The Jewish Home Family is hosting a Pink Shabbat at its facilities in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness. The Pink Shabbat for Seniors & Their Loved Ones is a collaboration between Sharsheret, a national non-profit offering a community of support to women and their families facing breast cancer and ovarian cancer, and the Jewish Home Family to raise awareness and provide resources to community members.

The Jewish Home at Rockleigh and Jewish Home Assisted Living in River Vale will be hosting a full weekend of Pink Shabbat events, including a speech from a breast cancer survivor and a grand pink Kiddush Saturday morning, October 15. Rockleigh and River Vale residents, together with members of the Gallen Adult Day Center will be taking part in the Pink Challah Baking ahead of Pink Shabbat. Jewish Home Assisted Living will be giving away complimentary pink challah rolls to whoever stops by Friday.

“When representatives of Sharsheret (‘a linked chain’ in Hebrew) told us of their Pink Shabbat programs across America, we lit up with the idea of hosting such a program here at the Jewish Home,” said Jewish Home at Rockleigh Executive VP Sunni Herman. “Our residents, several of whom are breast cancer survivors, will take a stance against breast cancer by participating in a weekend of events, culminating in a special intergenerational Shabbat service and Kiddush where breast cancer awareness can be discussed.”

One in 40 Ashkenazi Jews carries a BRCA gene mutation, which greatly increases the risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer, nearly 10 times the rate of the general population.