2012 CUBA PROGRAMS
In the 20 years since the return to Cuba
Shabbat Chicken Dinner Program
The Shabbat Chicken Dinner Program continues to
be one of the most important projects in the Cuban Jewish Community; not only
for the valuable experience of bringing members of the community together to
share in celebrating Shabbat, but also for the important nutritional protein
intake that this meal provides for most congregants. Food shortages and the
government rationing system make this weekly meal key to the health of more
at-risk children and elderly citizens.
The Chicken Dinner Program operates in all five
synagogues across the country, serving more than 350 people every Friday night.
Highlight: Due to the success of the Shabbat Chicken
Dinner Program on Friday nights, it was extended in 2012 to include Saturday
lunch after Shacharit (morning) services. In Cuba, more congregants attend
services on Saturday morning than on Friday evening.
Currently the Shabbat lunches serve 400 people throughout
the island, not just in Havana.
Transportation program
Transportation in Cuba is inconsistent and unreliable
and makes ease of travel a country-wide issue. The members of the Jewish Community
live in a wide-spread area so transportation is a critical component to JDC’s
work in Cuba . Providing reliable transportation to members
of the Jewish Community is a key piece to the success of any activity
that the community organizes because, for many, JDC provided transportation is
the only way they are able to access these events.
In order to bring the community together to
engage in Jewish events and activities, JDC continues developing a network of
transportation for the following programs:
·
Sunday School:
JDC rents four large buses to pick up and return the students of the Sunday
School to locations near their homes.
Busing is provided for 200 people every Sunday.
·
Havdalah – Chagim – Age-Group Social Activities: At the conclusion of all community events,
celebrations, and programs, JDC rents vans to return community members to their
homes. The number of people served
varies based on the activity and ranges from smaller activities of 40 people to
larger gatherings of 200 people.
·
Trips to/from the provinces: The seven communities outside Havana have regularly scheduled visits
with JDC’s representatives, as well as regular meetings with Jewish education
tutors from Havana who visit their assigned community every three months. The
purpose of these visits is both to organize Jewish educational and recreational
activities in the peripheral communities, and to create and sustain connections
within the Jewish Community as a whole.
In 2013, six children from the provinces will
go up to the Torah to celebrate their Bar or Bat Mitzvah. To help them prepare for this important rite
of passage, JDC provides transportation for these young people to travel to
either Havana or the closest synagogue were they have the opportunity to
practice their Parasha reading and learn about how the ceremony will be
conducted.
JDC also provides transportation for members of
peripheral communities to participate in nation-wide Jewish communal
programming. Programs in 2012 include:
o
National Hebrew Seminar in May – 15 participants from the provinces
o
National Rikkudim Seminar for Israeli dancing held in October – 8
participants from the provinces
o
National Adults Summer Camp held in December – 50 participants from the
provinces
·
Social Assistance Program (Kesher): JDC provides transportation to the organizers
and volunteers of the Kesher social assistance program when carrying out the
scheduled visits to disadvantaged community members. 20 members of the Community
receive regular monthly visits from Kesher volunteers (more details on the
Kesher program below).
Highlight: As of September, JDC began providing financial support for
transportation to the Senior Center. The
Senior Center is based at the Sephardic Center in Havana and holds activities
for the elderly four days a week. 30 members
of Havana’s Jewish Community participate regularly in the Center’s programming.
It is important to stress the incomparable
value of renting vans and buses to support JDC’s programs and activities
instead of allocating donations for the purchase of private vehicles to a
specific synagogue.
Visiting Rabbis
For the past 22 years, Rabbi Shmuel
Szteinhendler from Santiago ,
Chile
Highlight: In
December 2012, Rabbi Szteinhendler was accompanied by two other Rabbis to
convene the Beit Din (religious court) in Havana as part of the conclusion
of a successful Conversion Course for 80 new members of the Jewish community. Rabbi Szteinhendler also officiated at the wonderful
simcha of the marriage of 40 Jewish couples in one night!
Jewish Education Programs
The goal of JDC’s Jewish educational programs twofold:
to enhance the religious education of the Jews of Cuba and to strengthen the
social, cultural, and spiritual life of the Community. These educational programs
are a vital connection among the Jewish communities of the island and to the
broader global Jewish Community.
All JDC supported Jewish educational programs
aim to strengthen and empower local leaders to shape a meaningful Jewish
experience for and with their own communities.
Each of the Jewish Communities on the island has a local coordinator for
every Jewish educational program. The
coordinators work alongside the JDC representatives in the development and
building of that particular program.
