Special Updates

It is of utmost importance to us that we ensure the safety of all women, both users and attendants.  We are not, under any circumstance, allowing out-of-town visitors to use our Mikvah, nor are we allowing women who have hosted out-of-town guests to use the Mikvah.

*** All Mikvah users and attendants are screened with the following questions prior to entry:***

1. During the last 14 days, have you had contact with anyone who has lab-confirmed COVID-19, is under investigation for COVID-19, or is hospitalized or being treated at home for a respiratory or febrile illness?

2. Have you had any of the following symptoms in the past 14 days?

• Fever of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher?
• Cough, shortness of breath, or sore throat?
• Diarrhea?
• Muscle aches?
• Pneumonia/flu symptoms?

3. Have you traveled outside of the US or to New York in the last 14 days?

4. Please check your temperature at home regardless of symptoms.  Anyone with a fever of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher should refrain from entering the Mikvah.

In addition we are implementing the following updated protocols recommended by Mikvah USA:

1. The Mikvah attendant will wear nitrile gloves at all times, and will put on a fresh pair between users. A six foot distance will be maintained between all women.

2. We are asking that all preparations for the Mikvah be made at home as if it was Shabbos. For the foreseeable future all changing rooms should only be used for changing.

3. Every user must bring two (2) of her own towels, robe or sheet, and flip flops for use at the Mikvah. No towels or robes will be provided.

4. Every user must wash her hands with soap before coming to the Mikvah. It is critical that she washes them thoroughly again in the prep room before entering the Mikvah pool for immersion.

5. On returning to the prep room after immersion, and before leaving the Mikvah, every user must wipe down all surfaces that have been touched. Disinfectant wipes and nitrile gloves are provided in every room.

6. All laundry and trash must be taken home with the user. No personal property is to remain at the Mikvah.

*Please be assured that the water in the Mikvah pool is properly chlorinated and presents no hazard. To allay any of your potential concerns, the chlorine in the Mikvah water is potent enough to destroy the virus.

Thank you for your diligence in following all of the above protocols for the welfare of all concerned.

With Hashem's help we will all come through this difficult time healthy and well.

Sincerely,

Debi Epstein & Shari Goldberg

Health and Safety Procedures

• Mikvah Ohel Leah has contracted with our cleaning crew to clean the facilities in on a daily basis. This is in addition to the cleaning done by the attendants in the evenings. Disinfectants are being used and we are specifically focusing on all handheld items, doorknobs and counters.
• We have antibacterial wipes and gloves in all prep rooms
• We are requesting a donation of an extra $5 to help defray the added expense of the daily cleaning during the current health crisis.
• We have and will continue to consult with Medical Professionals as well as Rabbinic authority for further updates.

ROSH CHODESH NISAN 5780

These are not normal times. Which perhaps makes it easier for us to imagine another not normal time: the period when our people were slaves in Egypt.  Close your eyes for a second and imagine being there. Watch your babies being snatched from your arms and cruelly drowned or cemented into the walls of buildings. Watch your husband and children being forced to do back-breaking labor. Feel the whip on your back. Then envision redemption and know that it was you--the Jewish woman, who brought it about.

The Gemara states that our slavery ended because of the merit of righteous women.  “Bi-zechus nashim tzidkanios... nig'alu Yisrael mi-Mitzrayim.” (Sotah 11b).  One of the most remarkable things we know about women of this era is from Rashi in Shemos 38:8:1, who describes how the women used their copper mirrors to promote peace and affection in their marriages. When their husbands returned home from forced labor, they would give them food and drink, then bring a mirror and look in it with their husbands saying “See, I am handsomer than you!” Rashi says that this “flirtatious” behavior aroused the love and desire of their husbands, and they were thus able to perpetuate the Jewish people by having children, even in the darkest times.

Later, the women donated these copper mirrors to the Mishkan and Hashem described them as “dearer to Me than all the other contributions”.  B'zchus nashim tzidkaniyos nigalu mi-Mitzrayim...u'bizchusam asid l'higael...in the merit of the righteous women we were redeemed from Egypt, and in their merit we will be redeemed from this Galus. (Talmud Sotah 11b and Zohar).

Obviously, we don’t know when Mashiach is coming but we believe, as we are required to, that it can happen now. It is Nisan, and we are women.

These are stressful times. Those who are not on the dangerous front lines are cooped up at home, dealing with the stress and fear and the daily stream of difficult news. The last thing we are thinking about is nurturing our marriages.  But maybe that’s what we need to think about. Maybe that can be a catalyst in our times, just as it was in Mitzrayim. Because these things are not really guesses, they are things that we KNOW.

We KNOW the women brought about our past redemption. We KNOW the women can do it again. So why not now? Why not take upon ourselves to be the nashim tzidkanos of our generation?  We can nurture our marriages even in times of stress. We can give our spouses love and attention even as we are dealing with a daily stream of difficult news.

I wish upon all of us that we will see the end of this pandemic very soon, and that we will merit to be at the front of the procession as we are redeemed, and that we will soon be dancing like Miriam the Propehetess, who led the Jewish women in song and dance as they were freed from Egypt.

Thank you to Mrs. Chaya Glatt for sharing these inspiring words for Chodesh Nisan

Chodesh Tov! (Best wishes for a good month!)

Debi Epstein