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Celebrating Freedom
RUTH LITTMANN STAFF WRITER
I
ittle Leonid Shaban, 6,
dons a green frog hat he
- decorated with styro-
foam and stickers, then
puts another atop his father's
head.
Lest the hats be mistaken
for St. Patrick's Day garb, or-
ganizers of the Pre-Passover
Pizza Party explain that the
frog hats represent one of the
plagues God sent down upon
Egypt.
The Pre-Passover Pizza
Party, held March 28 at the
Jimmy Prentis Morris Jew-
ish Community Center, in-
cluded members of Fede-
ration's Women's Division,
Jewish Experiences For
Families and new Ameri-
cans.
Passover crafts regaled
tiny tots, like 21-month-old
Max Farkas, who dripped
paint on a piece of fabric to
create an afikomen cover.
The party was planned by
the Women's Forum, a com-
mittee of the Women's Divi-
sion. The special committee
is designed primarily for
mothers in their 30s. It tries
to involve young Jewish
mothers who might other-
wise have little contact with
the Jewish community.
Sandy Schwartz, an edu-
cation vice president of
Women's Division, said the
forum invited new Ameri-
cans with young children.
"It gave participants in the
Women's Forum an opportu-
nity to meet Russian
refugees they otherwise
wouldn't have the opportu-
nity to meet," she said.
Having 30 To Dinner
Julia Greenblatt watches Sarah-Penlnah, 3, pose as Moses.
RUTH LITTMANN STAFF WRITER
0
n the second night of
Passover, Rabbi Avra-
ham and Bayla Ja-
cobovitz will set their
seder table for 30 new Amer-
icans.
Continuing a tradition
they started five years ago,
the Jacobovitz family will re-
cite Passover blessings with
Russian refugees who are
celebrating the holiday —
many for the first time.
"They never really had a
chance to see a proper seder,"
said Rabbi Jacobovitz, direc-
Rabbi Jacobovitz
for of Machon L'Torah, the
Jewish Learning Network of
Michigan. "We go slowly and
explain every part of it."
The hosts will serve the
seder meal on tables extend-
ing the width of their Oak
Park house — from the living
room into the dining room
and through their den.
The scene won't vary much
from a typical Friday night,
when Mrs. Jacobovitz pre-
pares Shabbat dinner for an
equally large crowd.
Mrs. Jacobovitz minimizes
the extra work Pesach
brings.
"A seder is a seder," she
said modestly. "New Ameri-
cans appreciate being in-
cluded. They appreciate that
we consider them important.
Even though they're limit-
ed in their knowledge (about
the holiday), we still consid-
er them brothers and sis-
ters."
The seder will begin after
sundown, around 9 p.m. In
years past, it has lasted be-
yond 3 a.m. Participants will
not only read from the Hag-
gadah, but also discuss the
theme of Passover — which is
particularly germain to
them: Freedom.
"We try to have them re-
late (to Exodus) from a con-
temporary point of view," the
rabbi said. "They can relate
to that because they were
told for all these years what
to do and how to think."
The new Americans who
come to the seder range in
age from 20 to 45. The elders
have dim memories of seders
their parents described.
Young and old enjoy learn-
ing more about their heritage
and, of course, searching for
the afikomen, Rabbi Ja-
cobovitz said.
"Most of them never saw
anything like it. They're ex-
posed to a world that, even
though it belonged to them,
they never knew much
about."
Singles Rituals
For Special Holiday
LESLEY PEARL STAFF WRITER
M
ichael Steinberg
isn't sure where he
will spend Pesach
this year, but he's
certain he won't be alone.
The 29-year-old Baltimore
native has depended on the
hospitality of friends and
work associates during holi-
days in the past. When cel-
ebrations fall during the
week, it's nearly impossible
for him to get home.
"I have always felt that
during the holidays people
reach out and open wide,"
Mr. Steinberg said. "While it
doesn't stop the pain of being
away from my family, I know
I am with my mishpachah
(Jewish family)."
Like many single people,
Mr. Steinberg is developing
his own rituals.
As the definition of family
changes and expands, holi-
day celebrations — tradition-
ally spent with parents,
siblings and spouses — do
also.
Mr. Steinberg grew up in
a Conservative home where
family members found the
Rabbi Bigman
rawest bitter herbs — the
kind that made his eyes wa-
ter — and dined on "doctored
up," pre-cooked holiday
foods.
Calling Ferndale his home
now, Mr. Steinberg consid-
ers himself Reconstruction-
ist. He attends Congregation
T'chiyah in Detroit.
He won't dean his home in
prescribed Passover fashion.
CC
cC
35