Solomon Schechter Welcomed by Mineola Residents

Even though they presumably will not take up residence until the end of summer, the new occupants of the  have already received a housewarming gift.

Following the with by the Mineola Board of Education last Thursday at the , Mineola resident Linda Ramos presented a golden mezuzah to rabbi Lev Herrnson, the head of the private Glen Cove-based Jewish school.

Ramos, handing the mezuzah to Herrnson and Solomon Schechter board member Richard Blau, said that the gift was “on behalf of the majority of the school district.”

A mezuzah is a piece of parchment inscribed with specified verses from the Torah which comprise the Jewish prayer “Shema Yisrael” inside a decorative case. The first line of the prayer is “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One.”

Mezuzahs are affixed to the front doorframe of Jewish homes in order to fulfill the commandment to inscribe the prayer on the home’s doorposts. Their location is most commonly at the front door to a building or home. 

“Thank you so much, this is extraordinary,”  Herrnson said holding the mezuzah. “I don’t have one this nice in my house.” Herrnson is retiring at end of this school year.