TEENS GATHER AROUND TORAH

This winter break, I joined 380 public school teens from around the world to learn Torah for five days at NCSY’s Yarchei Kallah (YK) Some teens began YK without knowing how to navigate a siddur and left with a deeper connection to tefillah. Others had never lit Shabbat candles, and at YK we experienced the beauty of Shabbat. Boys who never put on tefillin became excited about this mitzvah

Most of us, who didn’t own a single Jewish book, left with a nice start for our libraries!

This Yarchei Kallah marked the sixth month that I have kept Shabbat I had started keeping Shabbat during the summer, on NCSY’s Anne Samson TJJ Summer program Having so many people by my side to celebrate Shabbat made me feel like I had accomplished something great. A mentor once told me, “It’s not what you do, it’s how you come about doing it ” Teens who come from a nonobservant background and decide to take on mitzvot inspire me every day People ask how I did it all on my own My answer is that there is no such thing as doing it on your own when you have NCSY. Every staff member and advisor has been there for me, day or night, to learn with me on the phone or in person They keep me going every day

By the end of YK, we had become like family. We hugged, said our goodbyes, and planned on keeping in touch, hoping to continue our Jewish learning in the future with the friends who were there at the start of our journey

At YK, Rabbi Lashak, an NCSY senior educator, said, “When Mashiach comes, he isn’t going to go first to Eliyahu, or Moshe Rabbeinu He is going to go to all of the teens here on YK who chose to learn Torah during their winter break.”

Teens gather to light candles Friday night at Yarchei Kallah. For some, this is their first time lighting candles to sanctify Shabbat