Mazel Tov
Mazel Tov
Dear Readers,
While every single anniversary is important, there’s something special about those milestone markers. . . the years that end in 0 or 5. That’s why, starting on the next page, we feature four area couples whose 20-, 45-, and 70-year-marriages are testimonies to love, friendship, and respect.
It’s also why Ohef Sholom Temple holds a service each year to celebrate, bless, and say “Mazel Tov!” to those couples who fall in those milestone categories. The service this year took place on Friday, Feb. 14.
Beyond weddings and anniversaries, many occasions and events are reasons to receive hearty Mazel Tovs! Awards are a perfect example.
Bob Zentz, a local folk music legend, recently received a Music Lifetime Achievement Award from Veer Magazine. Anyone who has had the privilege of hearing Bob perform, knows his talent. My first introduction to Bob was at Ohef Sholom Temple where he taught my Sunday School class. What a cool teacher we had. . . he’d teach and then pull out his guitar or banjo and sing us a tune. He deserves another award for getting through that rowdy bunch of eighth graders! Also earning Lifetime Achievement Awards were Brian Friedman and Michael Goldberg. Articles on pages 22 and 23.
Steve Kocen, volunteer extraordinaire and overall magnificent mensch, is one of this year’s recipients of the 61st Annual VCIC Tidewater Humanitarian Awards. Page 24.
When celebrating a Bar or Bat Mitzvah, some families are participating in TJF’s B’nai Tzedek program. Melissa and Aaron Kass’ son, Jonah, is one. Page 21.
Every teen who attended BBYO’s recent International Convention deserves a major Mazel Tov! Lainey Goldman writes about her experience on page 26.
Mazel Tov to all!
Terri Denison Editor
Milestone anniversaries celebrated at Ohef Sholom.
Mazel Tov
Milestone anniversaries worth celebrating
Stephanie Peck
“Love and marriage, go together like a horse and carriage. It’s an institute you can’t disparage.”
Frank Sinatra first sang these Sammy Cahn lyrics in the 1955 television production of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town. Here, in Tidewater, several couples celebrating special anniversaries speak to the foundation of their marriage and the many years they have shared together. From first encounters to travels to exotic lands, these husbands and wives have stayed the course and happily share with Jewish News how they navigate married life.
Beverly and Jack Fox
70th anniversary
Best friends for more than 70 years, when Beverly and Jack Fox’s children were younger and dating, they asked their dad how they would know if someone were marriage material. He suggested imagining the person as the same sex – would that person be a best friend?
“Best friends – it’s a long-lasting relationship,” Jack Fox says.
The couple met in Washington, D.C. when Fox was in the Army, stationed in Northern Virginia, and Beverly was in a college program and working at the Hecht Company. Fox was later stationed in New Mexico, and the two married there with only one other couple attending. It was in El Paso, Texas, that their daughter was born. After his service, Fox completed his engineering degree at Lehigh University (which also awarded Beverly a “Putting Hubby Through” degree, says Fox), and the couple moved back to his native Baltimore, where their two sons were born.
Transferred for a job to Cary, N.C., after just a couple of years, Fox decided to strike out on his own and purchased Quality Baking Company, later named Fox Quality Baking Company, in Emporia, Va. At 51 years old, Fox sold the business that he had grown from six employees to 400, and he and Beverly retired to Virginia Beach.
The couple shares a love of adventure and have travelled the world. As a pilot for 60 years (Fox sold his twin-engine plane six months ago), the couple have flown to Alaska, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland. “One hot summer in Virginia Beach, I told Beverly to get in the plane and we’d fly north until we hit 74 degrees,” he says.
Twice, they have flown commercial airlines to Australia, where they then picked up a plane and flew themselves across the country. Beverly, who has also taken flight training, “doesn’t like landing,” Fox laughs.
The Foxes also have participated in Angel Flight, an organization of pilots who volunteer their time, aircraft, and expenses to fly those in need (mostly cancer patients) for medical treatment. According to Fox, these recipients cannot afford the cost of
transportation; therefore, members of Angel Flight pick them up at their hometown airport and fly them to their treatment destination.
The Foxes have also flown wounded military veterans who are recovering in places such as Walter Reed Hospital, to visit their homes and families while they recuperate, since the government does not cover these costs. “Over the years, we have loved meeting and helping these folks with our wonderful Beechcraft Baron airplane,” Fox says.
