04/03/2014
Young Russian Leaders Explore Cleveland to Strengthen their own community
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CLEVELAND – Twenty four Jewish young adults will experience the trip of a lifetime. On April 6 – April 10, the Lehava leadership group from St. Petersburg, Russia will be in Cleveland to explore Jewish life, culture and infrastructure.
St. Petersburg is the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s partnership community in Russia. For nearly 15 years, the Federation has partnered with international and local St. Petersburg organizations to improve the quality of life for Jewish people in St. Petersburg. The young adults in the Lehava group represent a generation raised in a religiously freer society than the one their parents knew. They are eager to build a vibrant Jewish life for themselves, and the Cleveland Jewish community is helping make that dream a reality.
The Lehava young adults will meet with many local leaders, including members of the Federation’s Young Leadership Division. This exchange will also provide Cleveland young adults insight into the challenges faced by St. Petersburg’s youthful leaders and the strides they have taken to resurrect and strengthen their community.
This year-long program helps the Lehava young adults learn skills to develop projects of benefit to their community. Their experiences in Cleveland will be dynamic, attending the following events:
- Visit and lunch with Federal Judge Dan A. Polster
- Volunteering at Montefiore Home with Russian residents and Council Gardens
- “Coffee Talk,” in which various community members have been invited to serve as resources for the Lehava participants’ projects
- Text study with Cantor Misha Pisman of The Park Synagogue and who is from Moscow.
- Downtown tour of Scene Magazine on West 6th Street to learn from young businessman, Andrew Zelman, about being a Jewish communal leader and a leader in the Cleveland community
- A social hour with Russian-speaking young adults and others from the Federation’s Young Leadership Division at Restaurant Europa
