Connecting Teens To Their Jewish Roots

Before, during, and especially after Bar/Bat Mitzvah, there is a quickly-closing window during which our kids can form a real bond with Jewish wisdom, with Jewish values, and with their own Jewish souls. I offer highly personalized one-on-one learning for teens, and I specialize in learning with young people who have not found a place for themselves in day schools or other learning environments.

I offer myself as an example of a Jewish adult who maintains realness and integrity while engaging with Torah study, ritual, prayer, and community. I can serve as a mentor, an adult who is not their parent whom they can trust and talk to. In this light, I have many students with whom I learned for Bar Mitzvah and with whom I continue to learn, years later.

a message to a young person who is about to go through a Bat or Bar Mitzvah

For most indigenous tribes and native peoples, the transition to adulthood that happens around the age of puberty is literally the most important transition people will ever go through. If they succeed - and it is NOT automatic and NOT easy - they get to be a member of the tribe. It is seen as an honor and a responsibility.

What would it take for bar/bat mitzvah to be like that? What if this could be a time of actual transition? Is it possible that bar/bat mitzvah could be an unforgettable, positive turning point in your life, like getting your driver’s license or graduating high school? Something you’ll look back on as the time when everything changed?

Let’s discuss my approach and figure out whether it would be a good fit for you. Tell me about what who you are, what you care about, what you want to accomplish. And we’ll see if we can create a bar/bat mitzvah adventure that challenges you, thrills you, and changes your life.

“Tzedakah is equal to all the other commandments combined”

(Talmud Bava Batra 9a)

Give a young adult an opportunity to find their place in the tradition of Jewish knowledge, character, and experience. Your support gives you a chance to participate in building a “mensch” - and who knows where they will go from there! This is a gift that will bear fruit for a lifetime.