When not in the air or on land, the Foxes are boating and fishing, both in Norfolk and from their home in Boca Raton, Fla., which they have owned for 35 years. By boat, they have travelled to the Bahamas and twice from Norfolk to Florida. Since moving from their home in Virginia Beach to Harbor’s Edge in Norfolk, they have joined Norfolk Yacht and Country Club, partly, they say, to dock their 32-foot boat.
The move to Norfolk has also allowed them to discover the city, the museums, and the entertainment, such as Chrysler Hall. They say that Glass Light and Norfolk Yacht are two of their favorite dining spots. Most of their family live nearby, including three children, five of their six grandchildren, and one great grandchild.
Their first 70th anniversary celebration was a cocktail dinner party held in Florida. Another with family and friends will follow once they return to Norfolk. “Beverly celebrated our actual anniversary on February 4, recovering in the hospital from her second hip replacement. She’s doing well, thankfully,” Fox adds.
Jack and Beverly cut their 70th anniversary cake in Boca Raton, Fla.
The Foxes with their Beechcraft Baron airplane.
Jack and Beverly Fox with children Steve, Jeffrey, and Linda in 1963.
Mazel Tov
Linda and Jonathan Longman
45th anniversary
Linda and Jonathan Longman met, of all places, at a Jewish singles Hanukkah party, in December 1978. If not for this chance meeting, says Linda Longman, “our paths would probably never have crossed.”
They talked, discovered that they were both originally from Portsmouth, knew of each other’s families, but did not know each other. “We talked the very next day on the phone and began dating,” says Longman. “It wasn’t long before we had a strong connection, and we married on March 29, 1980.
The couple did not have any children together, but Linda had two teenage daughters and Jonathan had one son. “We are now the proud grandparents of three girls and one boy. Hopefully we’ll get to be great grandparents one day!” she says.
They are both very active in Temple Israel, going to Shabbat services each week and participating in daily Minyans on Zoom. Jonathan served as president of Temple Israel from 2017 through 2020.
They are also involved in Brith Sholom and enjoy spending time with family and friends. “We especially love being together with family for the Jewish holidays,” says Longman.
“We are truly best friends and love being together at home reading the newspaper, watching the news and YouTube videos on TV, and watching and competing with each other on Jeopardy,” says Longman. In addition, she says they like going out and shopping together.
Their milestone anniversary falls on Shabbat, March 29. Linda will read the Torah, Jonathan will have an Aliyah, and they will sponsor the Kiddush luncheon “as we celebrate our anniversary with our Temple Israel family,” she says.
Ellen and Bill Wagner
45th anniversary
Meeting at Stonybrook University, Ellen and Bill Wagner are originally from New York. They lived in Cincinnati, Ohio for five years and then for 24 years in Chadds Ford, Pa., which is outside of Philadelphia and just north of Delaware. There, the couple raised their three children.
“We moved to Virginia Beach six years ago, when Bill retired, to be near our daughter Amy, son-in-law Eliot, and two grandchildren, Avi and Dani Weinstein,” says Ellen Wagner. “Our two sons, Greg and Michael, live in Connecticut. Greg and his wife, Deanna, have two children, Charlotte and Ryan. Greg and Michael are physicians.”
With their children’s varying schedules, they all manage to get together for Thanksgiving and at least once during the summer, according to Wagner.
Always involved in their communities, the Wagners’ move to Tidewater meant the arrival of two active volunteers. Having served on the board of directors of the Woman of Reform Judaism for many years, Ellen is now involved in the sisterhood at Ohef Sholom Temple, serves on the board of Jewish Family Service and is part of the Women’s Philanthropy Committee. “I have been a Lion of Judah for many years,” she says. Bill served as president of the Jewish Federation of Delaware. In Tidewater, he continues to serve on committees at Ohef Sholom Temple and previously was a member of the board of Beth Sholom Village.
The Wagners say they enjoy traveling and collecting art. “Our favorite destinations have been Iceland, China, England, Italy, Greece, and the Netherlands to name a few. We have future travel plans to celebrate our 45th anniversary and Bill’s 70th Birthday.”
Locally, they go to the theater and enjoy dining out together. “We might do our own thing during the day, but we have breakfast and dinner together each day,” says Wagner.
“The key to a long marriage, in our opinion,” she says, “is to always communicate and listen to one another.”
Linda and Jonathan Longman at their wedding.
Linda and Jonathan Longman with their granddaughter Sara and her husband, Jonathan, on their wedding day in 2022.
Linda and Jonathan at their granddaughter's wedding in 2022.
