Once in a very long while, you read or hear a story that fills your body and soul with warmth, that inspires you, overrides time, that taps into our beautiful and rich heritage. This multi-layered narrative is one of those stories. And it is still evolving. It is like the flame of a candle that is lit from one person to another, from one candle to another, the flame never extinguished.
The key players and places in the story are Laura Fisher , Gary (Laura’s husband) Camp Emunah, Yana and Zach Weiser, Mrs. Chava Schmidt, Mrs. Esther Sternberg, a Shabbos morning at the Montreal Torah Center and Rabbi Aaron Eliezer Ceitlin. The thread that ties all of these people and places together is the Rebbe.
Russia to America 1978
Between the years of 1978-1981 there was a large influx of Russian Jews to America. Among those leaving was Laura (then Larisa), her mother, father, brother and grandmother, who immigrated to Edison, New Jersey from Kiev in 1979. Yana immigrated with her family, also from Kiev, to Philadelphia a few years later in 1981. Soon after their arrival, Laura and her family moved to Philadelphia where she met Yana. They have been friends ever since, over thirty years. Today their families remain very close.
The Beginning of Laura’s Story
Everyone knew the story of Laura’s life when she first came to Edison, New Jersey at eleven years old. One day, a rabbi came to Laura’s home and asked her parents if they would like their daughter to go to a Jewish girls summer camp. Her parents were elated. In Russia, the government had banned any outward Jewish observance and Jewish girls generally did not go to the government’s “Pioneer Camps”. Now they would be able to give their daughter an opportunity to learn about her rich heritage.
Laura does not have very many memories of that summer in camp. She does remember not knowing the language – not English and not Hebrew. She spoke only Russian. In order to get through the summer, she drew on her survival instincts, learning how to daven (pray) and how to read Hebrew. She remembers wearing skirts, but doesn’t know where they came from. While in camp, Laura turned twelve and was given a siddur with a picture of the Rebbe taped on the inside cover.
When she came home, she prayed three times a day and recited all the morning blessings. Although her parents had wanted her to get some semblance of who she was as a Jewish girl, this was more than they had bargained for. They could not believe what had become of their daughter! To help them get through these trying times, Laura’s mother assured everyone that if they ignored it the phase would pass, which it did.
Thirty Years later…
Some of the families who had emigrated from Russia slowly began to make their way back to Yiddishkeit. Among those families were Laura’s (now married with two children) and Yana’s (also married with two children). Both Laura and Yana still lived in Philadelphia.
In 2011, Yana and her family were spending a Shabbos at the home of their shluchim, Rabbi Menachem and Chava Schmidt. During the long Shabbos afternoon Yana’s daughter Shana was looking through the rabbi’s extensive library. She happened upon a small booklet entitled A Candle of My Own. As she was flipping through the pages, she came upon a short essay written by Laura Brovender, aged twelve. The name rang a bell and she asked her mother if Brovender was her friend Laura’s maiden name. Yana said, in fact, it was.
The booklet is a compilation of short essays written by young girls who attended Camp Emunah decades ago about what it meant to them to light Shabbos candles. Laura – in Russian – wrote one of those essays while she was in Camp Emunah. In that short piece, she vividly described what lighting Shabbos candles meant to her.
A Brief Bit of History
In 1974, the Rebbe instituted ten mitzvah campaigns. One of them was called Neshek – to enable every Jewish girl to light a Shabbos candle. Mrs. Esther Sternberg, who lived (and still does) in Crown Heights at the time, heard about the Rebbe’s request. She thought it a wonderful idea and did whatever she could to bring his message to the world. It did not take very long for the Rebbe to find out what she was doing and very shortly he directed all messages and requests regarding this campaign to Mrs. Sternberg.
A few months later, the Rebbe requested that compositions and poems, to be written by girls of all ages and backgrounds, be compiled and made into a hard-cover book. The girls were to write about how they felt while lighting a ‘candle of my own.’ And to make certain that girls from different backgrounds be included, the Rebbe told Mrs. Sternberg to run a contest in many parts of the city.
Two years after the first book was printed, Mrs. Sternberg wrote to the Rebbe, saying that she would like to do a second contest of compositions and poems. The Rebbe concurred, the contest took place and prizes were duly awarded. Toward the end of the month of Menachem Av, the Rebbe contacted Mrs. Sternberg and asked her how the second book was coming along. He wanted it printed by Rosh Hashana. Second book? Mrs. Sternberg never thought of printing a second book. Second contest yes, but second book?
Nonetheless, a directive from the Rebbe meant action. Frantic that she did not have enough essays for this book, Mrs. Sternberg contacted Camp Emunah, requesting of them to run the same contest she had run, further (maybe instead of ,further: and specifically) asking them for essays from foreign campers. She received essays in Russian, Persian and Hebrew.
