Thousands of Jewish visitors who had come to Wisconsin for the Republican National Convention, found a warm welcome at Lubavitch of Wisconsin. When they were unable to return home Friday, after an IT outage caused thousands of flights to be canceled or delayed, Chabad once again welcomed Shabbat observers stranded in Milwaukee for the weekend.
As the extent of the outage became clear early Friday morning, the calls started coming in to Lubavitch of Wisconsin — and the phone is still ringing. “With so many travelers stranded, this is a true all-hands operation,” said Rabbi Shea Shmotkin. “Travelers are being hosted in area Chabad centers as well as in the homes of generous community members, and each area Chabad shliach will be hosting expanded Shabbat meals to accommodate everyone in need.”
Many travelers got to know Chabad over the course of the week. A Chabad Hospitality Hub set up outside the convention served some 600 kosher meals each day, provided minyanim for prayers, and offered a place to relax, recharge and connect amid the bustle of the convention.
Additionally, a Chabad booth inside the convention offered the opportunity for Tefillin and to learn about the Seven Noahide Laws, while student rabbis met with visiting delegates, elected officials, and public figures, encouraging them to support the Jewish community and the Land of Israel.
“Chabad is like Visa—everywhere you want to be,” said Dan Huff, a visitor in town for the convention, who will be joining Chabad this Shabbat. “I’m very grateful to them for making it easy to be Jewishly observant in Milwaukee.”
“Their system was a much-needed failsafe this Shabbos.”
“It was especially inspiring to see elected officials encouraging their friends to stop in at the Chabad tent for tefillin or some kosher food,” said Rabbi Moshe Luchins of Chabad of Mequon, who organized the Chabad Hospitality Hub along with Shmotkin. “It really brought home the adage ‘one mitzvah brings another.’”
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