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From the desk of
Rabbi Perry
Tirschwell
In keeping with WYHS' mission "To Inspire and To
Challange", Chanuka at WYHS is a
ruach-saturated week. Our faculty and
student leaders have been planning for months and
working into the wee hours this week to make the
the Festival of Lights inspirational. As I always say,
"at WYHS we work hard, but we play just as
hard."
The week after Chanuka, our fall Town
Meetings continue. We're in Hollywood on
Monday, December
20 at
the home of the Bryns, and in Boca on Tuesday,
December 21 at the home of the Hirths. I highly
encourage our parents in these communities to come
and share their
feedback and suggestions at these "open mic nights".
On Sunday and Monday evenings I had the
pleasure of having dinner with various WYHS
alumni in New York, where I was attending the
annual conference of the Assocaition of Modern
Orthodox Day Schools. I was gratified to hear that
our grads at Columbia feel that WYHS thoroughly
prepared them to debate
Israel-related issues.
Shabbat
Shalom and Chag Urim Sameach,
Rabbi Perry Tirschwell
Principal
| Our Biggest & Best Chanuka Chagiga |
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Over 350 students, faculty, parents and guests
attended our fantastic Chagiga
Thursday
night. The theme of the evening was Miracles, and a
number of them certainly took place throughout the
program.
Jewish music superstar Avraham Fried, who
just
happened to stop by on his way to perform at a
concert in Hollywood, led an inspiring rendition of the
Candle Lighting blessings and Maoz
Tzur.
The unique menu for the evening's festive
meal chosen by the Student
Chanuka Committee was chicken fingers, franks in
blankets and of course potato pancakes (in addition
to salad), in keeping with the oil theme of
Chanuka. The plethora of Chanuka streamers, signs
and lights created a truly party atmosphere.
The centerpiece of every WYHS Chagiga is
live
music and dancing, provided by the student
band "Under Construction". Parents and the student's
younger siblings got a taste of what WYHS students
look foward to each Rosh Chodesh and
holiday.
The evening's multimedia program was an
ingenious splicing of the Chanuka story and
movie "Miracle" (about the USA Hockey
Team's victory over the Russians at the 1980
Olympics), emphasizing the Macabees' victory
against a much superior force. The video told a
parallel story of students at WYHS.
The climax of the evening was a great
powerpoint presentation created by
sophomores Jordana Kaminetsky, Avi Lasko and
Amanda Markovitch with pictures of all the programs
that WYHS has run this year, including Student
Orientation, Rosh Chodesh, Post PSAT
Chesed Programs, Class Night Outs, and the
School Shabbaton.
Thanks to Program Coordinator Rabbi Josh
Spodek
and the Student Chanuka Committee who
put in a huge amount of time into creating the best
Chanuka Chagiga in WYHS history.
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| Students Celebrate at Teachers' Homes |
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After a great davening with a song-filled
Hallel, the students were invited to teachers'
homes for a scrumptious breakfast and
Chanuka
mesiba (party). The senior girls travelled
in the early morning to Mrs. Kanner's home
in North Miami Beach for a memorable morning with
their mentor, which they said was well worth the
trip.
Students presented divrei Torah and
Chanuka songs were sung. Among the most
memorable were sophomore Hillel Lefkowitz' moving
words about the Holocaust and divrei Torah about
Chanuka by sophomores Raquel Amram, Avi Dennis,
Zisa Hoenig, Jordy Kaminetsky, and junior Nicole
Treyfus. At Mrs. Schochet's party, juniors Sarah Dray
and Devora Greer played the guitar.
Menus included French
Toast, Salami and Eggs, student-made Latkes and
Omelets made to order by the expert culinary team
of
Rabbi Horowitz and senior Hillel Wolf.
In response to Rabbi Spodek's request for the
students to bring something that "represented" the
class, three groups of students produced
videos which humorously portrayed their class
and
rebbe.
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| Boys JV Storm Is Undefeated! |
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This week's major victories over Trinity (42-29) and
Lake Worth Christian (43-30) give the Storm JV a
4-0
record! In both of these games, the JV truly
played
as a team.
