Mazal Tov to Steve & Linda Brizel on the marriage of their daughter Shani to Ari Sendic last night.
I just got back from the wedding and Steve said I can share the simcha with our friends at Beyond BT.
The wedding was at the Rose Castle in Williamsburg. Right before the bedekin, Ari gave a dvar Torah pointing out that the chasson and kallah get mechila (forgiveness for their sins) on their wedding day and all the guests also get a measure of mechila. Steve was on cloud nine, enjoying every moment and he and Linda were beaming as they walked the beautiful bride, Shani, down the aisle.
Ari’s Rebbi from YU REITS where he is currently learning, Rabbi Herschel Schachter was the mesader kiddushin. As you probably know, Rabbi Schachter is also Steve’s Rebbi.
I don’t remember all the kibbudim, but Rabbi Fabian Schonfeld of the Young Israel of Kew Gardens Hills had the first brocha. Rabbi Schonfeld is the founding father of the Kew Gardens Hills frum community and most responsible for establishing it as the accepting place that it is. Rabbi Welcher, our Rav from Ahavas Yisroal had the fourth brocha.
Rabbi Pinchas Stopler, the first executive director of NCSY had the last brocha. After the first dance, I introduced myself to Rabbi Stopler and told him about Beyond BT. He was very interested about the project and asked me about the topics we discussed, and G-d willing we will see guest contributions from him in the future. He is a very warm and thoughtful man and I wished I could spend more time with him.
There were a lot of Rebbeim and Talmidim from YU as well as many people from Kew Gardens Hills since the Sendic’s also live in KGH. It was a very lively crowd. The Rose Castle’s dance floor is very big making it easy for everybody to participate in the Simcha. After the initial dancing with the Chosson and the immediate family we brought Steve in to the friends- of-the-father circle where I and many others got a chance to dance with Steve.
After the first dance the meal was served. Rabbi Welcher and Rabbi Schachter sat next to each other and I jokingly suggested to my friend and teacher, Rabbi Yakov Haber that he ask them to address some of the hashkafa questions that he and I were currently pilpulling about. He replied that Rabbi Schachter is his Rebbi and Rabbi Welcher is his Rav and if he was a few seats closer he would have ask them.
This was the fourth wedding in the last nine days of members of our Shul and another member announced at the wedding that their daughter had just got engaged. It is always wonderful to share in a Simcha with close friends. May we all be zoche to share many simchas together and to grow closer through the sharing of these joyous occasions.
Mark-Thanks for the wonderful update! We were so happy that so many people who have shared a role in our Avodas HaShem participated in our simcha.Although thanks to the construction on the BQE we got home very late and we are running on a lot of post Chasunah adrenaline ( and coffee) , I am constantly replaying the entire evening. It felt sort of surreal as we greeted guests before the start of the Kabbalas Panim and Tish. After we took our pictures, my mchutan and I went upstairs to the Tish. At that point, I felt that I had been hit by a proverbial ton of bricks. All of the planning, etc seems otherworldy, especially when your wife and machantenesta do all of the planning, until you sit down with your mchutan, your son or son in law the Msader Kiddushin and the guests. Once my dear wife and my mchatenesata broke the dish, our escorting the chasan for the Bdeken, our brachos and the walking into the Chupah were just as spiritually uplifting and awesome an event that I have ever experienced. When Chazal spoke of the importance of the mitzvas simchas chasan vkallah, there is no doubt that they were not exaggerating in any way, shape or form. As Mark pointed out so beautifully, the atmosphere was enhanced by the presence of so many RY from RIETS, chaverim of the chasan, Torah pioneers in Queens such as R F Schonfeld and R J Grunblatt as well as the special Ahavas HaTorah and Chasivus HaTorah of the chasan and kallah who arranged for the publication of a Kuntres of Divrei Torah L Zecher Nishmas R F Wagner ZTL, the rav of the YIFH , a talmid chacham and a rebbe of both the chasan and kallah.
It was a special zchus to have both RHS and R Stolper , who are the two most prominent influences on me for Msader Kiddushin and the Brachah Achritah. R Stolper’s amazing drashos and ability to show me the relevance and beauty of Shabbos, etc were and are a major hashkafic influence on me.R Stolper was one of the earliest pioneers in kiruv long before it was fashionable to think about it within the Orthodox world (except for Chabad) and was encouraged to stay there when the future was nowhere as promising as it is today by his rebbe and RY R Hutner ZTL. Despite much skepticism within all sectors of Orthodoxy, R Stolper travelled the breadth of North America to create a national movement of teenagers who were interested in exploring Torah, Avodah and Gmilus Chasadim.As a teenager back in the late 60s and early 70s, the most formative events as a BT were the NCSY Shabbatonim and National Conventions. FYI, R Stolper also had the Brachah Achritah at our chasunah 28 years ago.
RHS undoubtedly has had the major influence as a rebbe on our entire family along with many of his talmidim. It is not a matter of coincidence that when I was unable to attend RHS’s shiur, that my mchutan started attending, that our son in law attended NCSY’s Camp Sports and Kollel programs prior to attending Yeshivas Orh Yerushalayim.
May we all be zoche to share many simchos and a Ksivah vChasimah Tovah.
mazel tov!
Mazal Tov to both families..may you always have simchas!
Marty
Wow! What a simcha.
BTW, does getting mechila for all of your aveiras so shortly before RH make for an easier RH? :)
Mazel tov!!!
“The Rose Castle’s dance floor is very big making it easy for everybody to participate in the Simcha”
Yes it is! I got married there too!
Mazel Tov!
“Omdim Tz’fufim, mishtachavim r’vachim”. . . may their shabbos table expand to accommodate the ever growing number of guests they will undoubtedly welcome into their home.
mazel tove
shmuel & rivky
Mazel Tov!! Ari is a good man…
Mazal Tov!
Steve often replies to my e-mail correspondence the same day, but now I see why he has not done so today :)
Mazal Tov!
Mazal Tov. May you be zoche to watch your children build their own Bayit Ne’eman B’Yisrael.
Mazal Tov!
May this simcha be gorer many future simchas and lot’s of nachas, Hazorim … B’reenah Yiktzoru!
May they be zoched to build a true bayis neeman b’yisrael and may both families be zocheh to see much nachas from the young couple.