05/07/2026
On Wednesday, the greater Bergen County Jewish community gathered at the Kaplen JCC to celebrate and learn the poignant stories of the Jews of the Mizrach. In a program that was designed by BPY a few years ago, our 7th graders were divided into groups to research the communities, customs, and history of the Jews of the Mizrach, and to record interviews with representatives from different communities. This year, our students interviewed people from Syria, Morocco, Yemen, Iran, Iraq, and Italy. Their stories reflected struggle and courage, strength and inspiration, warmth and love. This program was, in reality, the climactic point of a year long learning throughout the grades - designed and executed by Rav Gaon, our Rav Beit HaSefer - where students learned about great Mizrachi rabbinic leaders, minhagim, culture and cuisine, and history. The program last night, designed by our very own Robyn Badash, featured a performance by our choir, led by Morah Chana Salamon - featuring Sephardic songs, artifacts from the Mizrachi lands, belonging to our interviewees, and delicious Sephardic food as refreshments. One of our interviewees, Charlie Moche, together with his grandson Leo, a BPY star student, reflected upon their experiences in this program. Many of the attendees commented after the program how moving it was to learn about our interviewees' amazing stories!