Welcome to Lev LaLev's Blog!

The Chessed of Shavuos: Royalty and the Harvest

Fri, 25 May 2012 12:29:55 +0000

Each year on the holiday of Shavuos, in the midst of beautiful flowers, staying up late to learn Torah and enjoying dairy delicacies, the biblical Book of Ruth is read. This year we start the celebration right after Shabbat, the evening of May 26th, and continue through May 28th outside of Israel. On Shavuos, the …

Guest post: How to tell if a Charity is a Con

Wed, 23 May 2012 19:04:15 +0000

“You can’t con an honest man” is one of truisms that was thought up by either an idiot, or somebody who was about to con an honest man. The truth is that by playing on people’s better instincts it’s astonishingly easy to rip them off. The terrible flip side of this is that once bitten …

Yom Yerushalayim, Shavuos and the Kotel

Sun, 20 May 2012 14:23:18 +0000

On Thursday, May 24th, our girls will journey to the Western Wall in Jerusalem to pour out their hearts in prayer for themselves and others (Join our friends who are taking advantage of this opportunity, at no cost - www.levlalev.com/kotelprayers). Upon reaching the most significant Jewish site in the world, they will meet hundreds representing various …

Mothering, Against All Odds

Fri, 11 May 2012 15:59:49 +0000

“All that I am or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” – Abraham Lincoln One of the greatest blessings of my life is having an adoring mother who never fails to show her love: http://lev-lalev.org/a-mothers-love. Anyone who experiences her magnetic personality is not surprised to learn of the four children who were nurtured …

Lag B’Omer: Fueling the Fire in your Life

Wed, 09 May 2012 00:45:29 +0000

This year, Wednesday night, May 9th, begins the holiday of Lag B’Omer which continues into Thursday. Lag B’Omer is the 33rd day of the 49 day Omer, the period between Pesach and Shavuot. On this day the plague which was killing Rabbi Akiva’s disciples stopped. It is also the yahrzeit of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, …

This Kid Knows What Makes the World Go ‘Round

Wed, 02 May 2012 21:47:27 +0000

She did it again. In the moments following my brainstorming session for this week’s blog topic, my prophetess friend – you know, the one I mentioned last time who texts me doses of inspiration – sent this: While we try to teach our children about life, our children teach us what life is all about. …

From the Nazi Gallows to Israeli Hero: Max Hilowitz’s Miraculous Story of Survival

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 17:32:43 +0000

One month from now, Sarina Hilowitz of Savannah, Georgia will be celebrating her Bat Mitzvah, which she is twinning with one of our girls at the Rubin-Zeffren Children’s Home in Netanya, Israel. The sponsorship is in memory of her Zeyde whose life story is truly inspirational and miraculous. In honor of Yom HaZikaron - Remembrance Day for …

Remembering the Children on Yom HaShoah

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 12:54:22 +0000

Dear Rachel, Thank you very much for the greeting card that you sent me last month. The card was really beautiful and more than that the smile on the face of your Girls was tooooooooooo beautiful. ……. I try to donate my money for a good cause. I feel that your charity have done some good …

The Passover Seder: Bonding Generations of Children to Our Legacy of Faith

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 14:48:37 +0000

I love Passover. Despite the strenuous efforts to prepare for it: cleaning, organizing and shopping, I still love it. Monsey is vibrant today as throngs of people strive to make this holiday the most joyous ever. But long lines and crowded parking lots can challenge this perspective, especially when coupled with lack of sleep. In …

Horror, Heartache and the Eternal Spirit of Survival

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 17:33:44 +0000

I always look forward to posting here as an opportunity to focus on how our partnership is achieving extraordinary things for our girls each day. But as happy as I am to be with you, my heart is heavy from the news of the murders in Toulouse, France. A teacher, his two children, ages 3 …