When Norah started kindergarten, I was very excited for her to attend Makom Community after school. Makom has met all of my expectations. Norah has made many friends – some at her school and some to attend other schools – and we’ve made friends with Jewish families in our community. Norah has an awareness and understanding of Jewish holidays and rituals – she comes home singing songs, asking to light Shabbat candles and bake challah, asking Michael and I to share our “brush it off, lock it in” for the week.
Makom’s educators have also impressed us throughout the year as they supported and navigated Norah’s sometimes “big” emotions. The attention to both Norah’s feelings and experiences, follow up with the thoughtful phone calls from staff to discuss how we can all best support her showed us Makom staff’s excellent skills in supporting kids to be their most authentic. When she’s at Makom, Norah gets to lean into what she loves and also learns new ideas that enrich her Jewish life.