[PHOTOS BY JDN IN EXTENDED ARTICLE]

Flying in and out of John F. Kennedy International Airport is about to become much easier for Jewish travelers with the opening of the Rabbi Morton Friedman Mincha-Maariv/Rest Area just minutes away from JFK.

The full service rest area will be located just off the Belt Parkway at the Rockwood Park Jewish Center, approximately five minutes away from the busy international airport and will offer travelers minyanim and access to a beis medrash. Kosher sandwiches and light refreshments will be available and, in addition, free parking will be available by reservation.

The Mincha/Rest area is the second facility to be dedicated in memory of Rabbi Morton Friedman, a Kiryas Joel resident who devoted his life to community service at upstate area hospitals with free Shabbos rooms and worked hand in hand with law enforcement agencies to better accommodate the needs of the Jewish community.

“We hope to be able to serve travelers in and out of JFK including those who get stuck at the airport, have flight delays or experience any other airport issues,” said Rabbi Tzvi Berkowitz of the Rockwood Park Jewish Center.

The Orthodox synagogue, which is located at 156-45 84th Street in the Howard Beach section of Queens, has fourteen parking places available for long or short term airport parking, providing a significant savings for travelers.

The Rabbi Morton Friedman Mincha-Maariv/Rest Area will be opening on July 14th and will be open from 5 PM to 8 PM. To make a parking reservation or to hear the daily schedule for Shachris, Mincha or Maariv, contact the Rockwood Park Jewish Center at 718-641-5822.

Rabbi Morton Friedman was instrumental in the creation of the Sloatsburg Mincha area in 2008. The rest stop was renamed the Tefilas Mordche Mincha Area in his memory in 2010 and is frequented by hundreds weekly on their summer trips up to the Catskills.

“This is a fitting tribute to my father’s legacy and another way of helping the community by providing access to a facility offering free food, parking and minyanim,” said Rabbi Abe Friedman, who along with his brother Joel, continues the legacy of the Sloatsburg Mincha area.

(YWN Desk – NYC)