New Jewish youth group forms--and goes bowling

Gathering to bowl and savor the last day of mid-winter break at Colonial Lanes in Chester, on Sunday, was the Jewish Orange Youth (JOY) program, a new county-wide youth program sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Greater Orange County. The youth, ages 6-16, and their families, from around the county, bowled, snacked and got to know each other. The event was an opportunity for families to get their kids together in an informal manner with other Jewish kids from around the county.

With increased incidents of antisemitism and other forms of hate both locally and throughout the country, the Jewish Federation aims to provide a supportive community for youth.

In March, the JOY Teens will embark on a trip to the Holocaust Museum & Center for Tolerance and Education in Rockland County, with the aim of “learning about moral courage through the lens of the Holocaust.” Jewish teens from Orange County are encouraged to invite a Jewish or non-Jewish friend to participate in the educational opportunity.

The Jewish Federation acknowledged the Littman family for sponsoring the JOY Teen Initiative and Zachor Antisemitism Initiative for co-sponsoring the program on moral courage with the Holocaust Museum & Center for Tolerance and Education in Rockland County.