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The Weekly Newsletter of
Weinbaum
Yeshiva High School
Parshat Vayeshev
Friday, November 30, 2007
Shabbat begins in Boca @ 5:10
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From the desk
of
Rabbi Perry
Tirschwell
YOU, the readers of Yeshiva Highlites, play a
crucial
role in admissions season, which begins this
Sunday
with our Open House. Studies show that the person
who prospective families believe least about a school
is the principal, as marketing is one of his primary
responsibilities. Students, parents and faculty, past
and future, are the most believable sources of
information.
WYHS is a great fit for a student who wants to
grow
religiously and academically. The religious
Zionist,
college preparatory message is delivered with energy
and enthusiasm. We take our mission, to inspire
and
challenge teenagers, very seriously.
We are expecting a large class next year, very possibly
the largest in WYHS history. We have created
a
beautiful new viewbook and a new video, which tell the
story of WYHS in pictures and testimonials. The
growth of our student body provides more
opportunities (more sports, more clubs, more
classes) to all students.
Please encourage any family with an eighth grader (or
an older student who is considering a change) to
attend this Sunday's Open House. The program will
allow prospective parents and students the
opportunity to experience a simulated day in the
life of
a WYHS student. The program begins at 9:30
am and
ends at 12:30 pm.
We look forward to seeing everyone.
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Perry Tirschwell
Click
on the images below
to
link to these
nine websites
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Upcoming Events
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WYHS Open House
for Prospective
Parents and Students
Sunday, December 2
9:30am
North of Boca Town Meeting
Monday, December 3
8:00am @ Shub
Sophomore PLAN exam
Tuesday, December 4
12:30-3:30
Mesibas @ the
Rebbes
Wednesday,
December 5
1st and 2nd Periods
Dreidel Mania
Thursday,
December
6
during lunch
Teachers Live Tzedakah
Auction
Friday,
December
7
3rd and 4th periods
Chanukah Chagigah
Monday,
December
10
5:45pm @ BRS
Click Here to RSVP for the Chagigah
Click Here To Order Your
Storm Klipped Kippahs
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Good and Welfare
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Mazel Tov To:
Rachie and Ari Gold ('01) on the
birth of their daughter, Eliora Tzelila
Nechama Gottlieb ('03) on her marriage
to Etan Marks of
Skokie, Illinois
Condolences To:
The Shabtai family on the loss of Hilda
Mittman
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Can You Handle the
Truth?
WYHS' School Wide Shabbaton
By LeeLee Borzak '(10)
On Friday, November 16, the
excitement
for the upcoming school wide Shabbaton was
palpable.
After weeks of seeing "Can You Handle the
Truth" posters
adorning WYHS' halls, students could wait no
longer to
spend a Shabbat together, one of the highlights of the
school year.
After arriving at the beautiful Marco Polo
Resort and preparaing for Shabbat, students, faculty
and their families, and alumni
came together to
daven Kabalat Shabbat. A delicious
Friday night
dinner and Divrei Torah about the
theme of this year's
Shabbaton-the importance of
honesty-were the
perfect way to start off this incredible Shabbat.
The much anticipated game show had
teachers as
contestants in "To Tell the Truth." Teachers
told crazy
stories about themselves, but only one of the stories
was
real. It was up to the students
to discern which
teacher was lying and which teacher was
telling the truth.
Students were delighted to learn about Rabbi
Spodek's short
lived ballet career, Rabbi Horowitz's 5th
grade slip up, as
well as other embarrassing moments. Not only
did the game
show depict the theme of the
Shabbaton, but it
also brought endless rounds of laughter.
In true WYHS style, boys and girls then
had kumzitzes and tisches. In
between the
inspirational songs, teachers told students
about their
personal experiences in which they learned
the importance
of truth and integrity. Before lights out,
all students had free
time and the opportunity to play various
games, such
as Taboo, Trivial Pursuit, and Monopoly.
Inter-grade teams
allowed students to get to know others in
different
grades.
After Shacharit on Shabbat
morning, the teachers performed
their legendary Shabbaton skit. Everyone in
the crowd
was laughing as teachers poked fun at various
students.
More importantly, the skit showed the
importance of the truth
in more realistic and relatable ways. Mike,
the main
character in the skit, lied about being the
star of the baseball
team and also "embellished the truth" on his
college
applications, which is always on a high school
student's mind. All of
his myths came back to haunt him, and
these
realistic examples made the message behind the
skit much more
effective.