The Wagners with their family at a nephew’s wedding in November 2024: Greg, Deanna, Michael, Ellen, and Bill Wagner and Amy and Eliot Weinstein.
Ellen and Bill Wagner at their 1980 wedding.
Ellen and Bill Wagner in front of Stonehenge in October 2024.
Mazel Tov
Debi and Rick Yarow
20th anniversary
After getting to know each other on a popular dating app, Debi and Rick Yarow met in person. “We were both going through divorces and had two young children. We knew it would be a challenge to start over and find partners at work, and neither of us was interested in, or had any energy for, bar hopping,” says Debi Yarow. “However, we found great success matching our personalities, lifestyles, and interests with the sites that were so new to us back in the early 2000s.”
Blending families, she says, was tricky, but living in the same neighborhood made it much easier. The couple first made sure that Ben and Hannah (Rick’s kids) and Gracie and Faith (Debi’s children) were on the same visitation schedule, so that they had all four kids together every Thursday and every other weekend. “All the kids drove to Sunday school and Hebrew school together and we went to shul and celebrated Shabbat as a family at least twice a month. We made a great deal of effort to celebrate other Jewish holidays together, and we included all four children on our journey to becoming more observant,” says Yarow.
The last time the family was all together was at Ben’s wedding. “With Hannah in Israel, Gracie and Faith in Ohio, and Ben busy with his wife, Allie, and daughter, Lennon, in Arlington, getting everyone under the same roof does pose some challenges,” admits Yarow.
Backgammon enthusiasts, the Yarrows even have their own custom board. “We play almost every night and are quite competitive: while we don’t make any bets, Rick would be broke, if we did,” says Yarow. They also love to bike, hike trails, and watch good sci-fi shows or movies together. “We enjoy taking classes at Chabad on Sundays and socializing with an Israeli group of friends that meets monthly for a potluck.”
This past summer, they “took a dreamy vacation to California,” says Yarow. “We were invited to a 60th birthday party for Rick’s cousin, and I felt it was silly to go across the country and not take in a good portion of the coast. Living out one of Rick’s boyhood dreams, we rented a cherry red Mustang convertible and began our journey in San Francisco. We worked our way over to Napa, catching up with a few college friends I hadn't seen since we were in our 20s. On our way to Orange County, we visited Big Sur, saw the magnificent Redwoods, toured Carmel, drove the coast, hiked along the cliffs of the Pacific, and so much more. I kept asking Rick if we could stay! Of course, our favorite destination, other than visiting our children and granddaughter, is Israel.”
Yarow says that it’s just been several weeks since she retired, but already, “we can’t imagine a life where I go back to work. While teaching is rewarding and important, it is also the kind of job that allows time for little else. Now the two of us are able to travel, learn new things, dive into complicated recipes, and take time to volunteer for organizations and causes for which we are passionate. The world just seems full of possibilities never open to us when I was working seven days a week.”
They admit they never fully understood what people talked about when they raved about being grandparents. “When we visited Ben and Allie for the first time since they had their daughter, we spent the entire day with Lennon, staring at her tiny hands and her gorgeous face, feeding her and holding her,” says Yarow. “At the end of the day, we were walking out of their apartment towards our hotel, and I said to Rick, ‘Ah ha, this is the magic people
were talking about! We got to play with her all day, and now we get to go back to the hotel and sleep. They have to stay up all night worrying. We get to have ALL the fun!’ We both just laughed. We had arrived. Parenting is such hard work. You have to say no, be the responsible one, the one to worry about teeth, homework, and ear infections. We earned our wings to say, ‘Yes, of course you can have that. You’re with DD and Grandpa!’”
When it came to choosing a wedding date, the Yarows picked Thanksgiving weekend to make it easier for everyone to travel on a holiday weekend. “To be honest, we have regretted it since and don’t enjoy sharing our special day with a holiday the two of us do not particularly enjoy,” says Yarow. “We have joked about picking a new date, but I think we just have to stick with it. This year, our Hebrew calendar date for our anniversary is November 15, which is a Shabbat. I think we will say the Shehechianu, a blessing for allowing us to reach this milestone in our marriage and sponsor a kiddush to celebrate with our friends and family.”
Marriage, says Yarow, is hard and “loving someone for 20 years involves choosing to love that person every day. Rick and I have had many challenges and difficulties in our 20 years of marriage; blending a family and navigating co-parenting put an extra strain on a new relationship. We had no time to be newlyweds; we were immediately the parents of four young children.”