·
Religious Service Training: There are no Rabbis in Cuba . In order to keep the synagogues open and
functioning, it is necessary to train
members of the community to lead services for Shabbat and the
holidays. Fifteen leaders of the Jewish
Community participate in weekly classes to train and build their skills and
knowledge of Jewish liturgy.
Highlight: In
November, the Jewish Community celebrated the 5th birthday of the
Shaharito and Kabbalito! The Shaharito and Kabbalito are special services on
Friday night and Saturday morning for the younger children of the Jewish Community.
JDC’s representatives worked with teens and young adult members of the Community
to train them in leading religious services specially designed for
children. Each week the children sing
Shabbat songs and participate in various workshops in the small chapel of the
Patronato synagogue in Havana, while their parents and relatives pray in the
main sanctuary. Over 20 children
participate in both the Shaharito and Kabbalito every week.
·
Machón Albert Einstein: In Cuba, the only formal Jewish education center is
Machón Albert Einstein Sunday School in Havana. The school has its own
principal and staff of teachers. Every
Sunday, more than 100 children and 80 adults meet for breakfast (supported by
JDC) and then head off to their classrooms to participate in classes on Jewish
History, Hebrew, Jewish Traditions, Religion, etc.
o
Teacher Training Program: Every
week the JDC representatives hold classes for the Sunday School teachers to
further their own education about their Jewish heritage, as well as to build
and hone their teaching skills.
o
Machón in the provinces: Today, Jews in four of the seven peripheral communities meet twice a
month on Sundays to learn about Judaism.
50 members of the Community participate regularly in these classes.
o
National Hebrew Seminar: In May 2012, the first National Hebrew Seminar was held in Havana,
Cuba. Designed for members of the Cuban
Jewish Community who have the important role of Hebrew teacher, the week-long
seminar was led by a former JDC Cuba representative who traveled to Cuba especially
for this purpose. 25 participants from
all over the island took part in the seminar and were divided into two groups
determined by their level of Hebrew knowledge.
Highlight: After last year’s phenomenal success, JDC’s
representatives planned and held the second Summer Camp for children between
the ages of 8 and 12 in August 2012.
This year’s program lasted for two nights, adding an extra day to the
overall experience. 35 children enjoyed learning about “Eretz Israel”
(which was also the camp name) while enjoying time outdoors in nature. Activities included Israeli folk dancing,
games and activities about the history of Israel, learning about famous
Israelis and contemporary news of the country, a treasure hunt, a giant puzzle
of the map of Israel, and a “game show” about Israel’s leaders, among many
other recreational and educational activities designed specifically for this
age group.
·
Age-Based Programming: Working with local group leaders, the JDC representatives develop informal
educational activities for various age groups designed both to provide
opportunities for social interaction with their peers and to strengthen Jewish
identity. There are three different age-based groups who meet regularly to take
part in Judaic, cultural, and recreational programs. For each gathering, JDC
sponsors both snacks and transportation.
o
Youth Group Maccabi: The Youth Group Maccabi, with 50 members between the ages of 13 and 29,
meets every Tuesday and Saturday to play sports, practice Israeli dances, and
take part in organized peulot (informal educational activities with a Jewish
focus). The members of the Youth Group Maccabi continue to emerge as local
leaders and are among the strongest pillars of the Cuban Jewish community
today.
§
For the past five years, JDC has sponsored an
exchange between the Cuban Maccabi madrichim and ten madrichim from Maccabi Argentina each
January. From January 7-16 2013, the madrichim from Argentina will travel to
Cuba for this year’s exchange.
Highlight: This October marked the first seminar for the
eight Cuban madrichim. They will meet twice each year to plan youth group
activities for the whole year.
o
Adults Group - Guesher:
Guesher, the social group for adults, has 100 members between the ages
of 30 and 59. Guesher members meet once
a month for a variety of cultural and recreational activities.
Highlight: For the first time, Guesher planned and held a
national camp in December for Jewish adults, with 150 participants from all
over the island. It was a wonderful and
important opportunity to gather people from all the provinces and create a
valuable communal experience. The goal
and focus of the camp was to strengthen the bonds among this key age group,
while reaffirming their Jewish identity.
