A Minyan of Their Own

If you walked into Sharzar Hall on a weekday morning, you might think you’d stumbled upon a well-established minyan. The room is orderly, the tefillah serious and focused, and the participants tuned in and respectful. The chazzan’s voice is clear, and the responses are strong.
But then you’d notice the backpacks.

This minyan, punctual, powerful, and reverent, is made up entirely of middle school boys.
Each weekday morning at 8:00 AM, over 40 Torah Academy students in grades 6-8 gather for Shacharis in the Bostoner Rebbe’s shul. They arrive by foot, by bike, by scooter, or carpool, fresh-faced and ready to begin their day with kavana. The space, used each Shabbos for Shalosh Seudos, must be reset on Monday mornings. And who takes care of it? The boys themselves. Then, with tefillin packed away and siddurim returned, the boys shoulder their bags and cross the street to the Williston building to begin classes at 9:10.

This weekday minyan has run uninterrupted since 2017. It was originally overseen by Rabbi Rafael Polter, TA’s beloved third-grade Rebbi. In 2022, middle school rabbeim Rabbis Eli Kohn, Ahron Benmergui, and Yechezkel Nulman stepped up to guide the minyan and now daven daily alongside their talmidim.

This minyan is more than a convenience; it’s a classroom in itself. These crucial middle school years are when boys begin to internalize what it means to live as part of a kehilla. Davening in a structured environment with peers allows them to “try on” responsibility in a way that builds confidence and competence. At a typical shul, they may not yet be comfortable being called to the amud or receiving an aliyah. Here, they are nurtured and empowered, experiencing environmental learning at its best.

It’s also the minyan where most of these boys will put on tefillin for the first time. Their hanochas tefillin becomes a personal milestone marked by a special breakfast and often accompanied by a proud father.

One such father recently shared his impressions:

“I had the zechus of davening there a few times in the recent weeks and was blown away by the seriousness of the davening.”
— Rabbi Moshe Wallin

A minyan, by definition, requires ten. It’s a powerful reminder that every person counts. The Torah Academy minyan teaches that truth in the most formative way possible: by inviting our children to step into roles of responsibility, to be seen, to be heard, and to help uphold a chain of tradition that spans generations.

Next time you’re in the neighborhood, stop by. You just might hear the chorus of tomorrow’s baalei tefillah, voices strong and sincere, growing into their roles as leaders of Klal Yisrael.