“I just wanted to say that I really enjoyed the Kids’ Fiveish Hour, particularly the questions Fiveish ‘stumped’ the callers with. Too bad that my five year old son, who’s been a major Fiveish fan for about three years now, was already asleep. He would have jumped with excitement at the chance to call in and win a set of Fiveish linen– and he probably would have known almost all the answers too!

Fiveish fan from Queens striking his favorite Fiveish Dance pose           

This year, when I asked him what he wanted to be for Purim, he said “Fiveish!” without even taking a minute to think. Here’s a picture of him striking his favorite Fiveish pose from the Fiveish Dance video.

Thanks for the great kosher entertainment!

P.S. Might I suggest that you add a child-size Fiveish costume to your line of Fiveish products?

This year’s Oorah-thon showcased all of the many Oorah programs and kiruv successes. Longtime host Elchanan Schwartz was joined by Rabbi Moishe Lichtenstein, Director of Outreach, Rabbi Avraham Krawiec, TheZone camp director, and Rabbi Avi Schnall, National Director of ChillZone for hours of stimulating discussions punctuated with musical interludes and fascinating interviews.

The night started off at 10 pm with Fiveish Hour. Over 100,000 calls came in for Fiveish, who offered Fiveish linen, the Shmorg 5 or a plush Fiveish to callers who answered a question correctly.

Almost all of Oorah’s many programs were highlighted on air with TheZone campers, Torah Spot attendees, Little Star parents, TorahMates and Yom Tov at TheZone guests sharing their stories.

Dueling Rabbis Avi Davidowitz, who wears many hats at Oorah and TheZone, and Avraham Biderman, Oorah Board member hotly debated the question: FFB vs. BT: who has it easier?

Of course, the night culminated with the drawing of the Auction prizes. See the full list of Auction winners here.

So we say adieu to Auction. See you next year!

from Fiveish’s fan mail box

See Fiveish live on the Oorah YouTube channel.

9406 Kirkside Rd.
Los Angeles CA 90035
j.kavosh@yahoo.com

For more information contact us at info@thezone.org/866.THE.ZONE/www.thezone.com/www.facebook.com/getinthezone

SUNDAY MARCH 3RD 

AT 11 AM
Herman Home
4550 N. Bay Rd.
MIAMI BEACH FL 33140

MONDAY EVENING
MARCH 4TH AT 6:30 PM
Zarad Home
9132 Vineyard Lake Dr
PLANTATION FL 33324
570.852.0130

 Potential campers can learn more about TheZone and apply at www.thezone.com .

They say seeing is believing. I don’t think any one description can really describe  the Purim wonderland that was Oorah’s Purim seudah. As we entered the parking lot of  Lake Terrace hall we were met by the sight of children being driven around in a horse drawn wagon! What fun! Had that been all we would have left happy. But in the lobby of the hall we were greeted by . . .cotton candy . . . popcorn . . . scores of hamentashen in every flavor . . .enough wine to make any man happy . . .and joy . . . pure joy . . . of hundreds of beautiful jewish souls who had never experienced the beauty of Purim before yesterday.

The gourmet meal that we were treated to truly did rival the feast of king Achashverosh! And the entertainment! What can be better than getting to watch a magic show in between each course! Shlomo Hadarshan kept the adults laughing with his steady stream of jokes and impersonations.  But the real treat was sitting with many of the families that we help and seeing the fruits of Oorah’s labor. This was Oorah’s  own “nes Purim”. One that we are proud to proclaim  is an open miracle that we want to share with everyone. Knowing as only we know what our families struggle with on a daily basis as they advance in their Yiddishkeit, made seeing them joyously celebrate the Yom Tov of Purim even more meaningful. I felt like I was really experience the triumph of Purim – because seeing so many tinokos shenishbiu come together under one roof, the roof of Oorah, and all for one reason – for if not for Oorah, there would never have been the uplifting seudah that there was. Rav Chaim Mintz, the reason that Oorah is, spoke poignantly and blessed all that was there with the ability   to continue growing and striving to reach greater heights . a blessing that can be applied to all those attended. May our Oorah families continue coming closer to their roots  . . . and may we have the strength to continue being there for them every step of the way.

View a short clip here

Buzz about costumes, mishloach manos and family themes has begun.

We have met the demand head-on with our newest edition of Fiveish Purim stickers!

celebrating Purim’s imminent arrival in true Oorah style!

Look out for your own copy – arriving in the mail soon!

It was brought home by their mom, an Oorah employee, who often brings home Fiveish-related odds and ends throughout the year. They are used to seeing Fiveish on just about everything – stickers, papers, envelopes, junk paper from misprints, and other office odds and ends. She was thus completely unprepared for their reaction when they saw the actual linen: pure excitement!

Our very own set!

The unboxing was an event on its own. “How do they fit all that Fiveish in that tiny little bag?” one of the girls wanted to know. Good question, kiddo. The bright colors, while vibrant and exciting, are not overwhelming, and the palette is perfect for any bedroom, boy’s and girl’s alike. And the kids were all eyes as the duvet unfolded, revealing the large Fiveish printed on both sides of the fabric.

Too big to fit in the frame!

First things first: after a bit of ogling by fervent admirers, the linen was reluctantly let go of to be put straight into the wash. Hot water, if you please. (This is the test lab, after all.)

Spin cycle: newest step in the Fiveish Dance?

