How does one go about arranging an inspiring Shabbos program that brings together Jews from disparate communities who were previously unfamiliar with each other? How is a venue selected that is not too much out of the way for any of the guests? Who should be chosen to serve as baalei tefilah to lead inspiring tefilos? Where should the food come from? And here’s the clincher: Can costs be kept to a minimum to include people living on shoestring budgets, who can’t afford the popular “Shabbos getaways” advertised in glossy magazines? And can walk-ins without reservations be accommodated? One more thing: can the arrival date be the erev Shabbos which is also Shushan Purim?

A rational, logistically-minded person would immediately dismiss these criteria as impossible. But when Divine Will ordains a series of circumstances to fortuitously coalesce, anything can happen. This is the epic story of Shabbos, Parshas Ki Sisah, 16 Adar, 5778 (March 3, 2018) that unfolded in rural northeastern Maryland and environs.