A recent mission traveled to Copenhagen, Denmark to visit families affected by the terrorist attack of a few weeks ago that resulted in the killing of shul volunteer Dan Uzan. In addition to visiting Mr. Uzan’s family, the mission visited with Hannah Bentow, the young woman celebrating her bat mitvah at the synagogue when it was attacked.

Prior to the trip, Jordan Hiller of Woodmere, NY, learned that Hannah was regretting having a bat mitzvah because she felt responsible for Mr. Uzan’s death. To underscore how important her bat mitzvah was, Mr. Hiller asked numerous girls in yeshivot to write letters to Hannah expressing what Judaism means to them, including why becoming a bat mitzvah is important and deserving of celebration. Ma’ayanot students not only participated in this effort, but actually contributed the bulk of the messages that were compiled into a book that was presented to Hannah last week.

Rabbi Yitzi Loewenthal, Chabad Rabbi in Denmark, commented that the visit felt like a “global hug of love, care and concern of Jewish people from around the world.”