Massachusetts Nonprofit Jookender Connects & Educates Russian Speaking Jews
A new Tribe has emerged in Massachusetts, and—like the 12
of the Old Testament—this Tribe is sowing the seeds of Jewish identity and
community engagement in a traditionally insular and insulated segment of
American Jewry: Russian Speaking Jews (RSJs).
Numbering about 80,000 of Massachusetts’ approximately
293,000 Jews (Jewish Virtual Library),
“most RSJs arrived here after 1985 with very little formal Jewish education,”
says Sasha Grebenyuk, Executive Director of Jookender Community Initiatives.
Jookender—a new 501(c)(3) organization based in Framingham, Massachusetts (a
Boston suburb)—introduces secular Russian-Jewish families to Jewish heritage
and culture and offers programs to rekindle their feelings of Jewish identity.
“When these current parents were growing up in Russia, they
weren’t exposed to Judaism,” Sasha explains, attributing the lack of Jewish
knowledge, identity, and affiliation due to aggressive Soviet state-sponsored
anti-religious programs and propaganda.
Judaism and Jews were especially targeted: In 1919, Soviet authorities abolished
Jewish community councils, which traditionally maintained local synagogues and
were responsible for Jewish education. They created the Yevsektsiya (a Jewish section of the party), which generated and disseminated propaganda
against Jewish clergy and religion. According to Wikipedia,
“The training of rabbis became
impossible until early 1940's, and until the late 1980s only one Yiddish
periodical was published. Because of its identification with Zionism, Hebrew was
taught only in schools for diplomats. Most of the 5,000 synagogues functioning
prior to the Bolshevik Revolution were closed under Stalin, and others were
closed under Khrushchev. The practice of Judaism became very difficult,
intensifying the desire of Jews to leave the Soviet Union.”
After three
generations of subjugation and marginalization, the results were predictable,
says Sasha: “Most of the current RSJ parents have minimal personal experience and
practical knowledge of Jewish ethics, rituals and traditions. When they
emigrated to Israel or America in the 1990s, they didn’t know what they didn’t
know. I created Jookender to fix that.”
A Russian Jew who grew up in the grasp of Communism and
moved to America in 1994, Sasha is among a handful of RSJ community leaders who
have the contacts, credentials, and credibility to engage Jews from the former
Soviet Union. Operating Jookender on a shoestring budget, Sasha and her small
team of volunteers provide programs and services that achieve outcomes far
exceeding the nonprofit’s income.
Julia Atkin—a
fervent Jookender booster—shared Sasha’s experience. Ms. Atkin, who grew up in the
Ukraine, feels deeply connected to Judaism but eschews the ‘religious’ label. She
and her family have engaged in several Jookender programs (including
participating in The Tribe pilot) create a warm, welcoming environment in which
she and people like her can rekindle their Jewish kavanah (intention).
“I have blurry
memories of my grandparents lighting candles and going to shul but as a child,
I had no connection to Judaism. In my teenage years, when Communism
started to erode, I got reintroduced to and reconnected with Jewish rituals and
traditions. That inspired me to spend a year in Israel studying in a religious
program.
"When we moved to the U.S. in 1999, my husband (a Russian Jew) and I
wanted to expose our children to Jewish rituals, traditions, and values. We
were referred to Jookender, whose programs have increased our knowledge of and
appreciation for Judaism and Israel."
Kira Shandalov, a senior at Reading High School who is
also enrolled as a Freshman at Middlesex Community College, has been involved
with Sasha and the Jookender team for two years. A native Israeli, Ms.
Shandalov moved to the U.S. in 2015. Fluent in Russian, Hebrew, and English,
Ms. Shandalov is a popular teacher in The Tribe and a regular participant in
Jookender’s programs. “I worked with about 30 kids; they were very
enthusiastic. The Tribe is a great program for kids, especially around the
holidays.”
