People Who Make a Difference in Our Community
We are excited to present our readers a new column that will feature interviews of community members who are making a difference in their neighborhoods and the community at large. One such standout individual is Rabbi Avi Matmon, who writes the very popular “A Cup of Coffee and a Quick Thought” publication and is involved in other areas of Jewish outreach.
Bukharian Jewish Link: Please share your background with our readership.
Rabbi Avi Matmon: I was born in New York in 1962, two years after my family emigrated to Queens from Eretz Yisrael. Imagine, there were only 20 Bukharian families in Queens at that time, only five of which were religious. So, throughout the 1960s there were basically about 20 Bukharian families in the United States. My family, originally under the surname Kimyagarov, was one of the handful of religious families residing in Queens.
BJL: You publish “A Cup of Coffee and A Quick Thought.” What made you choose such a distinct name, and what inspired you to take on this project?
RAM: I love coffee and am a big coffee addict. In my younger years, I would always read The New York Times in the morning with my cup of coffee. One day, I realized that instead of reading the paper, I should be studying something that is Torah-related. Subsequently, a friend brought to my attention a wealthy man who was seeking to sponsor an individual who would be involved in Jewish outreach. My friend connected us and I proposed the creation of a weekly Torah newsletter. The man consented, "You write the article, and I will publish it.” This was a dozen years ago. That’s how the concept for a weekly Torah publication started. Baruch Hashem, we currently have over 20,000 registered in our email list. Our pamphlets are also distributed to many shuls throughout the different neighborhoods of Queens.
BJL: Did you always have a knack for writing?
RAM: I actually never liked writing. I remember in high school, when I was in ninth grade, we had a total of 6 teachers who wound up teaching us the English class by the end of the year. So, as you can imagine, I was very turned off from English. For tenth and eleventh grade, we had lousy English teachers. In twelfth grade, I had written an essay and the teacher had requested that I speak to her after class, as I was somewhat known as a troublemaker. She looked at me sternly, asked if I had really written the essay, and then proceeded to quiz me on its details. After responding, she scribbled something on the paper and handed it to me. She gave me an A+ and said that I was a terrific writer.
In college, I had written a derogatory essay about the jewelry business for my sociology class. The professor had wanted to publish my essay, however I refused citing its negative angle. I’m happy that it wasn’t published because I realized even then that writers have an enormous responsibility and their work can produce a lot of bad as well as good consequences. I remember that in my early 20s, I was in Israel and there was a Kabbalist in town. Although I wasn’t enthusiastic about visiting the Kabbalist, my friends and I ultimately decided to meet the wiseman. Right off the cuff, the Kabbalist related, “Oh wow, I see that you are a great writer.” I had discounted him because I knew that writing wasn’t something that I necessarily enjoyed.
BJL: What has been the most challenging aspect of your publication?
RAM: About 15 years ago, I started giving weekly Torah classes at my shul. There is nothing like going in front of a group thirsty for Torah and delivering a class, because it serves as motivation and gives you a thrill with instant responses, feedback, and reactions. But when you are writing, there’s no crowd to get you pumped; you have to be self-motivated, something that isn’t too simple. When the inspiration arrives, you immediately need to stop whatever you are doing and start writing, because that burst of inspiration vanishes.
BJL: What inspired you to get into Jewish outreach?
RAM: I was the only religious person among my cousins and extended family. One day, when I was in eighth grade, we were all sitting in class, when a cousin of mine, not religious, raised his hand and asked the rebbe a question not related to our coursework. I was able to see that although my cousin’s question was offtopic, he was very sincere, asking, "How do we know that Hashem exists?" My heart started beating rapidly because I thought that this was the perfect opportunity for the rebbe to give an answer that would begin the process for my cousin to become religious. But the rebbe sort of brushed off the query turning my cousin completely off from religious observance. I got very angry, and then and there, I decided that if someone would ask me something similar, I would be prepared to counter. This incident was probably the first seed planted in my life-long commitment to Jewish outreach.
BJL: You often include personal anecdotes, reflections, and cultural references in your work. Tell us about your writing style and approach.
RAM: My eleventh grade rebbe in Navi shared everyday occurrences to the Navi which made it come alive. I drew inspiration from that approach for my writing, where I like to use current events and cultural references to make the Torah come alive and seem very relevant to my readers.
BJL: What would you like to impart to our readers on how they can get started in community outreach?
RAM: Everybody has their unique talents. I’d like to emphasize that we actually have an obligation to not only learn Torah, but to additionally teach it concepts. It’s not enough to learn Torah, but we actually have to transmit its values to others, not necessarily by giving a lecture. We can fulfill this obligation by teac
By Shalom Meirov
In the Spotlight: Rabbi Avi Matmon
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