This three-day shabbaton
took place in the beach area of Tarará, just east of Havana. Participants shared Kabbalat Shabbat on
Friday night, Shacharit services on Saturday morning, and Torah study in a
special and unique atmosphere. The camp
concluded with a very special Havdalah ceremony on the beach on Saturday night.
o
Senior Citizens Group - Simchá: The
Simchá group, with 100 members over the age of 60, meets monthly to
socialize and participate in special cultural and recreational activities. In addition to these monthly meetings, Simchá
members also get together for a weekly literature club, physical training
classes, arts and crafts workshops, and a Rikkudim (dance) group. Twenty people
participate in each of these activities on a weekly basis.
Highlight: In September the Rikkudim workshop began
incorporating an hour of Tai Chi training, where participants can move and
stretch, improving their posture and helping to create a healthy connection
between their bodies and their minds.
Bar and Bat Mitzvah Program
The Bar and Bat
Mitzvah Program began in 2002 and has come to have very special meaning in Cuba
– as the symbol of the rebirth and renewal for the Jewish Community.
In addition to its regular class schedule, the
Sunday School is responsible for educating children of Bar and Bat Mitzvah age for this important rite of passage.
Each child receives a special study book created by JDC and is assigned
a tutor to help him or her prepare for the ceremony. The children meet weekly with
their tutors to practice their Torah portion reading.
In 2012 – 2013,
eleven children will celebrate their Bar or Bat Mitzvah:
o
5 children from Havana
o
2 children from Guantanamo
o
2 children from Camaguey
o
1 child from Cienfuegos
o
1 child from Santa Clara
·
For the children of Havana: The Bar/Bat Mitzvah
course consists of 20 classes, held every Saturday morning following Shacharit
services. They meet as a group and follow a curriculum designed and organized
by the Sunday School faculty. The teachers rotate for each subject, covering a
variety of topics.
·
For the children in the provinces: A special tutoring program was devised to
ensure that Bar and Bat Mitzvah children are fully prepared. Trained tutors travel to the provinces every
three months (see details on the tutoring program below) to work one-on-one
with the Bar/Bat Mitzvah students. The children are also invited, along with an
adult family member, to travel to Havana to observe a Bar or Bat Mitzvah so
they may learn from the experience and know what to expect for their own ceremony.
To commemorate their
hard work and dedication, JDC sponsors a community celebration to honor the
newest member of the Cuban Jewish Community. There is a special Havdalah
ceremony and a traditional candle lighting.
Highlight: Some children from the provinces prefer to
hold their Bar/Bat Mitzvah ceremony in Havana
rather than in their home communities. JDC’s representatives work directly with
the families and assist with all the arrangements for the ceremony and for the
family travel to Havana .
In most cases, children decide to hold the
ceremony in their own hometowns. In
fact, this year the Jewish community of Guantanamo celebrated its first two
Bat Mitzvahs in December!
Tutoring Program
Every three months, teams consisting of two
tutors travel from Havana to the smaller communities throughout the island to
implement Jewish cultural seminars and activities. Each team is assigned a specific
province. In 2012, the teams visited
their provinces a total of four times.
The programs and activities included: Rikkudim (dance) classes, Bar
& Bat Mitzvah training, Jewish holiday preparation, Parashiot (Torah
portion) debates, various age-focused group activities, Hebrew classes, and
other educational opportunities and programs.
In addition to their visits, the entire
tutoring team meets as a group every four months for an evaluation session, to
share ideas, and to organize future visits and activities in the provinces.
Highlight: In 2012, for the first time a pair of tutors
from peripheral communities (Sancti Spíritus and Santiago de Cuba) joined the
team of tutors!
Rikkudim – Israeli Dance
program
In Cuba, Israeli dance, or Rikkudim, has become
an important channel for the Jewish Community to express their cultural
heritage and to connect with the greater global Jewish community – and it is
one that the community has joyfully embraced.
Each age group has a Rikkidum troupe:
o
The youth organization’s dance troupe is called Emuna. Emuna has 30 dancers and rehearse twice a
week.
o
The adult dance troupe is called Darkeinu and has 20 dancers. Darkeinu
rehearses once a week after Shabbat morning Shacharit services.
o
The Senior Citizen dance group is called Jibukim. Twenty senior members
of the community come together once a week in the morning to dance, stretch
with Tai Chi exercises, and share lunch together.
o
The youngest troupe is the children´s group called Hai. It is the spark of the Rikkudim Program. Over
50 children rehearse every week during their Sunday School workshop time.
JDC ensures that all dance rehearsals have
proper air-conditioned rooms, sound equipment, new music, and a snack of
cookies and cold beverages for the dancers and their teachers.
