EXPEDITION WEB-LOG
August 6: Summer Camps in the FSU August 6: Summer Camps in the FSU: Shalom Chaverim,
I can not believe it, but this will be my last letter from Moscow before returning to New York. My JDC Ralph Goldman Fellowship in International Jewish Communal Service is coming to an end. It has been so great emailing you from the field. I enjoyed hearing from you and communicating with you about the work of JDC.
Two weeks ago I visited two summer camps that JDC helps to support here in the Former Soviet Union. You might think that these camps were for kids only, but they were not. They are JDC Jewish Family Camps and I think you will find it interesting to hear what happens at these camps.
I visited two camps, one in Samara and one in Saratov. There were about 30 families or 100 participants at each camp. The campers ranged in ages from 3 to their 80s. Grandmas and Grandpas came too!
First of all, entire families come to camp together for about 10 days of fun and Jewish learning. Each day at the camp there is a new schedule and theme. For example, at the Saratov Camp they were learning the creation story. Each day they focused on a new day of creation. There were classes for adults to discuss the themes of creation, art classes for families to create art about creation and activities and storytelling for kids to learn about it too.
Next, there is time for fun because it is camp! At the Samara Camp it was hot! So, in our free time we walked down to the Volga River for a swim. The water was warm and we had a lot of fun playing in the water during our free-time.
Everyone eats their meals together and in the evening there are all-camp activities. I had a lot of fun watching the comic skits on Jewish life and themes created by families for the evening activities.
After the camps are over people go back home and will hopefully join their local Jewish family clubs sponsored by the JDC. It is a great way for people to stay involved in the Jewish community, keep learning about Jewish life and see their new friends.
I am off to New York. Got to pack and say good-bye. I will miss Moscow, but am excited to come home!
Until Next Time, July 2: Chava's Moscow Meetings: Shalom Chaverim,
Shalom from Moscow, or as we say in Russian, Preeviet.
Moscow is a very exciting city. Bigger than New York City with more people and more space. Here it can take an hour for me to get from one meeting to another! It is an exciting place.
In Moscow today the Jewish community is estimated by JDC to have about 250,000 members. This makes Moscow one of the biggest Jewish communities in the world! There are seven JCCs in the Moscow area, a Hillel for Jewish college students, nine synagogues and seven day schools! So, you can imagine that I have been having a lot of meetings.
I wanted to share a few of my favorite meetings with you, so that you can begin to learn more about the Jewish community here.
First, I'll tell you about the Moscow Hillel. Some of you may know what a Hillel is, but for those of you who don't know yet, it is a Jewish student group for college students. The Hillel in Moscow serves about 2,000 students from all of the Universities in the city and it is supported in partnership by JDC and Hillel: The Foundation for Campus Life in cooperation with the Schusterman Family Foundation. At Hillel you can attend Shabbat services, go as a group to volunteer to help senior citizens, celebrate Jewish holidays and just have fun. So far, I attended Shabbat services there, I met some friends who helped show me around Moscow, and I also went to a Jewish music concert at a local pub with about fifty students.
I visited the Hesed Hamah which serves about 10,000 elderly Jews in the Moscow area each year. There, I learned from the director how the JDC supported Hesed helps senior citizens stay healthy and happy. From the Hesed they receive medicines, home care and day care, haircuts, food packages and meals on wheels and many other health services. There is also a library there with books on Jewish topics that JDC helps to support and the Hesed sometimes sponsors trips. They invited me to a music concert, but unfortunately I was already busy!
Finally, I will tell you about the Nikitskaya JCC. It is a busy JCC with many creative arts programs, such as ceramics, literature clubs, leather art, painting studios and photography. There is also a drama and dance studio. I was invited to a Jewish community leader's birthday celebration there and I loved listening to the many Jewish singing groups perform. It was quite a show! Also at the JCC there is a kosher restaurant, a computer center and a central library.
As you can see, Moscow's Jewish community is very busy and has programs for all ages. I am really enjoying my time here. I look forward to telling you more.
Until next time, June 4: Chava's Visit to Eastern Ukraine: Shalom Chaverim, When we last spoke, I was in Israel getting ready to fly to Moscow. I enjoyed a lovely Shavuot Celebration in Jerusalem with friends. I ate lots of dairy products and felt lucky to be in Jerusalem for one of the three annual pilgrimage festivals.
I just arrived in Moscow a few days ago and am beginning to learn all about the work of JDC in Moscow and throughout the entire FSU. But first, I thought I would share some of the highlights from my recent trip to Eastern Ukraine.
I arrived in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine to attend a Family Camp Seminar training program for Madrichim. Madrichim are the professionals who will lead the camps for families this summer. During the seminar I met the more than 40 participants from small and larger communities. They held discussions on children, watched a film on leadership development, participated in communication activities and learned more about Jewish family camping to get ready for this summer's camps.
Next, I headed to a young Jewish leaders seminar outside of Kharkov, Ukraine. Here around 35 young adults from Eastern Ukraine came together for a week of programs aimed to strengthen their leadership skills and their connections to the Jewish community. The participants created dynamic programs to introduce topics such as Shabbat, Jewish Identity and Shavuot. We sang traditional Jewish songs and modern Israeli rock together, enjoyed a peaceful Shabbat filled with discussion and communication games, and after Havdalah enjoyed a local Klezmer band performance.
Finally, I visited the Ukrainian city of Dnepropetrovsk and was able to see firsthand how JDC is helping and working with the locals to strengthen the Jewish community. At the Hesed, the local Jewish community welfare center, I was able to visit many programs that JDC helps to support. I attended a community birthday party at the Mazel Tov Club where Jewish children ages 1-3 come with their parents to learn about Jewish traditions. Then we visited a club for senior citizens, I spoke Yiddish with them and we sang Jewish songs and even danced. I saw the creative arts studio and short animated films that Jewish teens in the community are producing on Jewish topics. I visited the preschool for children at risk, as well as the clubs for children and adults with special needs supported by JDC.
After, I had time to head to the JCC in Dnepropetrovsk and got to see how busy it is on Sundays! There were singing groups, dance classes, people the library reading and surfing the web. We also stopped to see an opera singing performance. It is an exciting place and I learned a lot about the vibrant Jewish life that JDC is helping to support in Ukraine.
I will be in touch soon to tell you all about my new work in Moscow!
Until next time,
July 2: Chava's Moscow Meetings
June 4: Chava's Visit to Eastern Ukraine
Chava
Chava
Chava