Like many Russians and Israelis, Ms. Shandalov also
hesitates to describe herself as ‘religious’. “I have some religious knowledge
from my upbringing. In Israel, you live it. But in America, it’s not as
omnipresent. That’s why I love being involved in The Tribe: I feel connected to
my roots and to this community.”
A 2015 study of
the RSJ community provides hard numbers supporting these personal observations and
experiences.
Commissioned by
Combined Jewish Philanthropies (CJP, Boston’s Jewish Federation), the study
reported that 10% of
Jewish households in the Greater Boston area included a Russian-speaking
Jew or someone who was born or raised in Russia or the former Soviet Union.
Nineteen percent of these
Russian speakers reported being interested in Religious Services and only 21%
were involved with synagogues. While
the study’s results suggested the contemporaneous system wasn’t adequately
serving Boston’s RSJ’s educational needs, it highlighted the need for
grassroots organizations like Jookender to fill in those gaps.
What is The
Tribe?
Jookender was one of two organizations (the other was the
Worcester Jewish Community Center) to pilot The Tribe’s first year. Funded by the Gemunder Family
Foundation, the Armonia Foundation, The Adam and Gila Milstein Foundation,
The Lesser Family, and The Frieze Family, The Tribe is a pluralistic
program designed to educate, engage, and energize Jewish families.
Conceived
and developed by Jewish communal service veteran Arinne Braverman, The Tribe
engaged about 100 families in Boston and Central Massachusetts. From October
2017 through June 2018, tribes of eight to 10 families met monthly in members’
homes or community centers.
As Jews increasingly migrate from strict religious affiliations to
a more pluralistic approach, Ms. Braverman says The Tribe offers an inclusive roadmap.
Intentionally pluralistic, Ms. Braverman calls The Tribe “a values-based
program that welcomes everyone who
is the parent or guardian of a Jewish child—whether Jewish or non-Jewish.
Tribe members journey together to gain a general understanding of Jewish values.”
Describing The Tribe’s curriculum as “approachable, flexible,
and fun”, Ms. Braverman explains the modules correspond to Jewish holidays and
each month covers certain Jewish values and ethics.
“This flow builds parents’ knowledge about Jewish
history, culture, and traditions and inspires their kids to learn more about
Jewish values and ethics such as
honoring parents and teachers, performing deeds of loving kindness, peace in
the home, positive speech, and welcoming guests/providing hospitality.
“The Tribe
was created to highlight Jewish values and to be accessible to families who did
not previously connect with Judaism through religious ritual,” she says. “We selected Jookender because we thought
niche populations would be best served by the small group model and we wanted
to prioritize engaging currently underserved and marginally affiliated Jews,” she
adds.
Seventy-seven
families with children from kindergarten to 3rd grade participated
in The Tribe pilot. From these, Sasha and her team created nine tribes, each with nine to 12 families and a leader.
Although some of the families knew each other before being invited to join The
Tribe, most met during the program.
While most families used The Tribe’s curriculum, Sasha explains, some innovated
and created additional lessons based on the provided pedagogy. Most popular
among all the tribes were holiday traditions. Sharing the story of a family who knew
nothing about Jewish holiday cuisine so they made dishes to share with tribe members,
Sasha says such lessons resonated because they
brought tribe members together—especially around food.
“The Tribe inspires curiosity and a yearning for
learning, especially for Jews who may not have been exposed to the richness of
our heritage and traditions. It offers a step-by-step framework within which
families can experience those things together,” Ms. Braverman says. “Inclusive
and intergenerational, The Tribe is an engaging point of entry or re-entry into
Jewish life.”
Stories and Statistics Show Success
Where many point to declining Jewish identity and engagement as
existential threats to American Jewry’s future, the success of both Tribe pilots
shows that creative, inclusive, and pluralistic programming can produce
positive outcomes in the RSJ community.
