Weekend for Hundreds of Russian-Speaking Jews Embraces Community’s Diversity
Poconos Shabbaton an eagerly awaited annual event
www.RussianShabbaton.com — For Marina Braverman of Staten Island, N.Y., being together with hundreds of other Russian-speaking Jews from around the world at the 14th Annual Russian Jewish Shabbaton Weekend Retreat in June was something she looked forward to all year long. It’s an event that her parents took her to as a teen, and where years later, she met her husband, Alex, and where she has taken her children, ages seven and four, since they were infants. “It gives us tremendous inspiration that lasts the whole year,” she says. “We can’t wait to come back next year.”
“It was my first time at the Shabbaton,” said a newcomer from the Former Soviet Union, “I feel like a newborn.”
The Shabbaton Weekend Retreat, the largest event of its kind in the USA, is a three-day celebration with participants joining from across the United States and beyond. It was heartwarming to witness the diverse representation, encompassing individuals ranging from the deeply religious to those with no formal affiliation, all joining hands for a weekend dedicated to strengthening our collective bond as a Jewish community.
The Weekend Retreat took place in the Poconos Mountains of Pennsylvania, offering beautiful views of the mountains and forests as the backdrop for all the activities.
Guests heard from doctors, rabbis, authors, entrepreneurs and artists. Topics ranged from the rabbinical rulings to kabbalah, to parenting, to reconciling science with religion, to rekindling one’s inspiration. The weekend was filled with music, dancing, soulful Jewish melodies, lots of good food and friendship. A full-day program and babysitting for the little ones allowed the parents to get the most out of the weekend.
Dr. Isabella Reichel, a professor of speech pathology., who lives in Queens, N.Y., attended the event for the third time with her family and said every member, regardless of age, found something unique in the Shabbaton. “We all went together and enjoyed the atmosphere, the lectures, the environment,” she says of her married daughter with three children, son and husband. “It was an exhilarating experience.”
She says it was a great place to meet people and feel connected, and that she came home with a sense of excitement about the presence of an amazing Jewish Russian community. “People were there to learn, and to feel like we are all a part of the story of the Jewish people,” she says. “People were spiritually uplifted.”
And the event was inclusive to learners on all levels, she adds. “This is a warm, inclusive environment where everybody is embraced,” she says. “I would love for more people to know about it. ■
For more information or to register, visit the Shabbaton website: www.RussianShabbaton.com
