Santa Barbara, CA - Rock climbing and bicycle riding can be tricky in a floor-length skirt. A group of teenage girls who belong to Chabad, a Hasidic Jewish group, have learned to get around the obstacles of their faith's dress code requirement.
“We wear pants underneath,” said Devorah Goldberg, one of 46 sophomores on a trek up the West Coast. “You get used to it.”
Hasidic girls take journey of faith
Santa Barbara, CA – Rock climbing and bicycle riding can be tricky in a floor-length skirt. A group of teenage girls who belong to Chabad, a Hasidic Jewish group, have learned to get around the obstacles of their faith’s dress code requirement.
“We wear pants underneath,” said Devorah Goldberg, one of 46 sophomores on a trek up the West Coast. “You get used to it.”
The teens stayed in Santa Barbara this week as part of Camp Emunah (meaning “to believe”) that is based in Brooklyn’s Crown Heights, where the Chabad movement was formed.
Fun and entertainment is definitely a big part of the three-week trip, but the focus is giving the girls a glimpse of what could be in store for their futures.
Chabad women usually marry in their early 20s, then are sent out to different parts of the world to establish ministries of their own. One of the primary goals of the movement as a whole is to bring Jews closer to the customs of their religion, such as following kosher and Jewish observances, attending synagogue and dressing modestly (Chabad girls must be completely covered in public, including from the elbows and knees down).
“We want Jewish people to see how special they are,” said Sara Caytak, one of the counselors accompanying the girls. “It is a beautiful thing to be Jewish.”
When Ariel Friedman’s family joined Chabad about five years ago, it was a big challenge, the 16-year-old admits.
“I didn’t like it,” she said. “Everything changed.”
No more soccer on Saturdays or dressing how she pleased. She changed schools to attend a Hasidic school.
Now, she realizes the importance of following custom, she said.
Getting a taste of the outside world is important because in New York, where most of the girls are from, “you have everything you need right there,” said Chani Rubaschkin, another counselor. “Everyone is close-knit. You don’t have to worry about keeping kosher. It’s very comfortable.”
When they leave their homes, it will be a different story. They will quickly learn about becoming self-sufficient.
The teens’ stay in Santa Barbara included a trip to the Chabad house in Goleta run by the Loschak family, who also established a ministry at UCSB.
“It’s amazing to see what can happen,” Ms. Caytak said. “Little by little, Jews around the world do this. It’s very inspiring.”
The girls began their trip in Los Angeles and are slowly making their way up to Seattle by bus. They slept in sleeping bags on the floor at the Jewish Federation of Greater Santa Barbara, which offers its building every year for free. The girls are allowed to take only one duffel bag each, and these were piled all over the facility on Chapala Street.
After a quick stroll down State Street and some time at the beach, they headed north.
“It’s very nice here,” Ms. Rubaschkin said. “People seem very curious about us, and we’re more than happy to tell them.”
friend
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regards from agoura
cousin
srula, i see your doin some heavy lifting…
bakakavak
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California Amiga
B"H
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cuzin
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rebbitzin dl
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campers
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machanayim israel program
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hey guess
u look like your having a ball
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hunter
hey lala nice to see you