Updates from Naples and Fort Myers BBYO

By Cayla Schreier, BBYO Southwest Coordinator

In April, our teens and their families had the opportunity to enjoy a meaningful Passover with friends and family. Some stayed in the local area, and some traveled out of state to observe the holiday. The teens and their families held and attended seders and heard the story of Passover in the Haggadah once more. A few of our teens had to attend school and navigate the week with their Jewish friends, eating kosher for Passover foods while their non-Jewish peers ate chametz. This reminded everyone to be proud Jewish leaders and celebrating Passover meant celebrating the continuous resilience of the Jewish people.

Pool party

Once the holiday of Passover ended, the teens returned to school and advertised the Naples BBYO Pool Party taking place Sunday, April 27 at Noah’s house to their Jewish peers. The teens indulged in a relaxing afternoon with their friends, hanging by the pool, eating delicious snacks and pizza, and playing games such as Monopoly along with an icebreaker to ensure everyone knew one another’s names and could find something in common. It was a nice time for the teens to gather and socialize before advanced placement final exams began the first week of May.

Graduates

Mazal Tov to all our Naples BBYO teens in the graduating class of 2025! We are so proud of you and wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors. Graduating seniors can join the BBYO Alumni Association to stay involved in BBYO, get alumni-exclusive opportunities, network with others in the alumni community, and continue to be involved in BBYO beyond high school. You can join the BBYO alumni association with this link: https://alumni.bbyo.org/

We hope you all have a wonderful summer. Stay safe and see you in the fall!

Upcoming events

Details on all upcoming events will follow. Please keep an eye out for emails regarding all upcoming Naples and Fort Myers BBYO events.

What is BBYO?

BBYO is a diverse and inclusive Jewish youth group to encourage Jewish teens to become more immersed and interested in meaningful Jewish activities and programs. This organization accepts Jewish teens attending eighth through twelfth grades of all backgrounds, sexual orientations, gender, race, denominational affiliation or socioeconomic status. BBYO currently reaches more than 70,000 teens worldwide, with participants in over 60 countries and hundreds of chapters across the United States.

Supporting our teenage Jewish community

It is crucial to engage teens post-B’nai Mitzvah age in Jewish activities. Having teens get involved in BBYO and be eager to create and confidently continue their own Jewish community within their greater Jewish communities is critical to our future.

The BBYO chapter of Naples has entered its 11th year of partnership with Jewish Federation of Greater Naples, Temple Shalom, Chabad of Naples and Beth Tikvah. Each organization provides financial support, volunteers and community involvement opportunities for the BBYO teens. We thank each and every one of our BBYO Alum, friends and other supporters for making this a safe and positive environment for the teens of BBYO Naples and Fort Myers.

If you know of someone who has a teen who might like to join BBYO Naples or Fort Myers or know of someone who may want to be an advisor to our chapters, please email me at cschreier@bbyo.org. You can also follow us on Instagram: @Mishpacha_BBG and @Negevaza.

Scholarships to attend BBYO conventions and summer programs are available through both Jewish Federation of Greater Naples and the Temple Shalom Men’s Club. Please contact me for more information on scholarships. If you are a BBYO Alum and would like to be included in our Friends and Alumni of BBYO mailing list, please email us at mjs0821@aol.com.