Harav Chaim Galinsky, the RCE’s traveling sofer STA”M, returned from another successful trip to inspect tefillin and mezuzos in Europe. In this two-week trip, Rav Galinsky visited St. Petersburg, communities in Estonia, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Hanover, Warsaw and Bratislava.

Every year before Rosh Hashanah such a trip is scheduled to enable the Jews living in various European cities to have their tefillin and mezuzos inspected before the Yom Hadin. These inspections are done at cost price. When it is necessary to replace the tefillin and mezuzos, new ones are offered at subsidized prices.

It is estimated that Rav Galinsky inspected some 700 mezuzos and 100 pairs of tefillin.

Rav Galinsky, who also inspects a great many tefillin and mezuzos in Eretz Yisrael, also made presentations for the Jewish children who live in the cities he visited: He demonstrated to the curious children the detailed processes of preparing tefillin and mezuzos.

In every one of the cities where Rav Galinsky visited, the local Rabbi hosted him. In St. Petersburg he stayed with Harav Menachem Mendel Pevzner; in Estonia, with Harav Shmuel Kot; in Copenhagen, with Harav Yitzhak Leventhal; in Hamburg, with Harav Shlomo Bistritzky; in Hanover, with Harav Binyamin Wolff; in Warsaw, with Harav Shalom Ber Stambler; and in Bratislava, with Harav Baruch Myers.

Harav Aryeh Goldberg, deputy director of the RCE, expressed his deep satisfaction with the results of the project. “This is another successful RCE initiative,” he said, and added, “Following this trip, dozens of other Rabbanim approached our offices with a request that their city be included in the sofer’s next tour.”