r

wish famili

The

Siegel wants to help chil-
dren observe this occa-
sion by learning the con-
cept of tzedakah (charity)
and chesed (mercy), and
being responsible for one
another.
Siegel's Practical Guide
is exactly what it says: a
manual for how to plan
an occasion that really means
something, rather than just
another big party that drives par-
ents into debt. But while the
focus is teaching children lofty
ideals, the book itself is wonder-
fully practical. It actually guides
you not only on what to do, but
the best way to do it.
Want to make a donation to a
charity? Don't just give money and
call it a day. Siegel encourages families
to do plenty of research about where
they would like to give, finding out,

orse

ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM
AppleTree Editor

Danny Siegel

helps children

become

b'nai mitzvah

with an eye

to changing

the world.

12/31
2004

38

army Siegel's Bar and Bat
Mitzvah Mitzvah Book: A
Practical Guide for
Changing the World Through Your
Simcha by Danny Siegel. Copyright
2004, published by the Town House
Press, Pittsboro, N.C. Paperback. 132
pages. $12. (May be ordered on the
Internet through CMS Distributing.
Contact
Naomike@aol.com for information.)
When Lisa Easton of
Chevy Chase, Md.,
became bat mitzvah,
she got an extraordi-
nary present: a horse.
Lisa did not buy the
horse for herself.
Instead, she got it for
those less fortunate.
Lisa purchased her
horse for the Israel
National Therapeutic
Riding Association,
whose instructors and
volunteers, writes
Danny Siegel, "work
miracles with people
with every imaginable
kind of disability."
To be a bar or bat
mitzvah means that one
is now responsible for
him or herself, for his
actions and behavior,
for observing the
mitzvot (command-
ments). Author and
mitzvah man Danny

for example, whether the organization
adheres to the "Three Es" ("Are they
using their money efficiently and effec-
tively, and are they using it exactly as
they say they are using it?").
Want to give a good
bar-mitzvah speech?
Keep in mind the power
you have as a speaker,
Siegel says. "Even if you
think you are not a good
speaker, they will listen.
Best of all, Siegel's
book really offers some-
thing for everyone.
Whether your family is
observant or not, if you
prefer to donate to a
children's cause or help
animals, if you've got big
ideas or just little ones,
your wish could be big.
Danny Siegel's Bar and
Bat Mitzvah Mitzvah
Book can help you get
where you want — and
help change the world.

33

Baby Babka, The
Gorgeous Genius by
Jane Breskin Zalben,
with illustrations by
Victoria Chess.