After a while, the fresh and clean Fiveish linen was all ready in the girls’ room. The color faded only the slightest bit, but the fabric was much less stiff than straight out of the package, and was rendered soft enough to sleep on. The little madams came in for a thorough inspection, and needless to say, were tickled pink.

Fiveish! Is! In! Our! Roooooom!!!

The mother of these two girls was simply astounded at how cooperative her daughters were when it came time to get ready for bed. What is normally not even that much of an ordeal became a magically well-oiled machine that propelled these little imps straight into their beds as if they were preprogrammed robots on the highest speed setting. The hardest decision was whether to sleep on the Fiveish eyes side of the pillow sham, or the smiling Fiveish face. (They opted for the eyes.)

Laila tov!

In conclusion, the Fiveish linen comes highly recommended, even from someone whose entire family lives and breathes Fiveish everything, all the time. It would make a great gift for that special little Fiveish fan, and is a great choice of linen for when the grandkids come to visit.

To order your own set of Fiveish linen, visit Oorah’s auction here!

Without giving away too much, we’ll just say that Fiveish himself has been a super-busy character recently with film shootings and recordings taking up much of his waking hours. He’s been hanging out with loads of Jewish celebrities (dare we mention that Lipa’s a fervent Fiveish fan?!)

Shmorg 5 is an exclusive free gift for donors to Oorah’s Auction. Check out the other awesome gifts and prizes at www.oorah.org/auction. And stay tuned for the latest and greatest in the popular Shmorg collection!

But Jamie couldn’t escape her Jewish history for long. Daniel began to do his own research and came to the decision that Judaism was the truth. He hosts a Friday night meal in his home for all the neighbors, mostly non-Jews. Daniel leads a brief prayer session after the food, music and dancing.

Not long ago, Daniel contacted Oorah to help bring his wife and son, the real Jews in the family, back to the fold. His teenaged son, Christian/Yisrael, learns with a TorahMate and we just sent him his first pair of tefillin!

Just check out all the pics and videos on TheZone’s Facebook page to see how much fun everyone had!

The open house will take place at 10:30 AM at the Segelnick home, 372 Oakford St. West Hempstead NY 11552. For directions, please call 516.640.4184 or email Msegelnick@gmail.com.

NYPD Lt. Kevin Gallagher, who took care of the bereaved parents in the days after the children’s disappearance, donated the flooded SUV that the family was driving in when it stalled and they were forced to escape to Kars4Kids, an Oorah-affiliated charity.

As soon as Kars4Kids heard the tragic story behind the donation, they resolved to memorialize the two innocent children in some way. Because the Moores were from Staten Island, a coat giveaway for needy children in that borough seemed fitting.

Kars4Kids will be auctioning off the Ford Explorer in order to raise money for the giveaway. They expect to distribute 1,000 coats at the Breandon and Connor Moore Koats4Kids giveaway event in January.

Read more about the Kars4Kids story in the NY Daily News.

I hope you are well and enjoying winter and the snow. I apologize for not sending this letter sooner.

I would like to thank Oorah for the very kind care package that was sent for Chanukah. As always, it is lovely to receive this surprise package, then to open it up and find all the goodies inside. We used so many of the items, especially the guide book.

effusive letter from an enthusiastic Fiveish fan and Shmorg aficionado

What a concert! What a night!

The energy was palpable in Brooklyn College Tuesday night, the fourth night of Chanukah, at Oorah’s annual Chanukah concert, free for the Oorah family. Over 2,500 people- all affiliated with Oorah- filled the concert hall.

Big name entertainers like Lipa and Shloime Dachs gave popular performances (Lipa sang his new Chanukah release “Believe in a Miracle.”) Up-and-coming singer Yoni Z, who has performed in TheZone, was also on the program, as was Yitzi Bald’s New York Boys Choir.

But the real stars of the night were the children of Little Star Preschool, who put their all into their enthusiastic performance. Dressed in Chanukah-themed costumes, they sang “I Have a Little Dreidel” among other holiday classics.

TheZone shone on stage as well with an interactive trivia game show that drew participation from the crowd. Mrs. Shimrit Adar, beloved program director of the Girls Division, addressed the audience in her usual energetic and dynamic style. Boys Division campers Shalom Kaddosh and Mickey Aflalo wowed with a display of considerable parkour talent as Lipa did gangnam Oorah style!

Of course, Rabbi Chaim Mintz was a highlight of the night with his keynote address on the topic of Kiddush Hashem. He led the audience in a moving recitation of Shema Yisrael.

The concert was so much more than just a great show though. It was a grand Oorah family reunion. TorahMates met in person, Zoniacs rekindled old memories and everyone came away from the event uplifted and inspired.

A pallet of Chanukah packages ready to ship

The emails and calls have started pouring in as families across the country receive their Chanukah packages from Oorah. Somehow, coming home to a beautiful box filled with all kinds of goodies for Chanukah seems to make everyone’s day so much happier.

The package really came just in time for one family in Queens:

“We received the package for Hanukkah from Oorah and I was so happy!! It couldn’t come at a better time for us. We lost our car in the storm [it was flooded and a tree fell on it during Hurricane Sandy] which is very hard. I was so concerned that I would not be able to buy a menorah and all the rest of the stuff for the holiday on time…”

The ninth grade class of Ilan High School in Deal went on a very special trip yesterday…. to Oorah! The girls came full of energy and super excited to help us package our Chanukah “party-in-a-box” packages. With Chanukah music setting a festive mood, the girls got into two assembly lines and got to work. The 2,000 packages that we’re sending out have all the essentials to throw a Chanukah party, including lots of nosh!