One of the girls who wrote a story that summer was Laura…
Back to the Story
Being a Baal Teshuva, returning to one’s roots, is a life-long journey. Some of those times are harder than others. Good friends sense each other’s struggles and such was the case with Yana and Laura. When Yana realized what her daughter had discovered, she knew that this was no mere coincidence. Hashem had made her His emissary to reach out to her friend Laura.
Yana and her husband Zach are people of action. They decided they wanted to present this unbelievable piece of Laura’s life to her in a very special way.
First they made copies of the piece, which was written in Russian and translated into English. They also wanted to give the entire book to Laura, but it was out of print. Chava Schmidt told them to contact Mrs. Sternberg. If anyone had a copy it would be her.
Yana called Mrs. Sternberg who still lives in Crown Heights (this is already mentioned parenthetically above). She explained the story and why she wanted a copy of the booklet, printed over thirty years ago. Mrs. Sternberg replied that she would have to search for a book, which she did and finally mailed Yana the book.
The Gift – A Belated Birthday Present.
Gary (Laura’s husband) knew that Laura still had the siddur she had received in Camp Emunah. Opposite the picture of the Rebbe, one of her counselors had written the following words in Russian: “ ….let this siddur with a portrait of this real Jew be your true guide in your life…” The way it was written was very unusual, as pointed out by both Yana and Gary. The ink started out strong and then the ink began to fade, as the pen began to run out of ink, the words became lighter and lighter. The counselor then must have picked up another pen and the words became strong and dark again. (I think there are some inaccuracies here. I am going to forward this to Laura as well. I think the above quote is Yana’s memory of it and I think that the quote written with the two pens is actually on the facing page – Laura, please make this accurate)
Gary pointed out that the way the writing appears in the suddur reflects Lauara’s connection to Judaism. The brightness of the flame that was ignited in the camp Emunah may have diminishes for a few years, but has returned burning brighter and stronger than ever. When she came back from Camp Emunah she felt strong in her commitment to being Jewish, later, as predicted by her mother, (her commitment) (she) waned, (yet) (and) over the past few years she is becoming strong again. A framed copy of Laura’s letter as well as the booklet were presented to Laura on Rosh Chodesh Elul 2011. She was overcome with emotion. After (explaining) learning where the both the letter and the booklet came from, Laura asked to meet Mrs. Sternberg. She went to New York with Yana, her daughter Simone and Yana’s daughters, Shana and Dina. They sat talking in Mrs. Sternberg’s dining room for four hours. Mrs. Sternberg gave Laura and her daughter Simone and Yana and her two daughters Shana and Dina, dollars that she had received from the Rebbe. This gift feels to them as if it came directly from the Rebbe and has further strengthened their connection to him. Later that year (They) invited Mrs. Sternberg to come and speak for the women in their shul, which she did, again holding everyone’s attention for hours with stories of other wonderful experiences of her own and others all affected by the Rebbe’s Neshek (candle lighting) initiative.
The Most Incredible ‘Coincidence’
Rosh Chodesh Elul 2012, one year later, they went back to meet with Mrs. Sternberg. They had decided to make it a yearly visit which they realized would further develop and strengthen their connection to the Rebbe.
The following Shabbos, Yana and her family were visiting Montreal where they found themselves in the Montreal Torah Center (MTC) Shabbos morning. Their connection to the MTC was through Bracha and Dovid Bettoun, who had moved to Philadelphia from Montreal many years earlier and are neighbors and dear friends of the Weisers. The Bettouns urged Yana to go with her family to the Montreal Torah Center for Shabbos, which they did.
That Shabbos, there was a guest rabbi and very dear friend of the MTC, Rabbi Aaron Eliezer Ceitlin. He lives in Tsfat and had been in Montreal for a week. Rabbi New had requested of him to deliver the sermon that Shabbos morning.
Rabbi Ceitlin slowly walked to the bimah and ascended up to the shtender (dais). He began by saying that he was not supposed to have been here this Shabbos but that his plans had changed. He should have been back in Israel, but Hashem had other plans for him and here he was, still in Montreal. Then, he began to tell a story which he heard when he was in Antwerp a few weeks earlier. It was told to him over dinner by Mrs. Sternberg’s nephew ???
“There was a young girl named Laura, who thirty years ago had gone to Camp Emunah…”. Rabbi Ceitlin was telling Yana’s story about her friend Laura.
One cannot imagine the look on Yana and Zach’s faces when they realized that Rabbi Ceitlin was telling their story! They were incredulous! After Rabbi Ceitlin finished speaking, Zach jumped up from his seat, ran over to Rabbi New and told him, “That’s my wife’s story!” Both Rabbi New and Rabbi Ceitlin insisted that Zach go up to the bimah and briefly give over the story himself.
This story, which had begun thirty years earlier, had gone around the world and back, full circle and has brought together so many people in an ever growing circle of light – the light of the Shabbos candle reigniting the spark of Yiddishkeit in so many lives.
And the Rebbe’s reach? Clearly it also continues to grow, to inspire and to envelope Jews in every corner of the world.
Transcribed by Joannie Tansky as told by Yana Weiser