The Phoenix Community Kollel’s inaugural event drew more than 250 people to welcome four new Kollel families on Sept. 15 at the Arizona Biltmore Hotel Grand Ballroom.
The new kollel families are rabbi yosef and Chani Alden, Rabbi Yaakov and Nechama Ashin, Rabbi Yaakov and Rivky Gruenebaum, and Rabbi Sholom and Chaviva Skolnick. They join eight staff members including Rosh Kollel/Dean Rabbi Don Bacharach, who arrived with his family in December 2013.
The Aldens grew up in Ohio, though Yosef was in Cincinnati and Chani was in Cleveland. He has studied in Florida, Israel and New Jersey. Chani has a B.A.
in computer science and is a software developer.
The Ashins are most recently from New Jersey, where Rabbi Ashin lectured on a wide range of Torah topics at Twin rivers area Community Kollel. Nechama grew up in New Jersey and is the human resources coordinator for an adult-care company based in New Jersey.
The Gruenebaums are both from Monsey,NY. His joy is to study Torah with others. Rivky has a master’s degree in special education and teaches general studies for third-grade boys at the Torah Day School.
The Skolniks come from New York. Rabbi Skolnik studied in Brooklyn and Israel and was a key member of the Community Kollel in great neck. Chaviva studied in Israel and received her education and mathematics degree from Queens College. She also has a master’s in education psychology and is a teacher and the assistant principal at Shearim Torah high school for girls.
Founded in 2000 by Rabbi Tzvi Holland, the Phoenix Community Kollel and its alumni have had a strong impact on the greater Phoenix Jewish community. Of the rabbis who came to Aizona to join the kollel, 73% have settled here. Kollel alumni have started six local institutions: Ahavas Torah in scottsdale, the Bucharian Jewish Congress of Arizona, Jewish Arizonans on Campus, Ahr haTorah, Shearim Torah High School for Girls and the Yeshiva High School of Arizona.
The kollel offers 22 ongoing classes and a variety of holiday programs, lecture series and monthly classes designed to appeal to people from any background or skill level. additionally, the kollel offers a Wednesday night learning group and TLC (Torah Learning and Creativity) programs for young professionals.
The kollel benefits from its relationship with the biggest Torah institution in America, Beit Medrash Gevohah in Lakewood, NJ. BMG Rosh Yeshiva/Dean Rav Malkiel Kotler and President/CEO Aaron Kotler attended the inaugural event. In Rav Kotler’s keynote address, he said the gains one receives from learning Torah far outweigh the effort put into it.
He said the kollel, a place for an engaging Torah learning experience, is in essence a palace of God. Rabbi Bacharach said, “The foundation of the Jewish people has, and always will be, Torah education. …this is exactly the mission of your kollel.”
Describing the kollel phenomenon, Rabbi Bacharach added, “we in this room are a living testimony of the impact a kollel can make on a community.”
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