Rabbi Jaime Klein Aklepi
For many years I have been waiting to experience the March of the Living – the trip that begins in Poland and continues to Israel.
Beginning the day after Passover, I journeyed with over 200 people, High School Juniors and Seniors, educators and chaperones.
We marched from Auschwitz to Birkenau on Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day, and from the center of Jerusalem to the Kotel, the Western Wall on Israel’s 60th Anniversary of Independence, Yom Ha’atzmaut.
It was my first time in Poland, a country that was the center of Jewish life prior to World War II.
There is not much left in terms of Jewish life.
There are fledgling Jewish communities in Krakow and Warsaw consisting of Poles with Jewish ancestry and others reclaiming what once was a vibrant community rich with tradition and longstanding history. We visited old synagogues and yeshivas not in use as well as cemeteries, concentration camps and death camps. Amidst the tragic history of the Holocaust, the will of the Holocaust survivors to teach, love and share, and the willingness of the Jewish teens to learn,love and share has been a transforming experience for me. It is the spirit of the Jewish people, the courage to have hope, and the ability to find meaning in our existence that ensures our future. While the “March” focuses on what we once were in Europe and what we’ve become in Israel, it is a message of hope that endures.
As the school year ends, we acknowledge the blessing and hope inherent in all of our students. I send my congratulations to all of our graduates all the way through Graduate School. May each new transition be exciting and each new challenge bring you growth. May the summer be a time for rest, recreation and renewal. We offer our greatest thanks and appreciation to our teachers who educate and nurture our students. You too, we know, deserve rest and recreation!
Summer is a time to take pause but we don’t want the summer to fly by without being productive. Now’s the time to create plans that will give us fulfillment and help renew our spirits. I encourage everyone to include Jewish books in your summer reading list, a Jewish movie on your DVD rental list. If you are traveling, seek out a synagogue be it Vail, Vancouver, San Jose, or Sarajevo. Of course, Bet Breira too, will be here for worship and study. Don’t forget: Our Star Spangled Shabbat, July 4th! Details to follow...check your email!