But determined and hard-working, she says they knew from their previous marriages that it comes with both compromise and sacrifice; it’s a real partnership. However, Yarow says, “marriage can also come with laughter, safety, intimacy, and love.
“Nothing worth having is easy or comes without hard work. People are human and make mistakes; they come with past traumas, baggage, fears, hopes, and stories; a spouse has to be mindful and understanding of the human, the soul they married.”
With all of the challenges, according to Yarow, “as long as you are attracted to each other, share common interests, and have goals together, you can do it. Take relationship classes together, read books, learn to communicate effectively, play games, and most of all, keep the fire going.”
Debi and Rick Yarow on their “dreamy vacation” in California last summer.
Debi and Rick Yarow in their early years together.
Mazel Tov BEGINNING WITH B’NAI TZEDEK
TJF
staff
For the Kass family, giving back is more than just a value — it’s a responsibility. When their son Jonah was preparing for his Bar Mitzvah, Melissa and Aaron Kass knew they wanted to instill the importance of community and responsibility. The B’nai Tzedek: Youth Philanthropy program through the Tidewater Jewish Foundation provided the perfect opportunity.
“The future of the Jewish community in Hampton Roads is bright because of the work of so many who have come before us,” says Aaron Kass. “We want to make sure our children see themselves not just as consumers of the community, but as contributors to its success, and this is a great way to start.”
B’nai Tzedek allows young philanthropists to start their own charitable fund with a minimum $250
donation, which TJF matches to create a $500 fund. Each year, participants can grant a portion of their fund to a Jewish charity of their choice, fostering a lifelong commitment to giving.
For Jonah, the decision was easy—he chose to support Strelitz International Academy, where he spent a decade forming lifelong friendships and values. “It was meaningful for him to give back to a place that shaped him,” says Melissa Kass. “We love that he has the ability to decide where his contributions go.”
What surprised the Kass family most was how simple the process was. “It was SO easy,” says Melissa Kass. “We just asked the folks at TJF for the paperwork, mailed a check, and that was it. It took under an hour.”
B’nai Tzedek is just one milestone in the greater
philanthropic journey. Through TJF, individuals of all ages can engage in giving, ensuring that Jewish values are passed down for generations. Naomi Limor Sedek, president and CEO of TJF, emphasizes that the foundation meets donors where they are.
“Anyone can be a philanthropist at any time,” Sedek says. “We want families to see that B’nai Tzedek is just the beginning — a steppingstone toward lifelong generosity and impact.”
The Kass family offers simple advice for families considering the program: “Just call TJF. They make it effortless, and it’s a great way to get involved in philanthropy with almost no barriers.”
Through B’nai Tzedek, Jonah Kass has taken his first step in a lifelong journey of giving — one that will continue to ripple through his family, community, and the future of Jewish life in Tidewater.
To start a child’s philanthropic journey, contact Tidewater Jewish Foundation at 757-965-6111 or visit bit.ly/TJFBnaiTzedek to learn more.
The Kass family: Aaron, Alexa, Jonah, Melissa, and Micah – on the occasion of Jonah’s Bar Mitzvah.
Bob Zentz recognized with Music Lifetime Achievement Award Mazel Tov
Stephanie Peck and Terri Denison
Local folk musician Bob Zentz was bestowed a 2025 Music Lifetime Achievement Award from Veer Magazine during a ceremony at Elevation 27 last month. With a career that includes nearly every aspect of music – as a writer, performer, retailer, manager, mentor –Zentz has been a musical staple in Tidewater, as well as around the world, for more than half a century.
His introduction to music (aside from his music-playing parents) came with piano lessons. It was at camp, though, when a counselor played guitar and banjo that a young Bob Zentz was hooked. During his senior year at Maury High School in 1962, Zentz played his first gigs, he says.
After high school, Zentz enlisted in the Coast Guard, where he continued writing music, even in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
For a while, Zentz helped manage and often played at
the Virginia Beach location of Washington, DC’s The Shadows, a folk club. There, he met Ken Fritz, the club’s DC manager, who also oversaw the Beach location.
With a little help from his parents and Fritz, who had become the Smothers Brothers’ manager, Zentz’s music reached the desk of the music director of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, who hired him. The opportunity enabled Zentz to leave the Coast Guard early, avoid service in Vietnam, and travel to Los Angeles to become one of four new writers on the Emmywinning program, joining the likes of Steve Martin.
