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High Holidays Rekindling Old Memories and Creating New Ones in the FSUPhoto Slideshow: High Holidays in the FSU 
For Dunya, an elderly Jewish lady in Taskent, Uzbekistan, listening to the Director of her local JDC-sponsored Hesed social welfare center explain the significance of Rosh Hashanah makes her recall her childhood. "In those far post-war years, we Jews who had been evacuated to here during the war did not have even our own dwellings, let alone synagogues. But still Jews gathered in rented apartments and in the old Uzbek courtyards where they organized temporary prayer houses and could pray during Jewish Holidays…"
The familiar melodies of the concert that followed for dozens of Tashkent’s Jewish elderly elicited fond memories for Dunya of sitting in synagogue with her religious grandmother, listening to the sound of the cantor. An impressive crew of soloists from the Opera and Operetta Theaters performed a medley of songs in Yiddish and Hebrew, captivating the audience. "The atmosphere of the concert was very festive and jolly and we asked to sing more and more," Dunya said. "These concerts make us deeply appreciate how much Hesed does in order to relieve the lives of elderly people who, due to age and other reasons, are deprived of many cultural benefits and the most important – close communication. During such events we not only get closer to cultural life but also find new real friends." 
This was the case at last week’s gala at the Uigursky Theatre in Almaty, Kazakhstan, where 500 guests gathered for a Rosh Hashanah celebration, filling the hall to capacity. Young dance groups from the local JCC took to the stage, performing beautiful rhythmic movement to Israeli tunes. "The multi-colored costumes and shine of the smiles of the smallest participants made the audience burst with applause," remarked one spectator. Locally renowned singer Alexandr Rehels closed the evening with a rendition of "Adon Olam," "Mazel Tov," and other familiar tunes. "The celebration continued into the lobby," said one elderly gentleman. "People were dancing freilehs."
Events such as these concerts are inherent to JDC’s efforts to rekindle the flame of Jewish life in the former Soviet Union. In particular, in honor of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, each year local JDC-sponsored Jewish Community Centers and Heseds hold myriad programs, lectures, readings, concerts and exhibits to inform and attract people of all ages. Hillel students hold Warm Homes for isolated Jewish elderly, providing them a forum for a nutritious meal, Jewish education and companionship, while homebound Hesed clients throughout the FSU receive holiday food packages and visits from volunteers. Meanwhile, the "Middle Generation", which grew up in the aftermath of World War II and endured decades of religious suppression under Communism, is being brought back into the fold through innovative educational programs and their own children. JDC is introducing the youngest generation in the FSU to Jewish holidays through participatory programs, including arts and crafts and educational events. For example, the Tikva Club for Children with Special Needs in Dnepropetrovsk and throughout the region heralded in the Jewish New Year with a family candle lighting ceremony, a concert, traditional apples and honey, and an exhibit of the children’s holiday artwork. Hillel students organized dancing for more than 100 children at the Chai Children at Risk Day Center in Dnepro and similar festivities were held at the nearby center in Zaporozhye. And in Uzbekistan, scores of children performed dances and plays, read poems and explained the tradition of the High Holidays for an audience of their peers and family members. This year, the shofar is again being sounded around the JDC world, affirming the presence of Jewish life – against all odds – from the smallest communities of the FSU to the cosmopolitan cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg. October 2005 |
