Judaism Becomes "Natural" For Next Generation

70-year old Irina receives phone calls each week from new moms asking how to properly feed their infants, change their diapers, and woo them to sleep. She is now retired, but forty-six years in practice as a pediatrician, working with children in hospitals and clinics, in-patient facilities, kindergartens, and private homes, makes her a comfortable and reliable source of guidance for many young families.

Eager to give back to her community in Crimea, Ukraine, Irina began three years ago to share her expertise with new parents involved in Mazal Tov, a JDC program in Heseds that provides vital support like diapers and baby carriages to Jewish families with newborns.

With the growing interest and demand of the past three years - the program boasts the participation of more than 60 families - Mazal Tov has grown into a popular community project offering lessons to enhance the Jewish identity of young members. Courses are taught on parenting, Jewish tradition and history, painting, and gymnastics. In addition, activities are organized for Kabbalat Shabbat, Warm Homes, and Family Retreats.

Irina and 1,200 others in her city receive vital resources through their Hesed. In addition to the material support provided to her, she is nourished through her participation in weekly Shabbatons, Pesach seders, and the celebration of other Jewish holidays. Irina is active in the community, contributing to lectures and consultations for couples who attend new JDC-funded programs at the Hesed. In the youthful spirit of Mazal Tov, Irina brings her four-year-old grandson, Yuri, with her to the activities.

Irina didn't always identify so strongly with her Jewish roots though. Born in 1933 to a Jewish family in the Ukrainian city of Kharkov, she never knew her grandparents. Though her mother and father graduated from Jewish schools, they never spoke Yiddish at home or celebrated any holidays. "It's not that they were secular, they were just afraid," says Irina. That's why she is determined that things be different for her family, particularly for little Yuri. "Religion was a discovery for me. Rosh Hashanah and Passover, Kashrut, tzdakah, and other Jewish values I learned about only at the Hesed. This is all becoming so natural for Yuri and his mother and other children and adults like them."

This summer, Irina attended the fifth annual Matana Family Retreat, held in a resort area near Sevastopol. Organized by her Hesed, the outing for 70 campers included children, teenagers, parents and volunteers. The retreat was led by charismatic Hillel students from Odessa, Kiev, Minsk, Simferopol and Sevastopol. "These young people with such profound Jewish knowledge who are prospective community leaders will be great models for our grandchildren and definitely make the community stronger," says Irina.

"The retreat has given me much more than I expected; it filled me with new energy and inspiration for future work in our community," she says.