Rabbi Mendy Harlig was born and raised in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, New York. He was ordained as a rabbi in 1996. He moved to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1998. Rabbi Mendy Harlig is the spiritual leader of the Chabad of Green Valley, later renamed Chabad of Henderson. He was introduced to the Las Vegas community in 1990 by his brother Rabbi Shea Harlig. Hasidic Judaism has surrounded Mendy since his youth in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn. He seemed destined to become a Chabad rabbi.

Chabad of Southern Nevada was established in 1990 by Rabbi Shea Harlig and his wife Dina Harlig. It is an outpost of the worldwide Chabad-Lubavitch organization that provides social services and educational programs for members of the Jewish community. Chabad of Southern Nevada is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada and has six affiliated centers: Chabad of Summerlin, Chabad of Green Valley, Chabad of East-Or Bamidbar, Chabad of Southwest, Chabad Hebrew Center, and Chabad Student Services at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.