Jeremy and Rina Schiowitzs’ one week trip to the Canadian Rockies almost went according to plan. The Woodmere couple stayed in Canmore (right near Chabad), and toured Banff and Jasper. Described by many as an “outdoor enthusiasts’ paradise,” Jeremy and Rina tremendously enjoyed their Canadian Rockies vacation. 

Taking heed of the well-known warning not to travel on a Friday, Jeremy and Rina planned to arrive home in New York Thursday evening, July 18. They were booked on an 11:30 a.m. Thursday morning WestJet flight from Calgary to Toronto. In Toronto, they would connect to a Delta flight which would take them to Laguardia Airport.

Arriving at the Calgary airport in plenty of time for their 11:30 a.m. flight to Toronto, the couple were relaxing in a beautiful lounge when the time came to board the plane. Jeremy and Rina watched all those in front of them board but when their turn arrived, they were told that there was an error and were denied boarding.

Several customer service agents later, the couple learned that their Delta flight had been canceled. As it was WestJet’s policy not to allow the first leg of a trip if the second leg had been canceled, Jeremy and Rina weren’t allowed to board their flight to Toronto. Unfortunately, however, their luggage was already checked and their suitcases were making their way to Toronto without them.

Flightless in Calgary, the couple now became concerned about getting home in time for Shabbat. The best option available was to take a 7 p.m. flight from Calgary to Portland, a second flight from Portland to Minneapolis, and a third flight from Minneapolis to LaGuardia, which would get them to their New York home Friday morning.

That evening, the couple uneventfully flew from Calgary to Portland and were awaiting the next leg of their trip when their next flight debacle started to materialize. Hearing an announcement about “computer issues,” Jeremy Googled and saw the news about the CrowdStrike outage which was massively affecting flights.

At this point, the scene in the airport became somewhat chaotic. The waiting areas were extremely crowded, airline staff were giving out snacks, and Jeremy and Rina were lying on a hard floor trying to sleep. Finally, at about 2:30 a.m., an announcement was made stating that all Delta flights had been canceled.

Upon hearing the announcement, many who lived in Portland returned home but the Schiowitzs had nowhere to go and needed to find a place to stay. The couple quickly realized that hotels were full and many websites were down. Jeremy heard others around him panicking, with one person uttering: “I called seven hotels and couldn’t find a single room available.”

Remaining calm, Jeremy sat down to plug in his laptop and search for an available hotel room. Speaking to the man seated next to him, Jeremy explained that he and Rina had nowhere to go, were without their luggage, and thus far two of their flights had been canceled. The man smiled and said: “It is incredible how calm you are.” Speaking to The Jewish Link, Jeremy stated “I felt like it was a Kiddush Hashem because I was wearing a yarmulke, and my attitude was ‘It’s meant to be, and we’ll figure it out.’”

As luck would have it, Jeremy was able to snag the only room available at a Best Western, and he and Rina arrived at the hotel about 3:30 a.m. The couple set their alarm for 7 a.m., when they would begin to figure out what to do for Shabbat.

In the morning, Jeremy put his circumstances into a WhatsApp chat of friends, who quickly replied with two suggestions.

Unsurprisingly the first suggestion was to call Chabad, which Jeremy did. Chabad made the Schiowitzs feel extremely comfortable and invited them to the Chabad house so that they could make a Shabbat plan.

Then, in typical Jewish geography fashion, Jeremy’s friend Nathaniel Rogoff suggested he call Portland resident Meira Spivak. Upon telling Meira their plight, she immediately asked the Schiowitzs if she could help with housing and meals. Within minutes the Schiowitzs had their Shabbat plans in place. They would stay at the home of Joan and Jules Stiber, eat with Meira and her family on Friday night, and have lunch at the home of Rabbi Daniel and Sima Borsuk.

With their Shabbat accommodations in place Jeremy and Rina turned their attention to shop for some clothing, even though the Stibers offered to lend the couple whatever they needed. They then went to lunch at the JCC, from where Joan picked them up.

Beginning to realize that their Oregon hosts were going to take care of them amazingly well, the Schiowitzs began to look forward to experiencing Shabbat in Portland.

The shul Jeremy and Rina attended was Congregation Kesser Israel, comprised of approximately 120 member units. Jeremy told The Jewish Link: “It was such a friendly environment. Everyone knew about us because Meira put our story on the community chat asking for volunteers to host us.”

At Friday night dinner at the Spivaks, Jeremy and Rina learned that Meira’s husband, Rabbi Chanan Spivak, is the rosh kollel and that the couple does much for the community. Rabbi Spivak is about Jeremy’s age and, according to Jeremy, “We had a lot of connections.”

Jeremy and Rina loved the bustling energy of the Spivaks’ home. “The Spivaks have a large family, and their home was full of NCSYers and the childrens’ many friends.”

The kiddush at the shul on Shabbat day was a group effort. Stated Jeremy, “Everyone contributes, including one of the teenagers who made the kugel.”

At Shabbat lunch, Jeremy and Rina learned about the challenges of a small community. “There’s no high school in town which causes some people to move out, and that’s sad because it’s a close-knit community,”

The couple also learned that “many people move to the community because of jobs, school, or family, and they end up staying there. They also have a Kollel in the community with several young Rabbis, which is a draw.”

When Jeremy returned to the shul on Shabbat afternoon for Daf Yomi, Mincha, and seudat shlishit, he was amazed at how he felt he knew everyone. Explained Jeremy, “I daven at the Young Israel of Woodmere which I love but it’s huge. I’ve been living there since 2006 and I don’t know half the people. It’s just so different in Portland.”

After Shabbat, and once the CrowdStrike issue was resolved, the Schiowitzs made their way home. Joan tracked their flight and texted them as soon as they arrived in New York. Unsurprisingly, Joan also texted them later in the week to wish them Shabbat Shalom.

Reflecting on their travels, Jeremy stated, “I kept saying to myself that everything happens for a reason. We felt that we were supposed to be in Portland for Shabbat. Had I been in Woodmere as planned it would have been a nice Shabbat with my friends, but I probably would have eventually forgotten about it. But being in Portland for Shabbat, meeting a lot of incredible people, and seeing the community was a great experience which will be a wonderful memory in my mind.”

The Schiowitzs also explained to The Jewish Link that their emunah helped them through this ordeal. Jeremy runs a website called www.EmunaDaily.com, where he posts a spiritual quote each day. His corresponding WhatsApp group has amassed a following of over 6,000 people who receive his daily emunah quotes.

This past Monday, Jeremy sent out a quote from R’ Elimelech Biderman which captures the couples’ attitude during their travels: “Rebbe Shlomo of Karlin, zt”l said, ‘One should never feel that the place where he is isn’t good.’ Hashem arranged for you to be in that place and under those circumstances because He wants you to serve Him particularly from there.”

So perhaps the Schiowitzs’ vacation did go according to plan, after all.

Judith Falk is the creator of the Upper West Side Shtetl Facebook Group. You can follow her on instagram @upperwestsideshtetl. She is a lawyer by day and a former legal reporter.