Later that day, students were broken
up into small groups and paired up with
teachers to learn
more in depth. Each
group dissected
different every day situations involving
honesty and
discussed what to do in these
situations.
Practical scenarios make it easier for
students to apply
the message of the Shabbaton to every day
life.
After Havdallah, everyone
departed to Boomers, a local amusement park.
Arcade
games, a roller coaster, bumper boats, laser
tag, and tons of
tickets proved to be fun for all and the
perfect Saturday
night activity.
The Melava Malka after
Boomers
was especially significant this year because
it was also
Sheva Brachot for a beloved WYHS
alumnus, Tzvi
Schwartzbaum ('04). Through a pizza party and
intense
dancing, current WYHS students really
enhanced Tzvi and his new wife,
Lauren's, happiness. Even
though none of the students attended WYHS
with Tzvi, we all still felt a special
connection to him and
were delighted to partake in his
simcha. It was an
amazing way to end an unbelievable Shabbat.
Thanks so much to all of the faculty and alumni
who took time out of their busy schedules to
come to the
Shabbaton!
To relive the excitement of the
Shabbaton, be on the
look out for the WYHS Shabbaton video, coming
soon!
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Open Mic Night
For
Parents
Five Community Meetings Take
Place
By Rabbi Perry Tirschwell,
Principal
You may think that a principal who invites
all the
parents in the school to meetings at which
they can
publicly raise any concern they have about
the school,
is crazy. I, the principal, think that an
organization can
only grow if it is open to constructive
criticism. This is
the idea behind WYHS' series of Town Meetings.
Since high school parents rarely enter the
school
building, we feel it is important to go to
them and solicit
feedback. Since WYHS services students from
throughout South Florida, we run five
meetings across
our catchment area. We schedule the Town
Meetings
to coincide with the end of the first
trimester of each
year, late enough for parents to develop an
opinion
about how the year is going, but early enough
for us to
make changes that will impact the year.
Many topics have been raised at the four town
meetings that have already taken place including bus
service (regular and for extracurricular activities),
family
Shabbatot, free time schedule when students
spend
Shabbat at the homes of their rebbeim,
the academic
transition of freshmen to high school, the
possibility of
offering debate and public speaking, the
frequency of
teacher Edline postings, the temperature in the
classrooms,
making dismissal time in the parking lot safer, the
possibility of offering PE, the price of the
school
shabbaton, and the possibility of moving the
freshman
shabbaton to earlier in the year.
Shimmie and I learned a lot at this year's
meetings.
Thank you to Mrs. Kanner who stood in for me
at the meeting in NMB. Thank you to the Bengio,
Bokor, Stadlan, and Schechter families for hosting
these important meetings.
We look forward to the last of the town
meetings,
which will take place this coming Monday night,
December 3, at 8:00pm at the Shubs in Lake Worth.
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Click on Picture for a
Slideshow
SWISH!
Boys JV Basketball
Prepares
for a Great Season
By Josh Kaminetsky
('09)
Last Thursday, the Boys Junior Varsity Basketball
team opened up against Grandview in an exciting, nail
biting game. After weeks of effort, practice, and
workouts, the boys were more than eager to
showcase what they've learned. Despite their
commendable effort in the game, the boys just came
up short of victory. However, the boys were not the
least bit discouraged.
The following week, the team
managed to completely turn around their season with
two dominating wins. On Tuesday, the team faced off
against Pope John Paul II. During the first quarter, the
opposing team was scoreless while shot after shot
successfully found its way to the hoop for the
WYHS Storm. Yoni Levenson ('09) dominated on the
boards while Lior Goldstein ('10) managed to direct
the team well as the new point guard. The final score
was 48-18 Storm.
But the victories didn't cease there.
Yesterday, the team played Berean to achieve a
winning record. Once again the boys came out ready
to play and quickly took control of the game.
New Freshmen talent Elie Genet and Adam Poliak
racked up the points in the game, resulting in yet
another victory for the JV team 60-20.
Next Game at
Pope John Paul II On
Sat., Dec. 1 @ 7:30
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Never Far From
Home
Mrs. Kanner Visits Our Alumni in
NY
By Mrs. Ora Lee Kanner, Associate
Principal
It is truly difficult to determine if the
greater beneficiary
of my day in New York was me or the alumni
that streamed
in to meet with me throughout the day. The
only harder task
is for me to describe to you the joy I felt
seeing each of
these beautiful young ladies, learning of their
accomplishments, listening to their
aspirations, and guiding
them through the challenges of collegiate life.
