after they married, they settled there. He was offered a job on a college campus as the “Jewish liaison.”
“I have two pictures hanging in my office,” he told me. “One is of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. The other is of you. They both inspire me every day. When I remember how sincere and genuine you were with all of us, and how much you influenced my life, I want to try to be the Rabbi Oirechman to someone else.”
*Names changed to protect privacy
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