As in years past, in October, 2012, an
Argentinean Rikkudim teacher came to Cuba to teach new dances to the teachers
from both Havana and the provinces. All
fifteen Rikkudim leaders from across the island participated in this wonderful
Rikkudim Seminar, along with 45 dancers of various ages from all the dance
troupes, bringing together Israeli folk dancers from all over the island to
learn and improve their dance skills.
Highlight: To
commemorate the conclusion of the Rikkudim Seminar, the seminar participants,
together with all the dance troupes, held Yom Ha Rikud (Day of Dance), a day of
celebrating Israeli dance at a local beach.
Summer Holiday Plan
During summer vacation (the months of July and
August), JDC organizes a Holiday Plan
for members of the Sunday School, congregants of the synagogues, and the youth
organizations, to give community members the opportunity to relax, have fun,
and learn, as well as to spend time as a community outside the school paradigm
and/or synagogue space.
·
Sunday School:
Students of the Sunday School had the opportunity to participate in excursions
and activities in and outside the city of Havana
within a Jewish communal environment. This year’s Summer Holiday Plan included:
o
Sundays at the Beach: A private beach was rented for
the entire Sunday school to spend a day at the beach with family and
friends. Transportation was provided by
JDC with rented buses, and after a day of fun and a communal lunch, everyone
returned home at 4:00 pm. There were
four beach excursions in total and they were all very successful, with 200
people participating on each Sunday trip.
o
Wednesday Excursions for Younger Students: Three
educational city excursions in Havana
were planned for students between the ages of 4 and 12 during the summer break.
The children went with their Sunday School teachers to the Jose Marti Monument
o
Outing for Older Students: The Sunday School held a special
outing to Varadero
Beach
·
Youth Organization Outings: The youth organization also held their own summer holiday
activities. JDC sponsored peulot
(informal Jewish educational activities), a variety of workshops, outings to
the beach, a day at a local swimming pool, excursions to the outskirts of
Havana, and parties. 45 young members of
the Jewish community took part in each activity.
·
Patronato & Sephardic Center Outings: JDC
sponsored transportation and lunch for the congregants of both the Patronato
and Sephardic Center synagogues. Four beach days were organized for congregants
throughout the summer.
Challot Program
Every week, a rotating team of bakers from the
Jewish Community gets together to bake challot for the communal Shabbat
dinners. The Women’s Organization is in
charge of coordinating the volunteers and the baking schedule, and JDC provides
the materials and ingredients. These challot are distributed to all the
synagogues across the island. For
special cases, JDC works directly with Kesher, the social aid program to
distribute this community-made bread to the homes of homebound elderly or ill
members of the Community.
Highlight: Once a month,
all the bakers get together and prepare 200 challot for members of the Havana community
to take home with them.
Judaic and Religious Supplies
All Judaic and religious items brought by JDC
and Jewish Federation missions are distributed throughout the Jewish community
of Cuba .
Each president of the seven Jewish communities on the island work closely with
the JDC representatives to organize the solicitation and distribution of needed
religious supplies. Religious supplies
include candles for Shabbat, kippot, talitot, prayer books, etc.
Highlight: To
enhance communication across the island and bring the entire Jewish Community
closer together, JDC sponsors Internet access and an email account for each of
the seven Jewish Communities of Cuba . To further enrich the Jewish community’s
knowledge of Jewish traditions and the study of Jewish texts, in 2012 JDC began
sending a weekly email to each of the Jewish Community presidents with
teachings and commentaries on the weekly Torah portion, compiled by the Community´s
Rabbi, Shmuel Szteinhendler.
Conversion Course
Rabbi Shmuel Szteinhendler supervises all
religious aspects of the Community, including conversion to Judaism. Under his guidance and coordination, JDC
accepted the Community´s request to regulate the Conversion Course in Havana,
meaning that conversion to Judaism will only be offered to those members of the
community who have a Jewish spouse and lead a Jewish life in the home. This year, 80 members of the Havana community
will successfully complete the Conversion Course. Each person accepted into the course received
a recommendation from the president of the synagogue he/she and his/her family
attend.
The Conversion Course is divided into several
study units. The subjects covered the
fundamentals of Judaism, the Jewish calendar, teachings of the Torah, religious
services, Jewish history, and the Jewish presence and history in Cuba. Weekly
classes were overseen by Rabbi Szteinhendler, JDC’s representatives, and three
of the most highly trained members of the Jewish Community. Throughout the nine
month long course, participants were required to complete five examinations,
culminating in the final examination by the Beit Din, the traditional
Jewish court. In December, Rabbi
Szteinhendler traveled to Cuba with two additional Rabbis from Latin America to
perform the Beit Din.
