For the second year, the Jewish Agency and the Genesis Philanthropy Group are running 2 international camps for Russian-speaking youth here in Israel. The project, initiated by Natan Sharansky, is called 'Rimon', and brings together 240 youths aged 13-17 from the FSU, the U.S. and Israel for two week camp programs being held at the Givat Haviva educational campus near Hadera and Kibbutz Nordiya. The goal of the camp programs is to strengthen the campers' Jewish identity and connection to Israel. The camps include trips around the country, meetings with Israeli cultural figures, and workshops on theater, photography, and communications - all with a theme of exploring and strengthening Jewish identity. According to Rina Gerber, manager of the Ma.com program taking place at Nordiya, “Our … Continue Reading
Jewish Camping Builds Community Across Europe, Israel and the FSU
It's summertime, and Jewish camping is in full swing around the world. Not only in North America, but in Europe, Israel and the countries of the former Soviet Union. Beginning today, eJewish Philanthropy will look at a number of programs being run with assistance from (alphabetically) Genesis Philanthropy Group, International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, JDC, the Jewish Agency and UJA Federation-NY. We begin today with stories of JDC camps in Belarus. For Natalia, a 5-year-old from Belarus, and nearly 15,000 Jewish children and their families, this summer will be filled with memorable celebrations of Jewish life and identity. In more than 130 family and youth retreats and Shabbat weekends across 20 countries in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, the American Jewish Joint … Continue Reading
PJ Library Takes Hold in the Big Apple
With more than 6,000 families in the New York area receiving PJ Library’s free Jewish children’s books, Harold Grinspoon - the Library's founder and benefactor - will deliver the Library’s two millionth book to a family in New York City today. PJ Library's New York footprint extends across every borough, north into Westchester County, and out onto Long Island - including reaching homes in the Hamptons. In its ongoing expansion, the program is bringing together families amid a diverse Jewish community in New York. An important part of the New York outreach effort is to the city’s large community of Russian-speaking Jewish families - many of whom do not have a connection to Jewish institutional life. It is well-known that Russian-speaking Jews, who comprise about 20-25% percent of the … Continue Reading
The Brandeis-Genesis Institute for Russian Jewry Offers Newly Illustrated Bilingual Haggadah for Children from Russian-Speaking Jewish Families
From the Brandeis-Genesis Institute for Russian Jewry (BGI), comes a Haggadah for children from Russian-speaking Jewish families. Designed by Avraham Eli Tukachinsky, a Brandeis-Genesis Institute fellow, this Haggadah will help make each family Seder a memorable and learning experience. Treated to a preview last night, Valerie Khaytina, Deputy North American Director of World ORT, told eJP, "This is beyond AWESOME. Exactly what I wanted for my daughter. Genesis made our holiday! I will share with all my friends … wow!!!" Avraham Eli Tukachinsky will graduate from Brandeis University this year. He was born in Haifa, Israel. His parents emigrated to Israel from Moscow, Russia and then from Israel to Ohio before eventually settling in Massachusetts. His sister, Hanna, helped him with … Continue Reading
Mahut Takes the Next Step
by Ron Atkins This past month, fifteen IDF officers, most of whom are originally from the FSU, visited Kiev and Moscow through the third Mahut program. The program, whose goal is developing a Jewish and Israeli identity among IDF officers, is a joint initiative of Beit Morasha of Jerusalem, FIDF, Genesis Philanthropy Group and the IDF. During the the visit, the officers toured various educational sites and met with both young Jewish adults and local Jewish community leaders. Through these visits, the participants gained a new perspective on Jewish identity and learned much about the uniqueness of the local Jewish communities. This encounter is also of great significance for the young Jews who will become the future leaders of the local Jewish community. Most important, the visit … Continue Reading
The 5th Mitbachon Retreat
Princeton, New Jersey, was the scene of the Mitbachon V national retreat for young Russian-speaking Jewish adults in North America. This auspicious event took place on February 18 - 20, 2011 with more than 70 young people in attendance. In translation from Hebrew, “Mitbachon” means “Kitchenette”, a place in a house where people gather for cooking, eating and of course for talking. Since no matter how big a house is, when there’s a social gathering, according to the Russian tradition, everyone congregates in the kitchen. Initiated by the Jewish Agency for Israel and sponsored by and in partnership with the Genesis Philanthropy Group, the UJA-Federation of New York and Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin & Sonoma Counties, Mitbachon's goal was to … Continue Reading
An Entirely (Surprising?) Other Side of Birthright Rights
by Marc Belzberg I warmly applaud Stephen Muss for his well-argued and, in my view, eminently justified plea on behalf of the birth-rights of Diaspora high school age Jewish teens to a meaningful Israel learning experience at least in equal measure with their college and post-college age counterparts (in his February 7, 2011 opinion piece: “The Other Right of Birthright”). I wholeheartedly wish every success to Lapid, the new Coalition for High School Age Programs in Israel and have every hope that it will be adopted by Birthright’s visionary funders as part and parcel of their program, equally worthy of their support. As a Diaspora public school kid myself some decades ago from Vancouver, Canada, my high school and college age Israel experiences were powerfully formative in terms of the … Continue Reading
Revisiting Jewish Moscow after 25 Years
by Jonathan D. Sarna I last visited Russia in 1986. I came then, along with the late Judaic studies scholar Benny Kraut, to meet with refuseniks, the courageous Jews who demanded the right to emigrate to Israel. Our activities were covert, and during the course of a single week Benny and I experienced the fear that constantly accompanied the Soviet Union’s Jews at that time. Our hotel room was bugged and, on one occasion, we were hidden in a closet while the KGB interrogated our hosts. This time, I came to Moscow with a group of students from Brandeis University’s Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program. Moscow’s Genesis Philanthropy Group sponsored the trip, and our goal was to become acquainted with the post-Soviet Jewish community and its institutions. Everything about this … Continue Reading
Moishe House Expands to the Former Soviet Union
Moishe House, an international network of vibrant home-based communities for young adults, recently opened a house in Moscow, the fourth in the Former Soviet Union (FSU). The Moscow House is joined by one in Kiev and one in Gomel, all of which opened this fall, and a house in Chisinau, which opened in October of 2009. The Moishe Houses in the FSU serve as an unprecedented chance for young Jewish adults to act as leaders of their communities, and engage in their Jewish identity on their own terms - an opportunity unique to their generation. FSU Moishe Houses were opened in cities that have both a rich Jewish history as well as a growing community of young adults who have demonstrated a desire to build their own Jewish lives. The houses, which received support from the Genesis Philanthropy Group as … Continue Reading
Russian Jewish Camping in North America
Summer camps have always been a hallmark of North American Jewish life. This past summer, two unique programs proved that this experience is also becoming important for Russian speaking Jewish families. Both J. Academy, located at the grounds of Camp Shalom in Gravenhurst, Ontario, and the Havurah program at Camp Tel Yehudah in Barryville, New York, offered teenagers a meaningful Jewish encounter in a comfortable and friendly environment. Participants included over 200 teens from Russian speaking Jewish families from the United States and Canada. Through the use of arts and culture and an exploration into classical and contemporary Jewish texts, the teenagers learned about their heritage. A group of older campers also participated in activities designed to teach them how Jewish values can be used … Continue Reading
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