W

hen the Rebbe, Rabbi 
Menachem Mendel 
Schneerson, passed away 
30 years ago on the 3rd of Tammuz 
5754 — June 12, 1994 — it was unclear 
what would happen to his legacy and to 
the institutions he spearheaded across 
the globe. However, in the past three 
decades, Chabad has continued to 
flourish in Michigan and beyond.
Chabad in Michigan, which was 
launched in 1958 when Rabbi Berel 
and Batsheva Shemtov were sent by the 
Rebbe to represent Chabad and bring 
local Jews closer to their 
yiddishkeit, continues to 
expand into all corners of 
the state, says their son, 
Rabbi Kasriel Shemtov, 
vice president and exec-
utive director of Chabad 
Lubavitch of Michigan. 
Today, it has grown to 
include some 30 Chabad 
centers and 50 emissary couples under 
Chabad’s Michigan umbrella, including 
those in Toledo and Windsor. 
Five new Chabad centers, led by 
eager young emissaries, fueled by 
the Rebbe’s charge to dedicate their 
lives for the love of the Jewish people 
and live in their service, have opened 
in the last five years, and the rapid 
growth continues, he says. “It shows 
that there are young people ready to 
carry the message of the Rebbe, the 
growth of Chabad, and that the com-
munity is responding.” 

The Chabad movement marks the 
Rebbe’s 30th yahrzeit with continued 
growth in Michigan and beyond.

Rabbi 
Kasriel 
Shemtov

KAREN SCHWARTZ CONTRIBUTING WRITER
PHOTOS COURTESY OF CHABAD

12 | JULY 4 • 2024 
J
N

Legacy 
Lives On

Miriam Ferber visiting the Rebbe

 

 Rebbe’s

the