The TBAY Experience for Our Post B’nei Mitzvah Teens
When a student becomes B’nei Mitzvah, they take their place as an adult in the Jewish community. TBAY offers the opportunity to participate in a broad range of activities through which teens can fulfill key needs. This includes building a larger circle of life-long Jewish friends, while developing their Jewish identity through learning and community. In addition, we provide a path for teens to satisfy requirements such as community service and volunteer hours, and to build a college resume. Our programs seek to offer comfort and foster confidence for our teens to help prepare them to soon be faced with new situations, such as being a Jew on a college campus.
To expand a circle of life-long Jewish friends while developing their Jewish identity through learning and community our teens can participate in two groups. The environment is fun, spirited, and educational.
HaMakom, Union County’s Jewish community teen program, is a place where TBAY’s teens can participate in a wide range of learning, social action, and cultural activities with more than 60 teens from six other Union County Synagogues. Student-chosen classes are divided into four independent mini-mesters and occur on Tuesday evenings from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at different synagogues. HaMakom’s Opening Day this year is September 20th. Answers to Frequently Asked Questions can be found here. To learn more and to register, visit: www.unionhamakom.org.
TBAY’s USY Chapter launched last fall. USY is The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism’s youth movement for teens across North America. It is a second home – a safe, fun space where participants can be themselves. TBAY’s Chapter is youth-led and focuses on social and service connections both here and in the greater region.
To fulfill requirements such as community service and volunteer hours, and build a college resume, we offer our teens different options.
Community service and volunteer opportunities are available to help meet the service requirement at Jonathan Dayton High School (30 hours/year) and other area schools. Our teens can serve as madrichim (teaching assistants) in our religious school and can volunteer with TBAY’s periodic tikkun olam projects, such as packing toiletries for local shelters or collecting food for the Kosher Food Pantry at Jewish Family Services. They can also earn hours by working at a local Jewish summer camp. They can join Rabbi’s Rubin’s minyan text list to help ensure a minyan when a congregant has a yahrzeit. Finally, they can volunteer as interns with Rabbi Rubin and/or in the TBAY office.
Honors and leadership opportunities are available in any of our different programs. One example is joining a Teen Torah Corps where teens can chant their Haftarah again, lead a Torah discussion and/or read from the Torah during the High Holy Days. USY is always looking for student leaders. Our Men’s Club bestows a “Youth of the Year Award” each December and our Women’s League provides scholarship opportunities for college and trips to Israel. Overall, our goal is to help enrich each TBAY teen’s life and help them become the Jewish adult they want to be. If you have questions, contact Rabbi Rubin at or 609-577-6842.
