More Than One Thousand South Florida Residents Celebrate Chabad of East Boca at Concert

BOCA RATON, Fla. - March 20, 2013 - PRLog -- Despite pouring rain coming down outside, more than one thousand people came out last night to celebrate Chabad of East Boca (http://www.chabadbocabeaches.com/)’s Bar Mitzvah! The concert featured the sounds of ‘King of Jewish Music’ Mordechai Ben David as well as child prodigy Ethan Bortnick – both of whom were lauded by the crowd. The concert followed a week of music and activities held at the Mizner Park Amphitheater – all part of the Boca Raton Festival of Arts.

The evening kicked off with over 200 people dining at the ‘A Time to Celebrate’ VIP cocktail hour. Following that, event chair Sheri Farbish introduced the evening’s masters of ceremony Arlene Herson and Sid Rosenberg, who jointly hosted the evening with humor and with poise.

Eleven-year old Ethan Bortnick was welcomed to the stage by Steinway Piano CEO, Bob Luptak, before wowing the crowd with his mix of musical genres, from classical to rock to religious. Bortnick was immediately followed by the Freilach Orchestra and Shira Choir who travelled from New York for the concert, took center stage and instantly filled the Amphitheater with a high octane intro for Mordechai Ben David (MBD). MBC then started the night with the rousing "Kulam Ahuvim" and continued to perform at his vintage best, electrifying the night like only he can, with hits like “Someday,” “Just One Shabbos,” “Unity,” “Moshaich” and more.

After MBD’s first set, 15 honorees were called to the stage and honored for their outstanding contributions to the community at large. The honorees included:

Dr. Allen Bezner - Maimonides Physician Award; Mike Gold - Corporate Leadership Award; Myrna Gordon Skurnick - Woman of Valor Award; Melvyn Weiss - Holocaust Memorial Award; Dr. Jeffrey Zipper - Defender of Israel Award; Peter Dosik - Friendship and Unity Award; Marc Goldman - Innovative Leadership Award; Yaacov Heller - Judaic Art and Culture Award; Arlene Herson - Lifetime Achievement Award; John Hoffmann - Defender of Jerusalem Award; Howard Kaye - Community Service Award; Ari and Gracia Kugler,  Mendy & Leah Schurder - Crown of Torah Award; Allen Libow - Florida Law and Jurisprudence Award; Herb and Rita Raiffe - Humanitarian Award; Zev Rudolph - Lamplighter Award; Marc Siegel - Entrepreneur of the Year; Eric Tobak - Young Leadership Award; and Kosher Market Place - Excellence in Kosher Quality Award.

“Rather than celebrate our Bar Mitzvah year with a dinner that limits participation, we wanted to do something that would bring the greater community together and nothing does it quite like music,” said Rabbi Ruvi New, director of the Chabad of East Boca. “It was the perfect way to celebrate our freedom in joy and unity and have an awesome time while we were at it.”

About MBD
Headline act Mordechai Ben David (MBD), who performed in Boca Raton for the first time ever, is a wildly popular American Hasidic Jewish singer and songwriter.  He has produced over 30 albums over the past 40 years, including hit songs like ‘Moshiach, Moshiach, Moshiach’ and ‘Just One Shabbos.’ MBD performs worldwide and has starred in the popular charity concerts HASC and Ohel for almost two decades. Learn more about MBD and listen to his music here (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mbd&oq=mb...).

About Ethan Bortnick
Twelve-year-old Ethan Bortnick is a pianist, singer, composer, songwriter, actor, musician and one of the youngest philanthropists (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philanthropist) in the world. He has moved audiences nationally and internationally and is dedicated to combining his musical pursuits with his charity work. At three years of age, the Hollywood, Florida native begged his parents for piano lessons and discovered an uncanny ability to hear a song once and play it back note for note—the musical equivalent of a photographic memory. Bortnick has toured the world, connecting with diverse audiences in countries such as South Africa, Brazil, and Australia. In 2011, he made history as the youngest entertainer to headline a show in Las Vegas with his residency at the Las Vegas Hilton Theater. Learn more about Bortnick at EthanBortnick.com (http://www.ethanbortnick.com/).

About Chabad of East Boca
Chabad of East Boca is the only Synagogue east of Federal Highway in the heart of Boca Raton, FL. More than just a synagogue, Chabad of East Boca has reached thousands through its programming. Its mission is to establish a vibrant center of Jewish life in East Boca Raton, FL. Learn more at www.chabadbocabeaches.com.