This was an exceptionally emotional, inspiring and moving evening! If you missed our Annual Dinner honoring the Life and Legacy of Vera Menlo, ע״ה – don’t fret – you can experience the camaraderie, the excitement, the deep emotions and the kiddush Hashem, right here, right now (and as often as you like) at this Dinner In Review Page.
If you want a quick recap of the evening, you can watch the highlight reel below (don’t forget to keep on scrolling down so you don’t miss anything important).
We are so pleased that nearly 500 of our closest friends joined with us to honor a special woman, and to support the students of Valley Torah High School.
Promptly, at a few minutes before 7:00 the doors opened to the ballroom. The decor, the lighting, all exquisite!
The salad course was waiting at our table. The efficient wait staff promptly removed our salad and served the prime rib of beef (this is where virtual reality leaves something to be desired – I’m afraid you can’t taste just how delicious that steak was!) Just as we put down our forks… the wait staff magically appeared and removed our plates.
The program started off with a fast-paced overview of some of last-year’s accomplishments
Avi & Tanya Heyman, grandchildren of Mrs. Menlo and VTHS alumni, served as the evenings MC’s. They introduced Rabbi Yisrael Majeski, one of the Valley Torah rebbeim. Rabbi Majeski began by leading us in saying tehillim for the situation in Israel.
Rabbi Majeski introduced some video messages from some of our alumni currently serving in the IDF. Here are two of the messages:
Rabbi Majeski called up the Gera family. Three young ladies that lived on a moshav near Gaza. Their moshav was Shomer Shabbat and the terrorists did not enter. The girls were evacuated later in the day by the IDF forces. Soon after, they came to LA and now the three girls are attending VTHS Girls Division where they have been warmly embraced. Hear the girls tell their story themselves:
After this moving – sad and happy – story, we were treated to a musical interlude by one of our students, Maya R’bibo. Next up, Yemina Soufer (VTHS Class of 2002) introduced or Change-makers video. Mrs. Menlo was a caring individual that spearheaded much needed change in our community. That spirit of change-making is still very much alive in the Valley Torah community.
Rabbi Stulberger was called to the stage where he explained how Mrs. Vera Menlo was the behind-the-scenes power to all her husband’s activities. The theme of the video produced in her memory was, Her Courage Was Her Crown. After the video, Her son, Frank Menlo, gave a moving message in memory of his parents.
Avi & Tanya returned to the podium and concluded the program. Everyone left inspired and with a strong feeling of unity with our community and the entire Jewish Nation. Here are some more pictures of the evening (you can see even more pictures at the VTHS.org Dinner 2023 picture gallery post).
