Bar Mitzvah Ceremony for students of Minsk ORT-Bialik School

March 13^th, 2011 at the Synagogue of the Progressive Jewish Community Bar and Bat Mizva ceremony for the students of Minsk ORT-Bialik School #132 took place.

However the official opening of the Synagogue is planned to be this summer, varous events are already held there since November 2010.

For the first time Bar-Mizva ceremony was held at the Synagogue premises. Previous years it was held in some other places (not religious).

Students were congratulated by form-masters, teachers and parents.

The ceremony also was attended by:

• First secretary of the Embassy of Israel – Genadiy Polishchuk,
• ICC Director – Olga Polishchuk,
• JAFI Head – Ilona Hilkovskaya,  
• Deputy Head of the Byelorussian Jewish Public Communities’ Council – Vladimir Chernitskiy,
• Deputy Principal (senior classes) – Elena Pugach,
• Israeli teacher – Anat Lifshitz,
• ORT Representative in Byelosussia – Franz Korsiuk.

The ceremony was guided by Progressive Jewish Community Rabbi – Grigoriy Abramovich, under whose guidance all actions, required by the tradition, were performed.

Greetings, wishes and congratulations were delivered by G. Polishchuk, I. Hilkovskaya, E. Pugach, A. Lifshitz, V. Chernitskiy.

After the official part of the ceremony, children were dancing, singing, guitar and piano playing.

In conclusion, all guests and participants had sweets, cooked by the parents of heroes of the day.