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Oct. 2, 2024 By Shane O’Brien
The Jewish Community Center (JCC)-Chabad of Western Queens will hold several events in the coming weeks to celebrate the Jewish High Holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
The holidays, which span from Oct. 2-12, begin with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, on Wednesday night. Rosh Hashanah runs for 48 hours until Oct. 4, followed by Yom Kippur, Judaism’s holiest day, which begins the evening of Friday, Oct. 11, and continues until Saturday, Oct. 12.
JCC-Chabad in Long Island City, located at 10-29 48th Ave., will host a variety of services and events throughout the period, starting with Rosh Hashanah Eve services at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
The center will also hold morning services on Thursday and Friday at 9 a.m., followed by a shofar-blowing ceremony at 11 a.m. both days. According to Jewish law, the shofar — typically made from a ram’s horn — must be blown 30 times on each day of Rosh Hashanah.
The JCC will also hold two hours of children’s programming on each day of the New Year’s celebrations, running from 10:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. The events will allow young children to learn about the Jewish faith through interactive games and conversations while participating children will also receive typical Jewish snacks.
The Jewish Community Center – Chabad of West Queens located at 10-29 48th Ave, Long Island City. Via Google Maps
Rivka Wineberg, director of the JCC-Chabad of West Queens, said it was important to educate children about the Jewish faith in an entertaining and engaging way.
“Our main focus is that every time we’re teaching the holidays or anything about Judaism to children, it’s fun – through arts and crafts, through song, through baking, through hands-on activities and games that are interactive,” Wineberg said. “It should be a very enjoyable experience, and they should get a sweet good taste of what it means to connect to their faith.”
Meanwhile, a Kiddush lunch is also scheduled for 12:30 p.m. on both days of Rosh Hashanah.
The center will hold a traditional Tashlich ceremony at 5 p.m. on Thursday at the LIC waterfront in Gantry Plaza State Park. This ceremony symbolizes the casting off of the sins of the previous year and must take place by a body of water.
Kabbalat Shabbat (welcoming of the Sabbath) evening services will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, concluding the JCC’s Rosh Hashanah events with Shabbat morning services at 10 a.m. on Saturday.
For Yom Kippur, the JCC will begin with a candle-lighting ceremony at 6:03 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 11, marking sundown and the start of the traditional Yom Kippur fast. The ceremony will be followed by a mincha (afternoon) service at 6:15 p.m. and the Kol Nidrei prayer at 6:45 p.m., a central part of Yom Kippur observance.
On Saturday morning, the JCC will hold services starting at 9 a.m., followed by the Yizkor memorial service at 11 a.m., which honors the memory of the deceased. Children’s programming will run from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., offering younger members of the Jewish community an opportunity to engage in interactive learning through games and discussions.
A mincha service will take place at 5 p.m., followed by the sacred Neilah service at 6 p.m., which translates to “closing of the gates” and serves as the final prayer of Yom Kippur. The fast will conclude at 7 p.m.
Wineberg said the upcoming holiday celebrations are open to everyone, including people who do not regularly attend Jewish services throughout the year.
People do not need a membership with the JCC to attend the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur events and Wineberg said the center will make anyone who attends the holiday events feel welcome.
She said the upcoming celebrations will be poignant because the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel will take place between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and added that it was to make people feel included at the JCC.
“We’re going to try our best to show people how they could be included more throughout the year in different programs that we do,” Wineberg said. “We want them to feel part of the family more than ever because when we go through hard times, people just want to be close to family. We want to really bring out to people at the holiday services – that we are your family.”
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