Queens Torah Campaign Anchored at Beth Gavriel Raises About $8 Million

On Rosh Chodesh Tammuz, June 16, hundreds of rabbanim, communal leaders, and yeshivah students filled the newly built Beth Gavriel Center in Forest Hills for a campaign evening on behalf of Keren Olam HaTorah.

According to the Bukharian Jewish Link, the fund supports bnei Torah, kollel families, and Torah institutions in Israel facing financial pressure after government funding reductions. Rabbi Ilan Meirov of Chazaq, serving as master of ceremonies, framed the event as a response to that crisis rather than a celebration of a completed project.

Rabbi Yitzchak Yisraeli, Chief Rabbi of the Bukharian Community of the United States, told attendees that supporting Torah families in Israel was “safeguarding the future of klal Yisrael.” Speakers included Harav Yaakov Hillel, Harav Yitzchak Ezrachi of Mir Yerushalayim, Harav Asher Weiss, and others. Beth Gavriel mara d’asra Rabbi Emanuel Shimonov and colleagues greeted guests at the door.

The Link reported that after the Beth Gavriel program and a follow-up community gathering at Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim in Kew Gardens Hills—plus meetings with philanthropists and activists—approximately $8 million had been raised toward the campaign that day.

The evening also showcased rare communal unity: Sephardic and Ashkenazic leaders, Bukharian and Persian rabbanim, and Chassidic and Lithuanian figures gathered under one roof for a shared cause linking Queens philanthropy to Israeli Torah life.

Mr. Reuven Wolf of Keren Olam HaTorah updated attendees on campaign progress and urged personal involvement. Organizers emphasized that the day’s total reflected not only the Beth Gavriel program but follow-on meetings with philanthropists and activists across Queens Jewry—an unusual cross-communal sprint for Israeli Torah institutions.

Sources: Bukharian Jewish Link. Image: Jacob Gucker / Wikimedia Commons, CC0.