JUNE 30 • 2022 | 25

K

esher means connection. Whether 
it’s retelling the story of the Exodus 
or playing Jewish geography, our 
ties to each other strengthen and guide us. 
For the teens at Congregation Shir Tikvah 
in Troy, Kesher is their community. 
CST’s Kesher program includes students 
who are in their b’nai mitzvah year 
through high school. Students come from 
all over the Metro Detroit area to meet 
on Sunday afternoon or Monday evening, 
depending on the month. The meeting 
times reflect the needs of the students. 
Each session begins the same way, with a 
meal and an icebreaker. 
As Mia Halson, 14, put it, “We all 
choose to be there. And they feed us. We 
bond over food.” 
According to Keegan Hull, 13, “Kesher 
is more than just religious school; it’s 
a friends group and a community … 
The older kids treat everyone the same. 
Everyone contributes.”
CST’s Director of Lifelong Learning 
Sarah Chisholm and CST Youth 

Director Carrie Keough work together 
to develop programming that meets 
the educational and religious needs of 
students while strengthening connections 
and empowering teens to guide their 
own learning. Kesher meets on a flexible 
schedule and each lesson stands alone. 
For students with multiple commitments, 
it means a missed lesson doesn’t impede 
progress. 
The Earth Day Shabbat Service that 
took place on April 22 is a perfect 
example of Kesher in action. While it is 
not unusual for student groups to lead 
services, what made the Kesher-led Earth 
Day service different was that it was not 
just student-led, but student-created, right 
down to the original siddur. 
In preparation, students examined each 
part of the service, asking why is it there, 
what does it mean and how do we make it 
meaningful? As students developed their 
service, they met regularly with Rabbi 
Alicia Harris. The discussion covered not 
only how all the parts of a Shabbat service 

go together, but what each means to the 
congregation. Students were able to ask 
questions and share their opinions and 
ideas without judgment.
“We get to deeper understanding. We 
discussed things and read the Hebrew 
together as we put the service together,” 
Halson said. 
Keough described the student’s process 
during the lesson development: “Using 
the elements of the service and how 
it’s presented, students made sure their 
message was interesting to them and that 
it would be interesting to others.” 
Students included an activity instead of 
a d’var Torah. They discussed, examined 
and finally developed a craft that allowed 
congregants to share in creating art. The 
craft using the flora that surrounds Shir 
Tikvah made tangible the message of 
tikkun olam and how we are all connected 
to each other and the Earth. 
With their Earth Day service behind 
them, what’s in store for the Kesher teens? 
It’s Camp Tikvah in Lexington, Mich., 
in late August, an opportunity for the 
community to reconnect and relax before 
the school year starts. Teens have Shabbos 
dinner with the congregation but at their 
own table. They can mingle with the 
congregation for programming but have 
teen-only time as well. These activities 
include a bonfire on the beach, kayaking 
and time in the high ropes/tree climbing 
area. 
Chisholm explained, “There is so much 
happening that the kids really get up and 
get going — even after being up all night!” 
Because the teens get so many extras, 
they return the favor to the group by 
providing about an hour and a half of 
supervised babysitting, freeing the parents 
of younger children to attend an adult 
social hour. The teens keep the younger 
ones busy with games, crafts and fun 
while continuing to bond and build 
community. 

Congregation Shir Tikvah is a Reform/Renewal 

synagogue located at 3900 Metro Parkway in Troy. 

CST is an inclusive and welcoming synagogue that 

invites prospective members to attend a service and/

or check out Camp Tikvah in Lexington Mich., Aug. 

26-28. Questions can be directed to CST’s Executive 

Director Lorelei Berg at (248) 649-4418 or info@

shirtikvah.org.

More than
Religious School

Shir Tikvah’s Kesher program helps 
teens build connections.

OUR COMMUNITY

Kesher teens 
led Shir Tikvah’s 
Earth Day 
Shabbat Service 
on April 22.

KATHRYN NELSON SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

