About the Kollel

In 1985, Rabbi Dovid Siegel and Rabbi Yaakov Homnick founded Kollel Toras Chesed in Chicago’s Peterson Park neighborhood. The Kollel quickly gained popularity and, in order to accommodate its rapidly expanding Torah programs, moved in 1987 from its original location in Congregation Adas Bnei Yisrael to a larger facility.

Within a few short years, the Kollel’s reputation spread beyond the city limits and the residents of Skokie started to take notice of the burgeoning Torah center. Many from the Skokie community began to avail themselves of the Kollel’s classes and activities and, eventually, expressed the desire to host some of the programs in Skokie. Thus, in 1991, the Kollel’s acclaimed Father & Son Learning program began to meet in Congregation Or Torah.

Soon thereafter, spurred by the continued enthusiasm of the Skokie community and the support and encouragement of key community leaders, Rabbis Siegal and Homnick took the next bold step: to relocate the Kollel to Skokie. After a short transitional stint in Or Torah, the Kollel found its home in a small storefront on Dempster St. and quickly became an integral part of Skokie’s institutional landscape.

As the Kollel’s popularity increased it became evident that a larger space was needed. To meet that need, two adjoining storefronts were purchased in 1997 and the project of remodeling and expanding the Kollel facilities was undertaken. One year later the construction was completed, and the Kollel could then occupy the large Bais Medrash, classrooms, offices and kitchen facility that it enjoys today. On October 18, 1998, in conjunction with a festive Hochnosas Sefer Torah, the new building was dedicated and named the Bernice Fagan Torah Center.

In 2008, ten years after that original dedication, the Fagan and Kaplan families – to memorialize their father as well – renamed the Kollel building: the Dan and Bernice Fagan Torah Center.