by Deb Silverthorn
Chabad of Plano/Collin County will celebrate 23 years of commitment to its community by hosting an Evening with Dennis Prager, beginning at 7:30pm on Wednesday, March 18, at Collin College’s Spring Creek Conference Center. Renowned author, speaker, and teacher Dennis Prager will address the issue of “Why is There So Much Evil and What Can We Do About It?” The evening will also honor The Medical Center of Plano; its staff and leadership, as recipients of The Florence Shapiro Distinguished Leadership Award.
On Wednesday, March 18, Chabad of Plano/Collin County will celebrate 23 years of commitment to its community by hosting an Evening with Dennis Prager. The evening will also honor The Medical Center of Plano; its staff and leadership, as recipients of The Florence Shapiro Distinguished Leadership Award. For reservations or more information, visit tickets.ticketforce.com or call 972.596.8270
Chabad of Plano first opened its doors in 1992 at the Plano home of Rivkie and Rabbi Block. In 23 years, with the commitment of Sarah and Rabbi Chayim Boruch Alevsky, and now Esther and Rabbi Yehuda Horowitz, the congregation has grown to serve much of the community. Since 2000, the Lang Chabad Center at Coit and Park, has been home base providing Jewish learning, services, youth camp, education, and social programming, and more. Rabbi & Rivkie Block’s efforts and leadership have also been the inspiration behind the formation of Chabad of Frisco, led by Mushkie and Rabbi Menachem Mendel Kesselman.
“The nurses, doctors, and MCP’s administration embody leadership and the essence of the words ‘community,’” said Chabad of Plano’s Rabbi Menachem Block. “The differences made to all of us are incalculable and something we all appreciate.”
“As religious teachings so clearly advocate the responsibility of the community to help those in their time of need, partnering defines that in practice. Chabad was the first Jewish outreach center in Plano, and The Medical Center of Plano the first hospital – we serving the health of our community’s Jewish souls, and the hospital concerned with our community’s physical health,” said Rabbi Block. “Together we share the message of being a force for healing, preventative care and compassionate treatment of those in need by honoring the hospital and their associates who so often and so well demonstrate these beliefs.”
“We’re proud of the relationship between Rabbi Block and Chabad of Plano. It is unique and precious and a model for private hospitals and community organizations, religious and otherwise,” said Ben Harris, MCP Vice President, Business Development, who too serves as Plano’s Deputy Mayor Pro Tem. Harris will join MCP Chief Executive Officer, Charles E. Gressle in receiving the honor from Chabad of Plano. “The positive impact that Chabad has on our community is something we aspire to, and believe we provide.”
“Rabbi Block is one of the kindest and most inspiring people in our community and we are always looking for ways to partner,” said Harris, “and the example he sets speaks to the leader he is.”
MCP, located in Chabad of Plano’s “backyard,” not only shares close proximity, but many “family members.” Many on the hospital’s faculty are members of Chabad of Plano, and many at Chabad of Plano, include the rabbi and his wife who have delivered four of their children at the hospital, have been affected by its medical support.
“I couldn’t have known how important the hospital would be in my life. In 2007 my husband Kyle had a heart attack. He was diagnosed and cared for with immediate intervention, having a stent placed in one of his cardiac arteries. While I was scared, I knew he was being cared for in an excellent facility,” said Karen Rovinsky, who, during nursing school, had participated in an extensive clinical rotation at the hospital. “One year later we were back when our triplets Hiram, Leo, and Meyer were delivered at 27 weeks of gestation. We were nervous but the staff took incredible care of our babies for 88 days.”
“There were many ups and downs, but the boys grew stronger and healthier and you would never guess they started life so early,” said Rovinsky, whose family are longtime supporters of Chabad of Plano, where the boys bris, was celebrated after their release from the hospital. In 2012 Kyle was back at MCP with chest pain, requiring cardiac bypass surgery. Again the family was scared and nervous, but able to draw strength and comfort from their previous experiences with the hospital. “Without The Medical Center of Plano, I would not have my family,” “I can’t thank them enough.”
Just as the hospital’s faculty has been there for Chabad of Plano members, so too have the members supported the hospital, and greater community. A member of Chabad for more than a decade, Leslee Feiwus and Mitzvah Mavens, a group she founded in 2009, has created more than 1500 blankets, shawls, lap robes, stuffed animals, baby booties and hats, and more for community agencies, with close to 1000 pieces donated to MCP.
“We have artistic talents but how many afghans can you give to your family members? By donating our talents we know we are helping others, and providing hugs from the community through our work,” said Feiwus, who with Mitzvah Mavens received the MCP’s Community Partner award in 2013. “Each piece we donate has a personalized note from the artist, and we know we touch the recipients. The hospital has always been so appreciative and they let us know how much what we do matters.”
“I appreciate the symbiotic relationship between the Medical Center and Chabad and believe it to be very meaningful for all of us,” said Dr. William Kantor, a general surgeon associated with MCP for almost 15 years, who first attended Chabad to participate in a Jewish Learning Institute course on Medical Ethics, in order to receive continuing education credits. In the ensuing four years, Kantor has become a regular attendee at weekday and Sabbath services, and involved in numerous programs of the congregation. “Rabbi Block and Chabad of Plano are not just about religion, but about community and family. They have made an incredible difference in my life, and I truly found a gift by taking that first class.”
“Teaching to make a difference is at our core and to have Dennis Prager return to us, for a fourth time, is a guarantee to touch the spiritual, the academic, and the cognitive core of each of us,” said Rabbi Block. Prager, one of America’s most respected radio talk show hosts, has been broadcasting on radio for more than 30 years, and can be heard locally on 660KSKY, Monday through Fridays from noon to 2pm. Prager, who has been featured on many shows including Fox and Friends, Red Eye, Hardball, Hannity, CBS Evening News, and The Today Show, and he has authored Still the Best Hope: Why the World Needs American Values to Triumph, Happiness Is a Serious Problem, Think A Second Time, and Why the Jews and The Nine Questions People Ask about Judaism, both co-authored with Rabbi Joseph Telushkin.
“Dennis is a strong supporter and dear friend of Chabad; he is meaningful, honest, and our audience always leaves thinking, and wanting to learn more,” said Rabbi Block. “And that is the real meaning of what we provide at Chabad of Plano.”
For reservations or more information, visit tickets.ticketforce.com or call 972.596.8270