Rabbi Yehuda Marasow, who served alongside Rabbi Zvi Kogan in Abu Dhabi, has opened a Chabad center in Ramat Hasharon–Herzliya in his memory, serving olim and English speakers.
Rabbi Yehuda Marasow, who served alongside Rabbi Zvi Kogan in Abu Dhabi, has opened Chabad of Ramat Hasharon–Herzliya in his memory, building a home for olim and English-speaking residents. Kogan was abducted and murdered in the UAE in November 2024. Marasow says the center rests on one idea: come as you are.
Carrying Forward a Colleague's Mission
"I served alongside Rabbi Zvi Kogan in Abu Dhabi, and after he was taken from us, I knew the only answer was to keep building what he believed in," says Rabbi Yehuda Marasow, who has now opened Chabad of Ramat Hasharon–Herzliya in his memory. The center serves olim and English-speaking residents in the area, a community that keeps growing as more English-speaking families put down roots in Ramat Hasharon and Herzliya.
A Life Cut Short
Kogan was abducted and murdered in the UAE in November 2024 while serving its Jewish community. He was 28. "Carrying this forward is what Zvi would have wanted," Marasow says.
Come As You Are
Since moving to Israel with his family, Marasow has built the center on one idea: come as you are. "You don't need any religious background. You don't need to know the prayers or have ever opened a machzor. Just come. No judgment, no pressure, just a welcoming place to be part of something meaningful."
First Program: A Yom Kippur Service for Everyone
That spirit shapes the center's first program, a Yom Kippur service at Kiryat Yearim in Ramat Hasharon with English explanations throughout, free of charge. Services run Sunday, September 20 (fast begins 6:13pm, Kol Nidrei 6:30pm) through Monday, September 21 (Neilah 6:15pm, fast ends 7:18pm). RSVP to Yehuda at 050-437-9026.
"No getting lost. Just getting into it," Marasow says. Through Kogan's memory, he's building a place where anyone can walk in and belong.