In addition to post-participant surveys
that reveal measurable program engagement milestones, participants’ personal
stories describe the life-altering impact of reconnecting with long-forgotten
(or never learned) Jewish rituals, ethics, and traditions. Sasha says, “The
Tribe’s family orientation actually strengthens religious affiliation by
exposing Jewish liturgy, rituals, and traditions to previously disengaged
families.”
In terms of measurable impact, Ms. Braverman highlights Jookender’s 333% increase in connection to the Jewish
community. “I was surprised by the results of Jookender's participation. Sasha
had a 50-family waitlist of families eager to participate in the program's
first year.”
Ms. Atkin shares the joy of seeing her children discover
Judaism like she did: “The Tribe and Jookender’s other programs give my kids
the childhood I dreamed for them—to learn, embrace, and practice Judaism with
people who are like them, in an environment free of fear.” Sasha cites an
unanticipated community benefit of The Tribe’s structure and programming: “Some tribes grew very close socially in
addition to learning from the curriculum.”
Program satisfaction isn’t limited
to parents. Kira Shandalov says the kids she taught were curious and hungry to
learn more. “At all ages, I’ve discovered a deep desire among this
community to know more about Jewish heritage, ritual, and tradition.” The Tribe
kids are engaged not just by fun and games, but also by teen madrichot
(counselors/teachers) whom Sasha and the Jookender team actively recruit and
train. Of Ms. Shandalov, Mrs. Atkin says: “Kira was amazing. Her energy and
passion really connect with the kids. They look at her and see a model of what
they could be.”
Sasha highlights Jookender’s
training of teen volunteers and mentors like Kira. “The training we give our
teen volunteers has a ripple effect,” she explains. “First we make sure these
young men and women acquire and retain Jewish historic and cultural knowledge.
Second, we equip them to go to tribes and teach. Third, teen teachers make it
more affordable for families with young kids to participate in Jookender’s
programs.”
Count Worcester Jewish Community Center Executive
Director Emily Rosenbaum as a fan of The Tribe. With her 10-year-old daughter,
Ms. Rosenbaum was a member of the Northern Worcester County Tribe.
From a
professional and personal perspective, Ms. Rosenbaum says that The Tribe makes
it easier for unaffiliated Jews to access comfortable and convenient Jewish
fellowship: “The pedagogy is thoughtfully and sensitively constructed to connect
Jewish education with practical Jewish values. It shares vital lessons about valuing,
maintaining, and manifesting Judaism in our daily lives.”
She believes The Tribe’s non-intimidating, haimish
engagement style and flexible, approachable curriculum is appealing because it
“caters to people in their comfort zones, involves families, builds community
connections, and ultimately enhances Jewish learning."
Following Pilot Program Success, an Uncertain Future
Pointing to overwhelmingly
positive objective and subjective feedback, Sasha
and the Jookender team are actively seeking funds to grow The Tribe’s reach and
impact. Normally calm and unassuming, Sasha lights up when sharing The Tribe’s
impact in the community her team serves: “I’m thrilled The Tribe appears to
strengthen connections to our faith, especially among the RSJ community. It
fulfills our cravings to be more connected with our faith and fellow Jews.”
Although The Tribe pilot was fully funded, Sasha says the budget-conscious nonprofit lacks the
resources to conduct as robust a program as in the first year. Reluctantly
conceding that philanthropic support to expand Jookender’s other programming remains
a question mark, Sasha and the Jookender team are optimistic donors will realize the importance, value, and impact of Jookender’s
programming in the RSJ community, and respond accordingly.
With so many Jewish education and outreach programs in
Massachusetts, Jookender’s outsized impacts have gone largely unnoticed. “We
prefer to have our results speak for our organization instead of slick
marketing materials,” says Sasha. “But more support could help us achieve much,
much more.” Specifically, she mentions growing the number of tribes and expanding
the number of people who can participate in Jookender’s popular Teens4Teens program and Family Camps.
Discover more about Jookender.
