Almost 200 members of Melbourne’s Russian-speaking Jewish community gathered on Sunday 10 September to celebrate and learn about Rosh Hashanah.
The event was coordinated by Anna Maylis, the head of Kangarusski, the Zionist Federation of Australia’s Russian-speaking department. She explained the meaning of each item on the Rosh Hashanah table and said the traditional blessings together with all the guests.
Irena Maylis, one of the main organisers and a volunteer said, “It is a hard work to prepare and deliver such a big event, but it is totally worth the effort as you can see how important it is for our guests and how grateful they are. We created an amazing opportunity for our community to celebrate together!”
Roman Mirkus, one of the Directors of Australian Forum of Russian-speaking Jewry ran a Rosh Hashanah Trivia for adults and kids. He said, “It is amazing to see how much our kids know about the festival and their interest and enthusiasm to participate in Jewish educational activities.”
A separate kids’ program was organised by UJEB and the Russian Jewish School, Lider. Over 40 kids participated in a honey plate craft activity and Rosh Hashana biscuit decoration. Each child also received a real shofar as a Rosh Hashana present.
The program also included a short play about the traditions of the Rosh Hashanah, an Israeli dance class and live singing in Hebrew and Yiddish.
