Program for the Installation Ceremony of Rabbi Yaakov Y. Kermaier as Sixtieth President of The New York Board of Rabbis

This document is a formal invitation to a dinner hosted by François Delattre, Ambassador of France to the United States of America, and Leonard L. Silverstein, President of the French-American Cultural Foundation. The dinner is held in honor of Mrs. Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund. The invitation specifically requests the presence of Prof. and Mrs. Elie Wiesel. The event is scheduled for Wednesday, June 13, 2012, with cocktails at 7:00 p.m. and seated dinner at 7:30 p.m. It will take place at La Maison Française at the Embassy of France, located at 4101 Reservoir Road, N.W., Washington, D.C. The dinner is prepared by Chef Pascal Tingaud of Dom Pérignon. The invitation also provides RSVP details, including a phone number and email address, and notes that identification is necessary upon arrival, with a dress code of cocktail attire and valet parking available.

The document is a four-page invitation from the America-Israel Cultural Foundation (AICF) for its 76th Anniversary Celebration on Sunday, October 25, 2015. The event was held at the Kaufmann Concert Hall at the 92nd Street Y in New York City. The celebration honored pianist Evgeny Kissin with the Aviv Award for Artistic Achievement and was dedicated to the memory of Vera Stern (1927-2015), a former AICF President and Chairwoman. The event featured performances by soprano Sharon Azrieli Perez, pianist Nimrod David Pfeffer, the band Milk & Honeys, dancer/choreographer/karate champion Revital Narodizki, and pianist Tomer Gewirtzman. The invitation lists the members of the Board Gala Committee, Volunteer Gala Committee, and Emerging Leadership Gala Committee, as well as the Executive Director, David Homan, and Managing Director, Inbal Grinberg. It also provides the contact information for the AICF offices in New York and Tel Aviv, Israel, and states that all proceeds benefit Israeli artist scholarships and programs of the foundation.

Walter Silberstein, was born November 9, 1902 in Stargard, Germany, son of the only rabbi serving that area. He studied engineering and economics in Berlin and Leipzig and nearly completed his doctorate when his University of Leipzig professors were fired for their political views in 1933. After a brief business venture in Prague, he returned to Berlin in 1934, where he lived with his parents until July, 1939, when he left for Shanghai without a visa. He describes in detail his voyage on a German luxury liner and the shock of arrival in the Hongkew district of Shanghai during a cholera epidemic. He notes the character of the native and newcomer Jewish communities and the political subdivisions of Shanghai. In 1940, his parents arrived, with Japanese visas, and his father served as rabbi to the refugee community. He gives an eyewitness account of their life after the December 1941 occupation by the Japanese, who did not persecute Jews, despite pressure from the Germans. He describes serving with other Jews, Russians and Chinese in the Pao Chia, as air-raid wardens and ghetto guards in summer, 1945. He notes a contented life between the American liberation on September 6, 1945 and the Communist takeover in 1949. In 1950, he left with his mother on a year’s odyssey until returning to Germany. They lived in Displaced Persons camps at Rhön and Föhrenwald; on October 29, 1951, they arrived in the United States.

This email from Roger Fajnzylberg, Director General of L'Œuvre de Secours aux Enfants (OSE), to Jean J. McIntyre announces OSE's centenary celebration in 2012. The organization is marking 100 years of work, honoring its contributors and those who perished in the Shoah, with various events in France and abroad. The centenary is under the patronage of then-President Nicolas Sarkozy and President-elect François Hollande. A large gathering is planned for Sunday, July 1st, on the Pelouse de Reuilly in Vincennes (Paris), expecting thousands of participants including past and present OSE staff, friends, sympathizers, and various Jewish and non-Jewish associations. The event will feature activities for all ages, presentations of OSE services, and a musical show. The email specifically requests a message of friendship from Professor Elie Wiesel to be read aloud during this event.

This document is a personal reflection from an unnamed author detailing their spiritual journey and encounters with prominent Hasidic rebbes. The author recounts growing up as a hassid in Sighet and visiting Rebbe Haim-Meir’l of Wizsnitz in Gross-Vardain, Romania, with their mother. These visits, particularly spending Shabbat at his court, left a lasting impression, shaping their understanding of Nigunim and fostering a sense of belonging to that community. Later, the author chose to connect with Lubavitch, deeply valuing conversations with the Lubavitcher Rebbe, whose questions, listening skills, and power of concentration profoundly impacted them. The author states that their first encounter with the Lubavitcher Rebbe transformed them into a 'Lubavitcher' without needing to leave Wizsnitz. The document emphasizes the profound impression these rebbes had, highlighting their reassuring presence, intense listening, and fervent desire to provide advice, guidance, and reassurance to those in need.