Volga: Warming the Heart and Soul at Holiday Celebrations

In all Jewish communities in the former Soviet Union, the opportunity for an elderly person to spend a holiday in the presence of other Jews or receive a visit from a JDC-supported Hesed social welfare center often means the difference between living and simply existing. And in particular, in these cities where Jews are few in number, there is a sense that community programming is of the essence to bring together even a handful of people that share a common tradition.

"I would like to thank those who arranged the Warm House in Chapaevsk," says Marfa, 79, of the home that has become a gathering place for the score of local Jews. "Sometimes when I wake up on Friday morning I don’t feel very well because of the pain in my legs and high blood pressure, and I even don’t have forces to get up. But then I imagine that I will meet with my friends at Kabalat Shabbat, so I put on my favorite dress and feel how the second wind opens."

In addition to celebrating holidays and partaking of a traditional Friday night meal, these elderly who would otherwise be socially isolated forge meaningful relationships, joining together to discuss current events, Jewish topics, and even to celebrate their birthdays. Marfa explains that she hurries to the center "to listen to Jewish anecdotes and share our news," and because it simply feels "right" to be there. "This beautiful house gives warmth and coziness to us old people."

Like so many Jewish elderly in the former Soviet Union, Marfa has endured much hardship, including losing her father during the Second World War. Having spent most of her life working for a meager pension on which she cannot survive and being denied religious self-expression, Marfa embraces the opportunity to be tied to the Jewish community. In particular, it is a special event for her and other members of the warm houses when coordinators of the Hesed in Samara come to their city to lead activities and distribute food packages, medicine and medical equipment, eyeglasses, and Jewish reading materials from the library. "We await these visits with great impatience because they give us an opportunity to learn the news of Jewish life and have D'var Torah," she says.

Mostly, even with her painful history and physical ailments, Marfa regards the Warm House as a place to enjoy human interaction in the present and to count on it in the future. "It has become a second home for me, where I have a lot of friends, who I am sure will help me in difficult period of life."