Bris Avrohom, headquartered in Hillside, New Jersey, recently celebrated a milestone of its 31st Gala Weddings at the Sheraton in Parsippany, in which eight couples from the former Soviet Union were married according to Jewish tradition. This event was called a “Celebration of Religious Freedom.” To date, Bris Avrohom has married close to 900 couples.
The Sheraton Parsippany Hotel’s ballroom was filled with the eight chuppahs and each couple’s family and friends, numbering approximately 350 guests, who came to participate in this important milestone in their lives. Rabbi Mordechai, executive director, and Mrs. Shterney Kanelsky, associate director of Bris Avrohom, both prepared each couple for marriage. Each couple was escorted to their chuppahs for their ceremonies and were presented with wedding gifts, which included sacred books published by Bris Avrohom with Russian translation, candlesticks and a Kiddush cup to enhance their lives as a Jewish family following the ceremonies.
Concurrently celebrated with this event was Bris Avrohom’s 37th annual dinner, marking their achievements for the past year as well as honoring those individuals who have shown their dedication and commitment to their cause. This dinner’s theme was “Light Up the World.”
The event’s honorees were Drs. Ilya and Polina Lipkin, Jews from the former Soviet Union who became practicing dentists after immigrating to the United States. The Community Service Award was conferred on representatives of New Jersey Transit, Thomas E. Clark, regional manager of government and community relations, and John C. Leon, senior director of government and community relations, through whose efforts helped bring the lights of Chanukah to millions of people with the erection of menorahs at various public spaces. The Woman of Valor Award was bestowed upon Bella Volfman, who has served Bris Avrohom with her 30 years of dedication and commitment.
Bris Avrohom was privileged to have Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno as its keynote speaker. She engaged the audience by talking about her compassion and care for the Russian-Jewish community’s needs, her education and admiration of our Jewish heritage, and her future support for our programs and activities, expressing her wishes to Bris Avrohom to surpass its placement of 114 Chanukah menorahs of last year.
For more information about the Bris Avrohom organization, please call their headquarters at (908) 289-0770 or visit their website, www.brisavrohom.org.