In Monday's game vs. Trinity, high scorers
included freshman Daniel Shimansky with 14 points;
sophomore
Jason Mann with 14 points; and freshman Aryeh
Genet with 12 points. Particularly noteworthy were
a number of
steals due to the Storm's excellent full court
press.
Lake Worth Christian is one of the toughest
(&
tallest!) teams in our district. However, a
combination of the JV's new plays and a significant
number of successful foul shots put the Storm head
and shoulders above their worthy opponents.
Freshmen Aryeh Genet and Daniel
Shimansky each scored 16 points (and junior Yakir
Bitterman scored 1 point!).
Next week is a big week for the Storm! On both
Tuesday and Thursday all 4 teams compete. On
Tuesday, the three
basketball teams play against and at Grandview Prep
and the Girls Soccer plays Jupiter Christian at
Hillsboro El Rio. On Thursday, the JV takes on Trinity
at Odyssey Middle School in Boynton, the Girls and
Boys Varsity take on Boca Prep at its home court,
and the Girls Soccer team faces Florida Bible at
Hillsboro El Rio.
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| The Chanuka Fun Has Just Begun |
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The rest of Chanuka is just as fun-filled
and action-packed!
Today (Friday), classes will end at 11:15 a.m. to
make
time for two exciting programs. The boys will enjoy
an afternoon of sports, including shiur vs.
shiur baseball games!By popular
demand, the girls chose not to do sports in favor of a
phenomenal schoolwide photo
scavenger hunt
competition between grades!
On Monday there will be a Teacher Slave
Auction of goods and services offered by the
WYHS faculty. On Tuesday, there will be a
special breakfast followed by a shiur (hence
the Eat n' Learn name) by Rabbi Kenneth
Brander in
memory of the grandmother of Yael, '02, and
freshman Tamar Koeningsberg.
During the final hours of Chanuka on Wednesday,
the entire school will go to Veterans Park in Boca for
two faculty vs. student sports competitions
featuring the Boys Varsity Basketball and the Girls
Soccer Team.
School will be dismissed early at 5:00 p.m.
on
Wednesday, December 8 and Monday, December 13
to allow students to be home in time to light
Chanukah candles.
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Alumni Excel in Israel |
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Each year there are more post-secondary options in
Israel for
yeshiva high school graduates. To help our girls
chose the right school for them, Assistant Principal
Mrs. Ora Lee Kanner made a whirlwind trip to
Israel during Thanksgiving
week to visit each seminary.
In addition to attending classes, Mrs. Kanner heard
each WYHS alumna's insights into
which students will grow at each women's yeshiva.
In return, she gave them guidance about how to
make the most of the unique experience which they
are priviliged to be enjoying this year.
The girls of
our Class of 2004 (pictured above) told Mrs. Kanner
that they feel that WYHS prepared them
well in terms of skills and
expectations. The schools they are attending
include Bear Miryiam, Maayanot, Machon Gold,
Michlala, Midreshet Harova,
Midreshet Moriah, Midreshet Lindenbaum, Migdal Oz,
MMY, Shaalvim for Women, and Sharfmans.
Mrs. Kanner's trip was timed to coincide with the end
of the seminary recruitment season, so as to help our
seniors make decisions about their plans for next
year. The last seminary interviews for
the Class of 2005 just took place on Thursday. Mrs.
Kanner has already met with many senior girls to
share the knowledge she gleaned.
Despite her exhausting schedule, Mrs. Kanner was
energized by the nachas that our
graduates
gave her.
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GOOD and WELFARE
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| Mazel Tov to Rabbi Benji & Mrs. Amy Horowitz on the birth of their daughter Penina Malka, who was named on Thursday at school, followed by a special hot breakfast. |
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| Mazel Tov to Shoshan Kowal, '02 on her marriage in Jerusalem to Shmaayah Levi. Mazel Tov to Shoshana's parents and her sister junior Kayla. |
| Mazel tov to Founder Rabbi Kenneth Brander
and his son junior Tuvia on their participating
in the menorah lighting at the White House on Thursday. Click here to view the
video of this special event. |
| Mazel tov to Hebrew Department Chairperson Mrs. Nili Alcalay on the birth of a grandson. |
| Refuah Shleima to board member Bernie Oppenheim |
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