Dayna with several friends at the capitol
Immediately following a life changing trip to Israel with fellow Binghamton students the first week of June, I had the remarkable opportunity to go on another adventure. Along with 2 other Binghamton student leaders (Daniel Rabinowitz & Adam Shamah) I traveled to Washington DC to attend the Living Legacy Leadership Conference, from June 15th to June 17th. This conference, which marked the Lubavitch Rebbe's Yahrzeit, brought together about 50 students and hundreds of shluchim, community leaders & supporters ambassadors, politicians, & diplomats from around the world. Our conference began after check-in at our hotel the Courtyard Marriot. We kicked off the conference with a delicious cocktail reception at the St. Regis hotel where we received our name tags & special conference pins, which (were to be worn at all times) we wore throughout the conference. Students were warmly greeted by one another & even played "Jewish Geography," immediately making friends with fellow conference attendees. After an hour and a half of schmoozing and eating with fellow students and Rabbis, we moved downstairs for our opening session. We had an ice-breaker led by the Rabbi from University of Delaware & spoke with a Rabbi from England that gave us a "taste" of a farbrengen. When we thought it was time for bed we were welcomed with a great surprise. The Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Yonah Metzger took time out of his busy schedule to sit down and talk with us as a group. We all found him to be quite funny and he spoke of some anecdotes related to him and his relationship with the Rebbe.
Chief Rabbi Yonah Metzger addresses participants in the student leadership conference
The next day we attended breakfast at Capitol Hill and got the chance to take pictures with tons of senators & other politicians including Senator Joe Lieberman. Following the breakfast, we attended a symposium on the Rebbe’s leadership style and its lessons in which several scholars participated.
Quick picture with Senator Joe Lieberman
Participants pose for a group picture at the capitol
After the breakfast (which was extremely exciting) and the symposium, we continued on the day with a luncheon in the stunning Mellon Auditorium of the Reagan building. There were several guest speakers including the Chief Rabbi and the Ambassador to Israel Michael Oren.
Following the luncheon was the most memorable part of the conference and that was having a group session with the extraordinary Elie Wiesel. Elie Wiesel is a survivor of the Holocaust & the author of many books, including the most well-known "Night." After having to read this in junior high, as many fellow students did, it was a surreal experience to meet him in person & hear him speak what he conveyed in his books. What I took away the most from our session with him, was when a student asked "Do you think there could ever be another Holocaust?" Mr. Wiesel's response was to the effect of "No, not to the same effect as the Holocaust he was a part of. The Holocaust remains to this day the most studied & researched event in the history of mankind." He finished with what struck me the most, "Most important is that we can NEVER forget. People don't realize that the ACT of forgetting the Holocaust could very well be more powerful than the event itself." In addition to Wiesel we heard from the President of AIPAC & the generous Mayberg family that sponsored us to be there.
Following Wiesel we attended an extravagant dinner banquet at the back at the Mellon Auditorium that was immensely fun. Food, dancing, music from Avraham Fried & more words from Wiesel & others marked this momentous occasion. All of the speakers at this conference, including Wiesel were all there to teach us things that the Rebbe believed in, such as learning & spreading light in a world that sometimes has all too much darkness.
At the gala dinner
From attending this conference I have discovered how simple it is to do just that. Spreading light in a world like ours isn't as hard as it seems. Every time we listen to a remarkable soul like Elie Wiesel or hear the political remarks of Senators we are learning things we can spread to others like us, not just to fellow leaders.
As leaders we have a duty but as people, Jewish people, we have a moral obligation to keep learning and keep spreading the light so that we can carry on the work of the Rebbe, of blessed memory, and be his living legacy.