Latest RARA News

Freshly made Challah... not in Caulfield and not in Bondi - but in Alice Springs!

We're gearing up for a warm and inviting Shabbat meal tomorrow. With the nearest Kosher bakery a couple thousand kilometres away, we've been joined by the local Jewish community for a grand Challah bake.

Results coming hot out of the oven very soon...

We're headed to Alice Springs for a weekend Shabbaton and a much needed catch up with the local community.

Did you know that some Jewish residents in the Red Center have been there for more than 40 years?

— traveling to Alice Springs, Northern Territory from Melbourne Airport.

Here's a quick throwback to this great photo from a few weeks ago with a group of our volunteers that dedicated many, many hours and hundreds, and often thousands, of kilometres to Jewish outreach all over Australia.

Thank you to Ari, Mendy, Chanaya, Shmuli, and Pini for your dedicated service.

You guys punch way higher than you're weight!

Mendel and Shneor have been embracing new connections all over North Queensland. 

Last week, they spent an emotional few hours with Dean in Mackay, discussing everything under the sun, and ending with a promise to keep in touch.

Then, over the weekend, they had an incredible Shabbat in Airlie Beach, hosted by Natalie and family. 

This week, Mendel and Shneor head further north to Bowen, Ayr, and the outskirts of Townsville.

And if you're up early, listen to ABC Breakfast tomorrow around 7am - you'll hear them then!

Chabad of RARA extends a huge thank you to our most recent volunteers, Benny and Rivka Winterfeld. 

Benny, from Montreal, and Rivka, from France, married 4 months ago, and moved to New York. For their summer break, they joined us here in Australia, and spent five weeks on the road, visiting people in isolated circumstances all over New South Wale's South Coast.

The young couple spent countless hours giving a listening ear to people facing many challenges, loneliness, and isolation. They also hosted no less than five Shabbat meals, for which both of them spent a full day in the kitchen, cooking up an absolute storm of a delicious meal, all while on the road and in someone else's kitchen!

It has been so heartwarming to hear from families that the Winterfeld's met during their travels.

Yoke from Wollongong shared: "We had a wonderful Shabbat dinner with Rabbi Benny and Rivka. The company was delightful and the food so delicious!"

Kathrine, who lives near Nowra, joined Benny and Rivka for a weeknight dinner. She shared: "I am so happy to finally meet Benny and Rivka. They went above and beyond and now that I know the rural community is doing it tough, it's not just me, it's all of us, it definitely has given me reassurance that there are people I can reach out too when it gets too tough. Thank you for introducing us to each other."

Benny and Rivka are spending their final Shabbat in Australia with family in Sydney, and will head back to the States next week. We wish them much success, and we thank them for bringing so much life and energy around rural and regional NSW.

Shneor and Mendel have been making some incredible connections around central Queensland.

Catching up with David last week was a memorable experience - there's always so much to be gained during these regional meetings.

The two young rabbis are in Rockhampton today, which was once home to a very small number of Jews, some of which are even buried in the local cemetery!

However our volunteers always prefer to visit with people that aren't six feet under so if you're around today they are keen to catch up.

What a wonderful experience Shneor and Mendel had yesterday as they were heading from Bundaberg to Rockhampton.

Along the way they stopped at a farm, where the owner was more than happy to show them how sugar cane grows and how the sugar is extracted.

It takes a special kind of person to welcome two complete strangers and happily spend the time showing them how one of Australia's largest industries works from the ground up.

Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom.

May the new week be full of blessings as big as this big red tractor!

It's official - we are coming up Alice Springs to visit in 2 weeks. 

Our team consists of Rabbi Menachem and Shevi Aron, as well as Mushkie Gordon, who has joined RARA as a counsellor, and Amanda Gecelter, who makes sure the wheels are turning at RARA. We are also joined by Nussen and Sara Ainsworth from Melbourne; Nussen is a Barrister, and Sara holds a teaching degree and is involved in management roles. 

Please let us know if you will be around - it will be great to catch up.

We're looking forward to getting back to the red center!

We are very blessed to spend an afternoon with Michael in central Queensland this week.

Stemming from one of the first Jewish families in Australia back in the early 1800s, Michael is well aware of his rich family history and proudly looks to continue that legacy.

Michael was very happy to present the visiting rabbis with his full charity box, which he is sure to put a coin into every day (except for on Shabbat).

Every coin placed into a charity box may seem small on its own, but over time those individual acts of generosity build something much greater than the sum of their parts.