Having a special bond with my
students, born
from years of close interaction, the most
common refrains
were "you know me," "I can talk to you," or
"I trust you." It is
amazing and heart-warming that our students
look to their
high school mentors to assist them with their
transition from
seminary to college, from life in Israel to
America, and from their late teenage years into their
adulthood. They seek our
guidance in all areas including career
choices, dating,
social dynamics, and religious issues.
At WYHS, we have a slogan that
encapsulates the
feelings of our students, "once YHS, always
YHS." The
same holds true for their teachers and
Rebbeim. The love we
feel for our students, the relationships
that we build,
and our devotion to their personal, academic,
and religious
growth continues long after they graduate
high school.
It is an honor to be part of a school that
concerns itself
and is dedicated in an unparalleled manner to
the
continued well-being of our alumni. This
day for the girls in
New York, along with the boys alumni
Shabaton, our trips
to visit our alumni in Eretz Yisrael, and the
10th anniversary
alumni Shabbaton scheduled for February, are
examples of WYHS' life-long commitment to our
students.
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Up Close and
Personal
with Mr. Joseph
(JB)
Bensmihen
By Daniella Greer ('09)
This past Thursday, WYHS was truly honored
to hear
from a man whose obstacles and achievements
inspired us
all-Joseph Bensmihen. Mr. Bensmihen,
lovingly
referred to as JB,
was raised in Montreal, Canada. Due to his
physical
disability, the law prohibited him from
attending a mainstream
school, and he was therefore forced to attend a
Special Education program.
After much media press, petitioning, and
struggling, JB was
finally allowed to attend a mainstream
school, and he vindicated himself
by graduating high school as valedictorian.
After JB's father
passed away several years ago, JB established
the David
Bensmihen Memorial Scholarship Foundation, to
commemorate his father. This foundation is a
philanthropic
organization which provides scholarships for
meritorious
students. I was privileged to speak
to JB about
his occupation, his organization, and how his
childhood
impacts his life to this day.
What do you do professionally, and how
does that
reflect your values?
JB: I have a masters degree in
social work and
work primarily with the elderly. It's amazing
because I get
paid to do Chesed. What can be better then
that?! All the
people I work with obviously have some sort
of issue, and I
therefore try to use the values that I
learned from Torah and
Halacha to alleviate their pain.
How did your father and your childhood
experiences
influence your current educational
philosophies and altruistic
endeavors?
JB: My entire message in life is
that education is
freedom. After everything I experienced
during my
childhood, I am even more aware of the fact
that if one is
able to have education, he/she is able to
have a life. My
father had always stressed this message,
which encouraged me to create a
foundation that
deals with educational progress.
What motivated you to get so involved with
WYHS?
JB: I went to Rabbi Brander after
my father had
passed away and I told him that I wanted to
have a Torah
Scroll written in commemoration of my father. He
instead
convinced me to create a scholarship fund
which would
allow for more students to learn more
Torah and all
that it has to offer.
How do you select which students are
eligible for the
scholarship?
JB: The students need to write essays and
fill out applications to show their qualifications.
Additionally, each
year a senior
from WYHS receives a Midot Tovot award based
on his/her
embodiment of Chesed and good midot. With the
David
Bensmihen Memorial Scholarship Fund, we are
able to help
around twelve thousand students globally each
year
receive an education that they might have
otherwise not been
able to receive.
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3600 Number of
tickets Holly, Julie, and Leora won after
winning the Jackpot
at Boomer
Mania.
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3 Number of
people who believed Mrs.Kanner's TRUE blind
date story was actually
true
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6 Number of
times Rabbi Sugerman was milchigs
on
the
Shabbaton
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1964 Number of
pictures taken by the Photo Committee
at the
Shabbaton
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"The Alumni Fund is a great idea! I am so
happy to be able
to give tzedakah from my
first
paycheck to benefit an
institution that has
done
so
much for me."
-- Sheri Adler ('02)
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Yeshiva Highlites
Staff |
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| Danielle Wolkowicz
(’09) |
Editor-in-
Chief |
LeeLee Borzak (’10)
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Assistant
Editor |
Mrs. Claudia
Cohen |
Director of Technology
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Alana Dweck(’09)
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Photo Editor |
Daniella Greer(’09)
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Features Editor |
Josh Kaminetsky(’09)
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Layout Editor |
David Petrover(’10)
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Assistant Photo
Editor |
Aleeza Rubin(’09)
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Chief of
Correspondents |
David Spektor(’10)
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Assistant Photo
Editor |
| Rabbi Josh Spodek |
Staff Advisor |
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