Evening of Celebration
MOTZAEI SHABBOS PARASHAS BO / JANUARY 8 , 2022 • PARTNERS . DARCHEI . ORG
MR . AND MRS . JAKE AND ROCHEL WALDEN
PARENTS OF THE YEAR
Jake and Rochel Walden stand out as exceptional parents who deeply value their partnership with the Yeshiva in establishing a warm and genuine home focused on ehrlichkeit and chinuch habanim . The importance of teaching their children to be the most honest and best version of themselves is their most integral mission .
Pillars of the growing community in North Woodmere , the Waldens have opened their home to build a flourishing shul which has grown from a small minyan in their basement to a well-respected kehillah . Today , KODESH serves as a warm makom tefillah and aliyah for over 75 families under the leadership of Reb Joey Rosenfeld . The recent groundbreaking of the firstever mikvah taharah in the neighborhood is another example of what the Waldens and their chevra have been accomplishing .
Jake is the managing partner and owner of Emerald Healthcare , but the growth of his spirituality and those around him remains the highest priority in his life . Attending Mercaz HaTorah of Belle Harbor and Mir Yerushalayim , Jake became close with his rabbeim and remains a close ally to them and their yeshivos today , frequently hosting Rav Shmuel Zev Dicker , Rav Nissan Kaplan , and other rabbanim . Jake also serves as the chairman of the board and trustee of his brother ’ s yeshiva , Birchas Moshe , in Lakewood . This commitment to chinuch is an outgrowth of the examples set by his parents , Benzion and Elly Walden , and his grandfather , Rabbi Meir Walden ( who served as the founding principal of Bais Yaakov of the Upper West Side after fleeing from
Germany along with the Mirrer Yeshiva via Shanghai ).
Rochel is the daughter of Yanky and Shani Segal and granddaughter of David and Ruth Semel , of the historic Semel ’ s Grocery in Borough Park and thereafter the first worldwide kosher food distributor , Quality Frozen Foods . She graduated at the top of her class at Bnos Leah Prospect Park and Touro College with an early vision of leadership and philanthropy . It did not take long for her to host a growing shul in her basement and maintain an open-home lifestyle in the community . She is involved with numerous chesed organizations and has become someone whom people regularly rely on for advice and support . Rochel ’ s brother Zevi was the first family member to attend Darchei and remains a close talmid of Rav Yaakov Bender and Rav Dovid Geller , the mashgiach ruchani of Beis Medrash Heichal Dovid , with whom the entire Segal family has built a close kesher .
Above all , Jake and Rochel are dedicated parents to their children , Tzila , Dovid , Avi and Esther . We are grateful for their acknowledgment of the special rabbeim who have impacted the lives of their children thus far and for recognizing the innovative ideas of the Darchei faculty in an ever-changing world . To quote the Waldens , “ The Yeshiva respects our children ’ s individual needs while maintaining high structure … It runs like a well-oiled machine . We are impressed with how the Yeshiva does not rest on its laurels and uses the most up-to-date methods to educate their talmidim , all while caring for each child .”
We are proud to acknowledge the Waldens ’ sterling example with this year ’ s Parents of the Year Award .
6 BEDARCHEI HATORAH WINTER 5782 / 2022