Michael's family's story, too, has been built over generations.

His lineage traces back to the very first recorded Jewish marriage in Australia, between John Moses and Rebecca Conolly in 1831. Incidentally, Rebecca is also the first recorded convert to Judaism in Australia.

In the almost two centuries that have elapsed since then, each generation, and indeed each individual, has added its own "coin" with their many contributions that have built up this great country.

Today, Michael represents the latest link in that remarkable chain. Just as a charity box is filled one coin at a time, Australia's Jewish story has been built one family, one mitzvah, and one generation at a time.

Echuca and its neighbouring town of Moama sit on opposite sides of the Murray River, around 220 kilometres north of Melbourne. Known for its historic paddle steamers, vineyards and rich farming country, it's a beautiful part of regional Australia, but not somewhere most people would expect to find Jewish outreach taking place.

When Rabbi Mordechai and Ruth Szmerling decided to spend part of their winter break in Echuca, they contacted Rabbi Menachem Aron to ask whether there were any Jewish people in the area they could visit.

Several introductions were made, leading to a number of meaningful visits throughout the week. One connection, however, proved especially difficult.

Rabbi Aron had introduced the Szmerlings to Kron, a long-time Moama resident whose maternal family traces back to the renowned Menuhin family, while his paternal family has been part of Australian history for generations. A retired Qantas pilot, farmer and passionate advocate for the local environment, Kron has maintained a strong awareness of his Jewish heritage through family stories, visits to relatives in Israel and his lifelong connection to his Jewish ancestry.

Despite several attempts, the Szmerlings and Kron kept missing each other.

As they were preparing to leave for Melbourne on Friday morning, hoping to arrive home before Shabbat, the phone rang.

It was Kron.

He invited them to stop by for what everyone expected would be a brief visit before they continued the journey home. Instead, they spent the next hour talking about family history, Jewish identity, Australia, Israel and the remarkable journeys that had brought their families to this moment.

Towards the end of the visit, Rabbi Szmerling asked Kron whether he would consider putting on tefillin. Having never done so before, Kron was initially hesitant. After some conversation about its significance and a little gentle encouragement, he agreed, wrapping tefillin for the first time in his life and connecting with a mitzvah that has united Jewish men across generations for thousands of years.

Following the visit, Kron wrote to Rabbi Menachem Aron:

"I now appreciate the pastoral reasons you represent and run... I certainly identify with my Jewish heritage through stories of my mother and visits to Israel to see family... Because of this latest connection and what I now understand [about] the tribal connectiveness, I thank you for the interest... Continue to leave me on your calling list."

Opportunities for Jewish connection can be few and far between, for those living in Australia's regional communities. Sometimes, it takes persistence, a few missed phone calls and one final stop before the journey home for a meaningful connection to be made.

Today we farwelled Ari and Mendel, who recently completed a 6 week, 12,000 kilometer trip through three states, travelling from Melbourne to Western Australia, with over 180 visits made along their route.

For the two young rabbis, it was an incredible experience, being able to witness the beauty of the Australian outback first hand, while simultaneously being welcomed by so many families in regional areas.

Ari and Mendel came to bring connection to distant families, and to give a listening ear to people living in areas where there is little to no Jewish community.

From Geraldton to Esperance, and everywhere in between, they met with people they agreed with, with people that they disagreed with, with people of their age, and people 80 years their senior. Whether seeing eye to eye, or even not, a close connection was made.

And although the two did receive a great deal of hate online, as was widely reported, on the ground was a very different experience. It was heart-warming to be stopped by strangers on the street, and shoppers in Coles, as locals offered words of support and encouragement. It really is true that there are more good people out there than bad.

Ari and Mendel extend a big thank you to all those that welcomed them through their doors, hosted them overnight, and made them feel welcome.

Pictured here from left to right, Ari Segelman, Mendy Mendelzon, Rabbi Menachem Aron, Saul Spigler, getting together in Melbourne last night post the big trip to celebrate the 12,000 kilometer trip.

Wheels can only go round so many times before you need new tyres!

Thank you to the folks at P&J Tyre in Maryborough QLD for sorting us out on short notice with four new tyres.

And by the way, have you seen the recently painted mobile library that's on the road on the north? Its a real eye catcher - be sure to look out for it!

Shneor and Mendel are now safely on their way, and are arriving in Bundaberg this evening, ready to connect with the small but vibrant local Jewish community.