Highlight: Over 30
Brit Milah have been performed and a very special Mikvah in the sea was held
for all 80 converts before their examinations.
And to further make this a time of simcha and nachas for
the Jewish community, Rabbi Szteinhendler officiated the marriages of 40
couples together under the chupah.
March of the Living
In 2012, a delegation representing Cuba
participated in the March of the Living program, traveling to Poland and
Israel. Five members of the community had
the wonderful opportunity to be a part of this valuable program, to meet and
connect with Jews from all over the world, and to experience the lessons of
this important trip.
The great privilege of being selected to travel
outside the country and act as representatives for the Cuban Jewish community, comes
with great responsibility. Each of the
five participants will be responsible for organizing and leading the upcoming Yom
HaShoa commemoration ceremony for the Community.
Highlight: For the 2012 March of the Living, the Cuban
delegation traveled with the delegation from Argentina, rather than the
delegation from Canada, as on past trips. By traveling with participants from
Argentina, there were no longer any challenges produced by the difference in
language, allowing everyone, both Cuban and Argentinean, to fully connect and
engage with each other and with the trip experience.
Kesher
Kesher is a JDC sponsored program that works to
address the community’s need for social aid and welfare. Disadvantaged members
of the community receive regular visits to their homes by volunteers from the
Jewish community and are provided with basic needs. The coordinators of the
program, who have run Kesher for over ten years, continuously update the list
of individuals and families living in underprivileged circumstances, and
oversee the schedule of visits and the distribution of goods like chicken, extra
milk, bed sheets, adult diapers, or any specific item needed. This program currently serves 20 members of
the Jewish community.
Highlight: In 2012,
JDC worked with the Community to implement an intergenerational component to
the Kesher program. Working in pairs, members of both the youth organization
and the senior citizen group go together to visit the homes of those in need of
aid. Each pair of volunteers is
responsible for three or four Kesher clients. These visits are guaranteed to
happen at a minimum of once per month.
This new intergenerational component not only ensures that the needs are
met for all members of the Community, but also fosters and nurtures connections
between the generations.
Medications and Medical
Supplies
All medications and supplies brought to Cuba by
JDC and Jewish Federation community missions are given to the Community Pharmacy
in Havana and distributed as needed throughout the island. Members of the
Jewish community living in Havana are able to get their medications for free
from the pharmacy with a medical prescription. The doctor who oversees the pharmacy is in
direct and continual communication with the presidents of all the peripheral
communities about their needs, and arranges for the shipment of medicines and
goods.
Highlight:
Each month, the JDC
representatives send a list to the New York headquarters with an updated
medical needs and supplies list. This
list is then shared with participants on JDC and Jewish Federation
missions. Because of the pharmacy and
the great generosity of mission participants who help keep the pharmacy fully
supplied and equipped, the health of the Jewish Community has significantly
improved. As one example of this
important and vital support from the Jewish Federation system, in May 2012, a
mission from Boston provided immense help by bringing a desperately needed,
expensive cancer treatment medication for a sick child in the Jewish Community.
Special Food Shipments
Every year, through the generosity of the
Jewish community of Canada, the Cuban Jewish community receives a container of
Kosher for Passover food. JDC works in
partnership with the Canadian Jewish community and the Cuban Jewish community
to ensure the distribution of these food baskets throughout the island.
Hurricane Sandy Relief Update
On October 25, the island of Cuba
Working with local community leaders, JDC immediately
began preparing a social assistance relief plan. On the morning of October 29th the Jewish community’s
Vice President, Mr. David Prinstein, the community´s Rabbi, Shmuel
Szteinhendler (who travelled to the island as soon as he heard about the
disaster), the community´s Social Assistance Program Director, Mr. Wilbert
Wilson, and JDC representative in Cuba, Mr. Luciano Jaimovich travelled from
Havana to Santiago de Cuba to assess the situation. Because the local airport in
Santiago de Cuba was badly damaged, the only possible access to the city was by
land, a 900 km drive that took 13 hours. Due to damage to the roads, a vehicle
made for rocky terrain was rented and the four travelers packed the vehicle
full of hope and help.
Coordinating with both JDC and Santiago
de Cuba ’s Jewish Community President, the Havana Jewish community organized the
shipment of much needed food and supplies to the storm-ravaged area.
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