With the television show’s abrupt ending, Zentz and his then-wife, Rosi, returned to Tidewater in 1971. Back home, Zentz taught music at Old Dominion University, and even Sunday School at Ohef Sholom Temple. At the suggestion of his ODU students – who needed guitars, picks, and other instrumental accessories – Zentz opened the first Ramblin’ Conrad’s on Hampton Boulevard near the college campus, “creating a hub for local folk enthusiasts to gather, take lessons, and hear intimate concerts from local and international folk musicians,” writes his daughter, Skylar Zentz, in a Veer Magazine article.
Ramblin’ Conrad’s moved twice and had a kiosk at The Waterside, before finally giving way to big box music stores, closing its Ghent location in 1995. Zentz, however,
continued his folk music journey, travelling to distant places such as Finland and Australia to perform.
Zentz and his wife, Jeanne, have been together for 18 years, although one of their first meetings took place in 1983 when she interviewed him for Y-96. The interview can be found on their website, bobzentz.com. They reunited in 2007 and, as Jeanne recounts, “our marriage took place on Jan. 4, 2017, in Rabbi Roz’s office at Ohef Sholom Temple.”
For two years during COVID, the couple played music for services and holidays at Beth Sholom Village and sang for the memory unit. “It was a wonderful experience,” Jeanne says. They also hosted a monthly Zoom “Havdalah Hootenanny” for Ohef Sholom members. “We did the Havdalah service first, singing the Debbie Friedman song,” recalls Jeanne. Members were encouraged to take turns performing – and plenty did. “It was a real folk-jam,” she says.
A musician, Jeanne calls herself, “Bob’s backup band.” Anyone who has heard her, of course, knows she’s being humble.
“After 60+ years, Bob is still preaching the gospel of folk,” says Jeanne. “It’s tikkun olam. . . how a song can repair the world.”
Now participants in Ohef Sholom’s weekly Torah Study, Zentz says they “enjoy listening to the different
Bob Zentz with the Veer Lifetime Achievement Award.
The family, Bob and Jeanne Zentz, Rosi Martin, Skye Zentz, and her husband, Gabriel Robinson, after the awards ceremony.
Bob Zentz at his star on the Legends of Music Walk of Fame in downtown Norfolk on his 80th birthday.
Mazel Tov
opinions that people bring.”
About the couple’s collection of instruments, Jeanne promptly says there “are too many.” Banjos, guitars, hybrids, squeeze boxes, dulcimers, autoharps, the list continues.
Still, they use most of them.
Later this year, at the New England Folk Festival (NEFFA, most call it) near
and the Virginia Beach Antiques Mall, among others.
Zentz is also passing on his passion to a new generation of musicians, teaching music at Ohef Sholom Temple, where he encourages children to write songs and sing.
Through the Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, Zentz’s music will be archived and available in perpetuity for future music-lovers. According to its website, “Smithsonian Folkways Recordings is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution… We believe that musical and cultural diversity contributes to the vitality and quality of life throughout the world.”
Boston, the couple will perform and create the “Rambin’ Conrad’s experience in a tent in the 75-year-old festival’s exhibition hall.” They’ll also perform at the Ocrafolk Festival (named by Zentz) in Ocracoke Island, North Carolina. Locally, Zentz will continue to play his regular gigs at the Waterman Museum in Yorktown
In 2017, Zentz received a bronze star on the Legends of Music Walk of Fame on Granby Street – the walk recognizes Hampton Roads natives who have made significant contributions of national or international significance to the world of music. Among his fellow honorees are Ella Fitzgerald and Bruce Hornsby. Referring to the names on the Walk of Fame, Jeanne adds, “Bob is the only folk musician and maybe the only Jew.”
From his earliest days at Maury High School to his international gigs to his very local and intimate performances, Bob Zentz has entertained and inspired countless audiences. A talent worthy of a lifetime achievement award.
Recognized for contributions to the local music scene
Stephanie Peck
Barry Friedman and Michael Goldberg, along with Bob Zentz, received Veer Magazine Lifetime Achievement Awards last month. A local publication covering arts, culture, entertainment, travel, and dining in Hampton Roads, Veer celebrated its 15th year recognizing the full spectrum of music in Hampton Roads.
Friedman offers Tidewater a wide selection of compact disc and vinyl recordings at Birdland Music, a
local store in Kempsville opened by his father, Tommy, in1969. According to Jeff Maisey, publisher and editor of Veer Magazine, Birdland has stayed relevant in the age of Spotify and other streaming services. “If a local band wants to sell music, Barry is willing to take it on consignment,” he says. As an example, Maisey says that during a recent visit to the store, he saw a new album released by local artist, Brian Grilli, on the front counter.
