passover

One Big Happy Seder

The JCC’s Pitt CDC hosts a family seder
with food, songs and a lot of fun.

ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

S

ometimes, the best seders
bring a little something differ-
ent to the table — like fresh
orange slices, brownies and more
than 200 guests of every age, religion
and background.
Last week, the Jewish Community
Center of Metropolitan Detroit’s
Sarah & Irving Pitt Child
Development Center hosted a fam-
ily seder for students and families.
Tables were filled with matzah,
hard-boiled eggs and orange slices
for snacking, colorful seder plates
designed by the children, songbooks
and crafts to take home.
Alex Finman of Ferndale was with
his niece, Pyka Schwartz, 4. “It’s
adorable how much work they put
into this,” he said of the kids, adding
that he appreciates how years from
now the children will still recall how
much fun they had and the excite-
ment of the holiday.
The family seder was designed
by Shalom Street Director Andee
Liberman and Pitt CDC Director
Shannon Hall, who also served as
emcee, calling: “What did Moses tell
King Pharaoh? Say it with me! ‘Let
my people go!’”
The program included song per-

Dominic Marougy, 3, of
Commerce, sang a song about
frogs in Pharaoh’s bed.

formances by every age group at the
Pitt CDC. Wearing hats decorated
with frogs or matzahs with smiling
faces, children walked to the stage
where they jumped up and down
with excitement.
“Roll, roll, roll your dough!” (to the
tune of “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”)
came the tiny voices. (Parents,
meanwhile, sat just below the stage
and took photo after photo, like
opening night for the Academy
Awards.)
When the song was done, children
clasped hands and took a bow.
Brian and Jodie Elsberg of West
Bloomfield came with daughter
Carly, 3. Jodie appreciates that Carly
is learning about her Judaism, and
Brian enjoys seeing his daughter
engage with other children. “We
love the opportunity to see what our
child is learning,” Jodie said.
Immediately following his perfor-
mance, Miles Spangler, 4, of St. Clair
Shores, was munching on a brownie.
Was the brownie tasty?
“Yep!”
Did he like singing?
“Yep!”
Was the family seder fun?
“Yep!” •

Taking center stage at the family seder are Milena Marougy,
5, of Commerce; Zion Ingram, 6, of West Bloomfield; Bennett
Nisula, 4, of West Bloomfield; Asher Silko, 5, of West
Bloomfield; and Jae Jun Lee, 4, of West Bloomfield.

FAR LEFT: Elise
Gentlie, 5, of West
Bloomfield enjoys a
piece of matzah.
LEFT: Ethyn
Cameron, 4, of Keego
Harbor gets ready to
perform.

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April 13 • 2017

jn