Active Summer for Jewish Youth of Bryansk

Bryansk, Russia –- Despite the fact that many residents of Russia use their summer holidays to take a break from everything, Jewish youth in the city of Bryansk have decided to carry on their activities as usual. Through the ‘STARS’ program, they have been enthusiastically living an active Jewish life.

Participants meet up twice a week in order to attend lessons on the Torah and to discuss the actual developments and challenges concerning the Jewish community. They also enjoy the guidance of Chief Rabbi of Bryansk Menachem Mendel Zaklos, who is serving the region as a Chabad Lubavitch emissary.

Students Get an Instant Shabbat in Vermont

Burlington, VT — Last semester, Chabad-Lubavitch Rabbi Zalman Wilhelm and his wife Chani spent the minutes between 1 and 2 a.m. each Friday waiting for an unusual special delivery. Like clockwork, a visitor would emerge from the darkness at the home of the directors of the Chabad House at the University of Vermont, knock on the door and drop off a box of some challah rolls.

The mysterious early morning delivery is a quirky snapshot of the Shabbat-to-Go program, in which the Wilhelms assembled 80 Shabbat “care packages” and passed them out to students each Friday. The free kits included grape juice, a candle, a small snack and instructions on how to celebrate Shabbat; each package had a sticker on the outside telling students what time the sun would set that evening so that they could light the Shabbat candle at the proper time.

Jewish Summer Camp Opens in Uzbekistan

Tashkent, Uzbekistan — This week, the Jewish community of Uzbekistan announced the grand opening of the ‘Gan Israel’ summer camp. Aimed at children and teenagers, this current retreat involves over 100 girls of various ages. Participants were bussed out to the camp site on Sunday.

This year’s camp will take place at a resort, located near the village of Oktash, which has been rented by the Jewish community especially for this event. The youngsters were very pleased to find two swimming pools, a sauna, and a playground at their convenience. Here, they will enjoy a variety of sports, competitions and educational programs focusing on Jewish traditions.

Australian Art Hub to Get Mikvah Worthy of its Reputation

Malvern, Australia — A Melbourne suburb which was once the home to seven Victorian governors and now has become something of an artsy oasis for the country’s intellectual set, is getting a new mikvah.

The Jewish ritual bath, which will be decorated with greenery and will boast a plush waiting room, has been designed with the goal of attracting more woman to the observance of family purity laws.

And partly in deference to its surroundings, right above the pool’s entrance will hang a mural depicting a sunset, which happens to be right around the time women go to the mikvah.