For the past six or seven years, Goldberg, “who has
been around a long time,” according to Maisey, has been gathering musicians to collaborate with him. Special guests play on his albums, and Goldberg gives exposure to local musicians, too. Maisey says the Veer Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes Goldberg’s history as a musician. Through these awards, Veer Magazine highlights individuals, bands, and the local music scene so that newcomers to the industry can better understand the history and culture of the area.
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The Dick Lamb Show on WTAR-TV in the mid-70s, with co-hosts Bob Zentz and Sherri Brennan (seated left and middle), Dick Lamb and Scott McKenzie (Standing).
61st Annual VCIC Tidewater Humanitarian Awards Celebration to honor Steve Kocen
Stephanie Peck
Each year, Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities awards its prestigious Humanitarian award to individuals and organizations who have made significant contributions to the promotion of respect and understanding among people of diverse racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds in South Hampton Roads.
Steven E. Kocen is one of this year’s honorees for VCIC’s 61st annual Tidewater Humanitarian Awards.
A native of Richmond, Va., Kocen met his wife, Sally, on a blind date for a dance that took place in Ohef Sholom Temple’s Kaufman Hall on Dec. 3, 1966; he moved to Tidewater in the 1970s. From 1981 until 1996, the Kocens lived in Lexington, Ky. In 1996, they returned to Tidewater with their daughters, Michelle and Stephanie. In Tidewater, Kocen has worked at Southern Bank for the past 19 years.
Volunteering is a major part of Kocen’s very full and active life, and it’s something he’s been doing for literally, decades. While in Lexington, for, example, Kocen served as president of his temple.
Kocen is receiving the VCIC award for his extensive work with nonprofits. In addition to professional affi liations with Downtown Norfolk Council and banking organizations, Kocen is active with United Way. “I have worked in every imaginable volunteer position for the past 27 years (at United Way),” he laughs, including serving as chair and vice chair of the community investment committee. At The Up Center in Norfolk, Kocen serves on the board of directors and chairs its governance committee. For the past four years, Kocen’s roles at Tidewater Jewish Foundation have included serving as a board member and as committee member of its audit and finance committee.
“But truly my passion is OST,” says Kocen, referring to Ohef Sholom Temple, where he is an honorary board member and active volunteer, now chairing the fi nance and development committee. “My mother and maternal grandmother were involved in the Richmond Jewish community. I grew up watching their example.”
At the Westin, Kocen will be surrounded by his family, including Sally, their two daughters, and four of their five grandchildren. Past VCIC honorees, and Kocen’s sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Linda and Ron Spindel, will also be at his table.
Under the leadership of Tony Brothers, those being honored along with Kocen include J. Thaler McCormick, Vivian M. Oden, Cynthia C. Romero, and Robert Shoup.
Steve Kocen.
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FIRST PERSON Tidewater BBYO goes to International Convention Mazel
Lainey Goldman
Partaking in BBYO’s International Convention 2025 was truly an experience I will never forget. The annual gathering took place this year over President’s Day Weekend in Denver, Col.
From listening to the incredible speakers to dancing and singing with my friends at the Block Party, there is no better way to engage Jewish teens with their heritage.
When I decided to attend IC, I was really enticed by the music performances. However, I gained so much more than I could have ever imagined. Being in a space where you are surrounded by more than 3,500 Jewish teenagers who all have the same thing in common is empowering.
When we all gathered in one room for Shabbat, Havdalah, or even just for dinner, pride and joy filled the room. I was able to reunite with some friends I met on my 2024 BBYO Passport trip to Italy, as well as make many, many more friends.
After returning home, whenever I was asked about my trip, the most common question was “Would you go back?” My answer: “100%, yes.” Though it may seem far away, even still, I cannot wait for next year.
BBYO’s International Convention will take place next year in Philadelphia, Pa.
Lainey Goldman is a member of Simcha BBG and a junior at First Colonial High School.
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1st row: Megan Helman, Ella Goodove, Molly Mancoll, Lainey Goldman, Chloe Zuckerman, Caroline Wainger, and Erin Wainger. 2nd row: Ryan Kalfus, Sam Levin, Nate Simon, Hayden Caplan, and Logan Hoffman. (Ayla Kell is missing from the photo)
Caroline Wainger, Erin Wainger, Molly Mancoll, Ella Goodove, Megan Helman, and Ayla Kell.
Nate Simon, Ryan Kalfus, Hayden Caplan, Logan Hoffman, and Sam Levin.